Selling a junk or dead car in Sun Prairie

Five days, a citation, then ten more

Section 10.28.080 says these vehicles shall not "be stored or allowed to remain in the open upon private property within the city for a period exceeding five days." The code's definition is broad. A car counts if it is in "such state of physical or mechanical ruin as to be incapable of propulsion," or if it is not safe or legal to drive on public streets. A car with no "lawful current license plates" counts as unlicensed, even if it runs.

The steps after that are spelled out:

1. After five days, the police department or building inspection department issues a citation to the property owner or tenants.
2. If the car is "not removed within ten (10) days after issuance of a citation," the chief of police has it removed and impounded.

Storing it under a roof with walls takes it out of the rule, and so does keeping it at a properly zoned and licensed sales, repair or storage business. A registered owner of collector or antique vehicles may keep unlicensed project cars and parts if they are no health hazard and are screened from public view.

On a street, lot or ramp

Out on public ground the clocks get shorter. Under Section 10.16.120, police can tag a partially dismantled, nonoperable, wrecked or junked car on "any public highway, parking lot or ramp." If it is "not removed within twenty-four (24) hours after notice," it becomes a public nuisance and can be towed.

Section 10.28.010 adds another test. If a car sits unattended on a Sun Prairie street "more than forty-eight (48) hours," or on private land without the landowner's okay, the city calls it abandoned. If a ticket stays on the windshield those 48 hours, the city may assume no one is looking after it.

An abandoned car goes to impound. The city holds it for 10 days after sending certified mail to the titled owner and any secured party of record. To reclaim it you pay towing, storage and notice charges and show the title or other proof of ownership. Section 10.28.060 leaves the owner responsible for the costs, and any amount a sale does not cover can be collected in a civil action.

Winter street rules

The code declares a snow emergency on its own whenever "a snowfall during any period of twenty-four (24) hours or less reaches a depth of three inches or more." Apart from that, no one may park on city streets or posted snow routes from midnight to 7 a.m., December 1 through March 31. A car that will not start sits through those nights collecting tickets, and ticketed cars fall under the city's removal section.

Title, plates and the state's paperwork

On the reverse of a Wisconsin title, put down the agreed price, the purchaser's name and street address, and the odometer figure, then add your signature and the date. A junk car is the exception: write Junk across the title instead, and know it can never be titled again. Title gone missing? WisDOT skips the replacement requirement when the car is being junked.

Hold on to the plates. They can ride on another similar vehicle registered to you, or get destroyed. If plates were left on a car you already sold, WisDOT's form MV2514 cancels them. When the buyer is a private person rather than a business, notify WisDOT of the sale inside 30 days.

Around Sun Prairie

Straight-line, Madison lies 11.7 miles away, Middleton 14.5 and Fitchburg 16.6. Watertown is 25.6 miles off. Statewide rules are on the Wisconsin page.

Getting an offer

Phone (877) 421-6008 or fill out the form for an offer. Our short offer form covers what we need for a Sun Prairie car. If a citation is already taped to the door, say so. Pickup happens in the backyard, beside the garage or in a lot near Main Street, wherever it is parked.