sorry for the irrelevant post but anyways im buying a 94 integra ls manual but i have no experience in buying a second hand car... my situation is that the title of the car is not in the name of the seller because he never registered it when he got the car... i just dont want to end up getting ripped off or something... im also wondering if anyone could run me a carfax report JH4DB7555RS012007...all help is appreciated
im getting the car with 130k miles for 800 bucks with a couple cosmetic damages... anything i should look out for???

 

You should check if it is a stolen car.

 

yeah I would check it out with the local PD. IF that is clear, and your interested in it, ask the seller if you could have it checked out by your mechanic or local shop to see if there are any major problems. Usually if they say no, its a bad sign meaning that there is probably something significantly wrong with it that is expensive to fix. Have them meet you at a certain time so it can be checked. Either that or a mobile mechanic, or possibly a knowledgeable friend.

Also, you may want to check your local motor vehicle department to see what the rules are in this situation. When I bought my 91 RS, the lady had to fill out the back of the title & sign it. Then I had to fill in my info. If his info is filled in on the back of the title, then he may have to register it first, wait for the new title (how it is in Cali), then sell it to you. If its blank, then there probably isnt going to be a problem. I would find out the reason it wasnt ever registered in their name & how long. There may be registration penalties for it either not getting its yearly registration on time. Check on that too.

This should help: New Jersey Motor Vehicle Info

Buying a car with this kind of situation, I would make sure I had EVERY base covered so not to get fucked in the end.

Good luck!

 

thanks alot for the replies... got a couple more q's though... wont i need his name on the title in order for me to buy the vehicle? what im planning to do is ask him to register the car under his name first and then buy it from him...and also once i buy the car from him, would i be able to drive it home without tags???

 

if you can get a hold of the original owner, and if he agrees, you can send him a assignment of title correction form(just ask the tax assessor place). he just needs to sign it, and then he can mail it back to you. then you just go to the tax assessor and get the title and register the car for tags. it might be different from state to state so you prob should double check.

 

as long as you're within a reasonable distance, driving home w/o tags shouldn't be a big deal. you can always bring your own off another car....or have the guy who sold you the car write up an invoice...then if you get pulled over you can just be like "i just bought it...look, here's the title, and the invoice that we signed, i'm taking it home, then i'm going to get plates"

actually, what some people do...(i dont know if the car has plates on it now)....especially if you live a ways away....is that you keep the plates to drive home. then you send the plates in the mail to him, and he sends you the title back.

 

technically he has to have it registered in his name to sign it over to you.

 

motor vehicle regulations regarding title and registration vary from state to state....you would do well to take the questions you asked here and send them in an email to your NJ dmv on their website.
There is always a legal way to do a transaction and a slightly less legal way; that would also be up to you. I one time drove a car 300 miles back home after swapping my car for that persons. I just put my plates and registration on the car I swapped for, and drove very carefully home making sure to obey all traffic rules.....but if I would have had an accident I would have been screwed.
If he hasn't put his info on the title, then chances are you won't need a new title, but if he has, then you will need a new one, cause you can't make corrections to the title itself
Anyway, $800 is a very low price for a good running 94 teg, becareful cause as the cliche goes.....it could be too good to be true. Also sometimes people bite off more than they can chew when buying a project car, and then they look to dump it on someone else.
Good Luck

 

best thing for you to do is have him have the car signed over in his name then after he gets a new title he can sign it over to you

and you can drive it home without plates but it might be best if he dropped it off and then take his plates

then take the title to dmv and register it, get your plates, and new title

 

I wouldnt buy it, why would someone buy a car and then never register it. If you have the time look for an original owner car. THis is what I always do and my Integras have never broken down and I've put over 100k on each of them

 

i know it does sound too good to be true but it also has its flaws... i need a new pass door, pass fender, hood and bumper to complete the car....

i'm definitley going to my local dmv and check on the rules about transfering of title when his name isnt on the title..

i think the safest bet now is what reggaebai says, which is to get him to transfer over the title to him then have him deliver it to me...

thanks for the help guys i appreciate it...

 

to drive the car home get a temp tag from DMV

in VA you can get one online and print it out to drive the car home until you get it properly registered for your own tags

good luck