Calif.DMV, BAD news

[Diesel42]

Well after my long journey from California to Edmonton, Canada and back home with my 83 BJ42 the trip went off without a hitch. All my customs clearance at border was intact,everything went perfect. Got home, went to DMV the following day. Turned in all necessary paperwork, DMV gave me a temp operators permit good until July. They said i should see my title and plates before that time. Got letter from there "Technical Compliance Section Regsistration Processing Unit" today which said that i needed to provide them the original vehicle emissions sticker. I stated that the vehicle didn't have or even come with said sticker and that it was exempt from Federal EPA (do to 21year or older rule-EPA 3520-1). They claim that that form allows it to enter the U.S. but individual states have there own emissions laws.They said they require either the sticker or a letter from Toyota stating the vehicle was compliant and met Calif. emissions for 1983. Toyota will not provide this letter,I've tried(even the guy from Air resourses board said the manufactorers letter was impossible). They then said i needed to contact Calif.Air resources Board. Air resources board said they could not and would not offer me a sticker because it never met the requirement to begin with that was why they were never sold in U.S. to begin with. They said only the gas version was met by Toyota. So they said my dream vehicle needed to be exported out of the United States. I proclaimed that these exact models where already here and that i had several friends here in California that had brought them down and had recieved title and plates from Calif.DMV.( No names were mentioned,of coarse). They said that unforunatily some slip through the paperwork cracks.But mine didn't. Ironically, Calif.DMV, doesn't even require emissions testing for diesels, therefore, i can't even go get a smog test done to show them that it doesn't put out anything more than any other large deisel(i.e., the bulging city transiet buses,etc.)Total catch-22. Bottom line they're refusing to register my vehicle and returning all my paperwork and fees. And i just sold my 75 FJ40 this week so now i have nothing.

 

[stumpy]

find a pre-'76 and just swap out the frame! or the vin plates on the door jambs.

of course i didnt tell you to...

although now the CA DMV knows to keep their eyes on you.

seriously though, no sense in dumping a good truck. look up PVcruisers.com and talk to them about importing. they might be able to help. they have brought in some SWEET diesel rigs and registered them in CA.

good luck.

 

[rick_d]

come over to Tucson, I'll reg it and sell back to you.

we have 30% opacity tests (which my current J70 blows 1%) but that's all.

They won't win, we will.

rick

 

[70sguy]

Maybe you should export your dream vehicle out of "land of the free" and yourself along with it.. then when you get up here buy yourself a nice HDJ81 to help you forget about the whole mess

Seriously now.. there has to be a way.. so get with rick d in AZ.

Best of luck, hope it all works out.

 

[Diesel42]

Well, i'm pissed and on the hunt for info. Researching the smog laws and government three ring circus. I feel the same about this vehicle as i do my gun rights. This California is unbelievable. You can beat that once some senator or other politician falls in love with one of these LC's they all will be suddonly on a exemption list. Spoke with a state referee this morn. Explained the catch-22. He said he could provide me with emissions label if i had the letter from Toyota stating it met 83 emmisions. Explained to him it was never marketed originally in Calif to begin with so i can't get it from Toyota.However, it's exempt from Fed.EPA. This guy said "that's ridiculous" so he's researching my options. Will call back. If this is unsucsessful, i'm headed to my state senators office. somehow we need to get Gov.Swartzenagor interestd in our rigs. You can bet he wouldn't be denied one.

 

[brownbear]

Anyone good on with making up letters, use Toyota's letterhead, fake names, have them call a friend to confirm. He can answer, hello RandD emmisions regulations.

LOL that is a joke.

But seriously what kind of commie place do you live in? Time to move.

 

[Imola Red]

Bring it to Lake Tahoe area of Nevada. I can buy it and register it here (we have no smog laws in our county for the state) and then sell it back to you. Where are you in California?

PM me if your interested.

Aaron

 

[crushers]

But seriously what kind of commie place do you live in? Time to move.

BC??

 

[Diesel42]

Yes, once a get all my original paperwork back from DWV, i could look to submit into another less intrusive state where if sucsessful, would obtain title and plates. Then maybe in a year or so reattempt in California . My guess is that the VIN# is red flagged. Been studying Calif.Vehicle Code law, section 4000 references registration and lists what determines if a person who drives an out of state vehicle must register. Lawers evryday in every court room find loopholes in the law to get the child molester ,drug dealer,muderer, etc. off. Just have to find the loop hole. They are not friendly(by any stretch of the imagination) at DMV. Rude and unimpathetic to say the least. THey feel our vehicles are GROSS poluters and don't want them getting in here. The guy at the Air reasorces board had the balls to say that if it weren't for the Democrats(Liberals) imagine what kinds of vehicles would be driven around in our state!!! The nerve. In my opinion this little 4cyl. is better on the environment then most of the other vehicles i see driving down road.

 

[Cruiserdrew]

You'll be happier in the long run just regestering in another state. The California ARB is full of single minded radical individuals whose goal is to eliminate the internal combustion engine from the state. I can almost promise you will get nowhere with them. The DMV smog referee might be your best bet. Most times, a Canadian import will have to register in another state first, then register in California.

Don't forget the legislature passed a law last year that theoretically allows the ARB to regulate CO2 emissions. That's a back door way to mandate fuel effeciency if you think about it.

The same group repealed a law that allowed a 30 year rolling exemption just as I was about to become smog exempt with my '76. The idea of a 50 year old vehicle with working (and available) smog equiptment is laughable.

The option about a pre'76 frame is not a bad one either as long as you get a title with it. Then you can use the frame section with the VIN number to make yours legal.

