Selling a dead car in Spartanburg

When fixing it no longer adds up, we buy whole non-running and junk cars. Sell the whole car as it sits, with free pickup anywhere in the US.

Boot, tow, then the bill

The immobilization rules in Chapter 40 run in a fixed order. The boot goes on. If the release is not secured within 24 hours, the car is towed or impounded. Section 40-165 then adds the immobilization fee and says the owner "shall pay such towing and storage charges as may be incurred." All of that, plus the original fines or bonds, is due before you can get the car out. On a car worth little to begin with, those charges can pass its value. Our towed or impounded guide covers the options.

Trucks, vans and the street at night

Section 40-75 is strict about bigger vehicles:

• A commercial vehicle has no legal spot on a street in a residential district, or on a residential lot, "at any time of day or night."
• "No truck exceeding three-quarters ton in capacity shall park on any street within the city limits between the hours of 6:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.," apart from up to one hour for meals or personal needs.
• In the daytime, those trucks may stop on the street only to load or unload.
• Moving or delivery vans being loaded or unloaded get up to 48 hours without a permit. Longer than that needs a permit from the city building official.

So a dead one-ton pickup or work van has no legal place to wait on a Spartanburg street. See junk truck or SUV.

The yard: state law, and maybe more

Among the Spartanburg code sections we checked, none sets a rule for a junk car parked in a private yard. That does not make the yard a free zone. State law applies inside Spartanburg, and an ordinance we did not read could add more, so it pays to call City Hall before a dead car settles in.

South Carolina defines an abandoned vehicle as one "left unattended on a highway more than 48 hours, or on private or other public property more than seven days" without the consent of whoever controls the property. A derelict vehicle includes one with the motor or major parts removed, or one "more than eight years old without current registration." All abandoned and derelict vehicles "are subject to removal from public or private property," and county and municipal code enforcement officers are among those who may tag them. That colored tag warns a Spartanburg owner the car could be handled as derelict or abandoned.

Once a car is towed, both the towing company and the storage facility must send letters by registered or certified mail to the last known registered owner and any lienholders. A Spartanburg car left unclaimed can go to public auction. Whoever buys it receives a magistrate's order of sale and owns it free of liens.

Title work: the Greer branch

The SCDMV branch we checked for Spartanburg County is at 610 Arlington Road in Greer, about 16 miles west of the middle of Spartanburg as the crow flies (864-801-9375). South Carolina issues titles at the state level; the county's part is the property tax bill a buyer needs to register.

Before you sell, make sure the title is in your own name, because a careful buyer will check. On the first assignment, write in:

1. the buyer's name and address
2. any lienholder
3. the odometer reading
4. the Spartanburg sale price and date
5. your signature and the buyer's

A title without a price line isn't enough by itself, so attach a bill of sale. Next, Spartanburg sellers send Form 416, the Notice of Vehicle Sold, to the SCDMV by mail or bring it in. Whoever buys your Spartanburg car then gets 45 days after the purchase date to register it.

The plate does not go with the car

Your plate stays yours. In Spartanburg, move the plate to another vehicle titled to you, or return it to the SCDMV with Form 452, License Plate Turn In, mailed with Form 416 or brought to a branch. After that, end the liability insurance. After you sell has the rest.

No title, or a salvage question

A duplicate title is $15 from the SCDMV, with a $20 optional expedite fee for same-day service in person. A lienholder on record gets the copy instead of you. Spartanburg owners of old wrecks get a shortcut. No title in Spartanburg? In Spartanburg, you sign a form affirming the facts. Then a car over twelve model years with no valid plate, and with no engine or unable to run, can head to a demolisher or secondary metals recycler. It covers a car you own whose title is faulty, lost or destroyed, and one abandoned on your property. See junk car with no title.

For a Spartanburg car, salvage status starts when repairs reach 75% of fair market value or more. That rule leaves out Spartanburg cars valued at $2,000 or less. If an insurer totaled yours, read insurer totaled it.

Getting an offer

Spartanburg sellers can call (877) 421-6008 or send the offer form. A city driveway, a downtown spot by the clock tower, or a shop in Greer, 17.2 miles away, all work for pickup. Sellers farther out can start from Greenville, 25.9 miles, or Simpsonville, 24.0. For statewide rules, see South Carolina.