Grants Pass: a tarp won't hide it, so sell it

What Chapter 5.20 says

Title 5 of the Grants Pass code, Nuisances and Offenses, gives inoperable cars a chapter to themselves. Its definition begins "'Inoperable Motor Vehicle' means any vehicle including the parts," so loose parts fall within reach along with whole cars. Its list of public property includes "parking lots, streets, parklands, and vacant public property."

The chapter runs on a short clock. Its text refers to "the expiration of the 72-hour period" and goes on to "each day during which the vehicle or" its parts stay in violation. The online copy we read breaks off mid-sentence in places. Read Chapter 5.20 in full on the city's document center before relying on any detail, and treat 72 hours as the clock to beat.

Oregon rules on top of the city's

State law applies in Grants Pass too. Leaving a car on a Grants Pass highway or any property is an offense in Oregon, and the owner on DMV records pays to tow and dispose of it. Unclaimed towed cars go to public auction after 30 days, or are disposed of under local ordinance. For an abandoned car a certified appraiser puts at no more than $1,000, Oregon allows disposal after photos and notice to the registered owner and anyone holding a security interest.

If the car on your Grants Pass lot isn't yours, the DMV says "You cannot claim ownership of an abandoned vehicle on your property." ORS 98.830 permits a tow after a notice sits on the car no less than 72 hours, backed by your signed description of the car and its spot. DMV offers no form and won't reveal the owner.

The emissions question near Medford

Grants Pass sits 25.4 miles from Medford, and that matters here more than in most Oregon towns. Grants Pass is outside the zones where DEQ tests non-exempt cars every two years, which are the Portland and Medford metropolitan areas. Grants Pass is its own metro area. If you're unsure which side of a testing boundary your registration address falls on, DEQ's boundary lookup settles it. Where a test applies, 1996 and newer cars get an OBD plug-in test and 1995 and older cars a tailpipe test. A car that won't pass can still be sold. See failed emissions.

The Beacon Drive DMV office and the title

The DMV office we checked is 162 NE Beacon Dr, Suite 127 (541-474-3179), about a mile east of central Grants Pass, as the crow flies.

A Grants Pass seller's signature, with the date, goes on the title's back side, or on a bill of sale. Any lienholder adds its release signature. Got a 2011 or newer model that's under 20? Then the odometer reading goes down in writing, signed by seller and buyer alike. DMV's seller steps don't include a notary at all.

A title that's gone missing must be replaced before the sale. A Grants Pass owner pays only the normal title fee, since Oregon adds nothing for a duplicate. Most cars pay $101 to $116 based on fuel economy, and an all-electric car pays $192. If another state has labeled a car junk, scrap or non-repairable, Oregon has no way to title it.

Plates and the DMV2U report

Take the plates or leave them: Oregon lets a Grants Pass seller do either. Swapping them to a car owned by someone else kills the unused registration on both. Ten days after the sale, at the latest, DMV2U should have your report naming the buyer at their address. After that step and a signed-over title, a Grants Pass seller isn't on the hook under Oregon law for how the buyer parks, drives or abandons it.

Southern Oregon towns

Medford is 25.4 miles away, Ashland 36.4, Roseburg 54.7 and Klamath Falls 80.7. The Oregon page has statewide rules.

Getting an offer

Use the form online or call (877) 421-6008. Grants Pass sellers can get going on our offer form. In Grants Pass the truck comes to the car, tarp and all, whether it's in a yard, a lot near downtown or a gravel drive outside city limits.