 

[dblugly]

Diesel42

That is a total crock of $h!t. Do you have any family in another state that could help you out? I own property in Idaho I called Idaho DMV, they said bring it on in, that was my plane "B". Maybe take up the offers to sell it out of state and re-buy it.

Tell your state senator how you were going to burn biodiesel to help clean the air and now Government B/S is keeping you from doing your part. They seem to bend over backwards for special interest. But then the state will be losing tax money, damn I thought I had a good idea.

 

[madams557]

Diesel 42,

Have you made contact with any Federal EPA representatives or attempted to speak to someone else at the office? Maybe have a friend attempt to register it in another county?

The reason I ask is because I imported an FJ45 from Canada that had zero U.S. emissions or Colorado emissions. When I called the local Colorado DMV office, I was told that I would need to retrofit all of the emissions on it, and I was completely prepared to do that.

However, once I imported it, I figured I would let the CO DMV tell me what I needed. I made an appointment with the official State Inspection office and come to find out - I'm exempt from ALL state requirements because of the EPA Federal exemption paperwork that I received from the border.

Now, I understand that Colorado and California are two seperate and different places - a fact that many of us Coloradoans would like to keep that way.

But, the point I hope to make is that sometimes the $6.00 an hour clerk behind the counter is putting $6.00 an hour worth of effort into your unique situation.

Hope it works out for you.

One other thought. Would the process be the same if this was brought in from another state?? Supposed it was registered in Colorado/Nevada/Utah first, then California, would that make a difference in the registration process?

Good luck.

Michael

 

[lowenbrau]

Sounds like exactly the same trouble Henry Brimmer had with his HJ60. After years of dead ends, he just gave up and sold it. Diesels ain't got no CARBs and vice versa.

 

[Diesel42]

Madaams557- Excellent point. Don't blame you about Californians. I see your point about Fed EPA. I've been on the phone(took the day off) all day long. Calling every Gov. office i can think of(Bureau of smog,lic.referees,air resource board). My BJ is exempt from Fed EPA. A standard other states are in compliance with(as you've stated Colorado).Calif. doesn't have any smog/emissions testing or regulations. However, there hanging there hat on the fact that it is not titlable/registerable w/o a cal.emissions labael or a letter from Toyota indicating it met emissions requirments from 1983. Toyota says they have no such info because they never sold it here to begin with. So Claif wants to regulate my vehicle when they don't have a forum for regulating deisels to begin with. Catch-22. When i argue this point, they sit silently on the phone fo r4-5 seconds then say,"But you have to have the Ca.Emissions label to register it!" WHOAAAAAAAAAAAAAA. IDIOTS

 

[lshobie]

Can you go to another office - just so you don't have to talk to that person? Did they come out and personally inspect the truck for this label?

Like someone said earlier, an idiot making 6 bucks an hour probably doesn't have alot in the brains dept. - so go to someone smarter. Maybe find someone on here who has done the same thing and go to that DMV office?

Good luck with that. Barring that - do a frame swap I guess - but I don't think it will come to that.

Regards

 

[ChuckB]

Following this thread very closely. I am very interested to here the outcome/work-around. Good luck!!

 

[Diesel42]

Thanks to all that have responded,including PM's. The trouble with going to another DMV office is that all my paperwork has already been submitted and made it's way to Sacramento. I have a couple of ideas. A bit sneaky, but legal. The DMV lady said that my temp reg's(good through 7-31-06) could still be used as long as i was working on the problem. Then she would extend it if i still need time. So i'll play that for a while. A solution will present itself. Based on some of the ideas you folks have given. Keep the ideas coming and i'll keep you all posted.

 

[Diescipel]

Keith--

I am in Nebraska, got your message, but cell phone roaming=$$$$$.

I will have access to all my importing docs by early next week. I am not driving my BJ right now, so can't use that as reference.

Couple things:

1. Do they 100% understand that this is a diesel vehicle and not a non-CA gas 40 series? Diesels are smog exempt in CA so I don't know why they need an emissions sticker, but I have seen "complies with CA emissions" stickers on Mercedes diesels sold in CA.

2. VW TDIs are brought in all the time and registered, and as far as I know NONE have a CA compliant emissions sticker because they are not allowed to be sold new in CA. They can't go after you and not the TDI owners. It is exactly the same principle for registering both. Furthermore, they can't go after you when I got mine in fine. Maybe research what the TDI owners are up to.

3. I had to go through a second round of sending docs to the DMV after I went to the local office--they said they needed more evidence of proper importation. I just threw copies of everything I had at them, and a few weeks later I had my title. You might consider doing the same--just copy everything you have and write a letter and send it. They may be looking for something that you aren't recognizing and they will. I know a long shot, but what the hay.

4. Go to a referee. Get a smog test with B100--somebody on MUD had to smog a diesel swap in WA or ID or someplace and passed with flying colors. My BJ always passed BC's AirCare tests, according to the PO.

5. I'm not sure selling it to someone out of state then buying it back will help you. Won't the CA DMV ask you for the emissions sticker again to title and register it?

I think there are a ton of diesels being brought into CA right now because folks want to run bioD. Don't blame them it's great. So it looks like the DMV is cracking down on this, but they cannot change their practices arbitrarily like this--they need direction from the legislature, and " A bill of attainder, ex post facto law, or law impairing the obligation of contracts may not be passed" Art. 1, Sec. 9 CA State Constitution.

HTH
B

 

[AATLAS1X]

See post 46...................Ugly!

 

[AATLAS1X]

See post 46.............................


First time I have deleted in a thread..............