Selling a dead or junk car in Shawnee

Who the rule reaches

Section 19-358 binds anyone "in charge or control of any property within the city, whether as owner, tenant, occupant, lessee or otherwise." Renters answer to it as much as owners do. The same section bars leaving such a car "on any street or highway within the city."

It names three exceptions: a vehicle "in an enclosed building," one on a lawful business's premises when the business needs it, and one in a lawful storage place kept by the city.

How the notice arrives

The officer must "securely attach" a written notice to the vehicle, on a public way or on private land. It states that the car violates the article "which prohibits the abandonment of inoperable vehicles within the city" and gives the 48-hour deadline. Notice also goes by certified mail, return receipt requested, when the owner can be found "by due diligence."

Died at a service station?

Section 22-199 says Shawnee service stations may not let cars that are inoperative or under repair "remain outside such service station for a period greater than seven days." If yours is sitting on a station lot waiting on a repair you will not pay for, see stuck at a repair shop.

Title paperwork from Shawnee

One Pottawatomie County office we checked is at 309 North Broadway Avenue, phone 405-273-0213, about 3 miles southeast of the middle of Shawnee as the crow flies. Titles and tags are also done at Service Oklahoma and licensed tag agencies.

Oklahoma titles went electronic on July 1, 2025, though a paper title already in a drawer remains valid until the car is next sold. You transfer an electronic title with Form 718, called the Electronic Title Bill of Sale by the state. Get it online, print and complete it, have a notary sign, then give it to the buyer. With paper, you sign the assignment on the back before a notary. The buyer pays the $11 title fee.

Take the plate off and keep it. In Oklahoma a plate can't pass from one owner to the next. For a Shawnee sale, the seller or buyer reports it to Service Oklahoma as a pre-registration within 2 business days. More in bill of sale and after you sell.

Your offer

Use the form or phone (877) 421-6008. Shawnee owners can start by sending our short form. A driveway, a station lot or a side street in Shawnee all work for pickup. Norman is 23.7 miles away and Midwest City 24.3; the Oklahoma page has statewide rules.