Classic Car Dealers in Florida

Florida titles and registers cars through the county tax collector, on behalf of the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV). Nobody inspects a classic for emissions or safety, and the antique registration is cheap, so the points that need care are the 30-day title deadline, the VIN check on a car from another state, sales tax on the first $5,000, and flood damage.

Titling the car

The buyer must apply for a Florida title within 30 days of delivery, and a $20 fee is added after that (s. 319.23). Buying from a private seller, the seller completes the transfer section of the Florida title with both names and signatures, the sale date and the price, and you take it to a tax collector's office, where sales tax is collected on the price. Tax collectors generally require every owner to be present with ID or to appoint someone by power of attorney; Hillsborough County, for example, states this rule. Buying from a licensed dealer, the dealer applies for the title on your signed application. The odometer rules do not reach most classics: a vehicle of model year 2010 or older is exempt from odometer disclosure after 10 years (s. 319.225).

Fees vary a little by county. Hillsborough County's fee table (checked October 2026) lists $75.75 to transfer a Florida title, $85.75 for an out-of-state title and $28 for a new plate, plus a $225 initial registration fee for a car being registered in Florida for the first time. Cars registered as antiques do not pay that $225 fee (s. 320.072). Manatee County estimates $396 to $441 to title and register a car for the first time, before sales tax.

Buying a classic from another state

A car titled elsewhere needs a VIN verification on form HSMV 82042. The inspector checks the number under the windshield and in the door jamb; for a car made before 1955 the motor number is verified instead. It can be signed by a Florida notary, a licensed Florida dealer, a law enforcement or military police officer, or a tax collector or FLHSMV examiner. Bring the original out-of-state title (a copy is not accepted) and proof of a Florida insurance policy. No other inspection is needed. If you are moving to Florida, the car must be titled and registered within 10 days of starting work, enrolling children in school or otherwise becoming a resident.

Missing titles and title brands

Florida's bonded title is narrow. FLHSMV procedure TL-70 limits it to private sales of cars with a current Florida paper title and no lien, bought by a Florida resident, and excludes any vehicle more than 29 model years old on January 1. In 2026 that means nothing older than 1997, so a true classic with no title cannot be fixed with a bond; ask the tax collector what it will accept before you hand over money. A seller who has lost a Florida title can order a duplicate, which costs $75.75 in Hillsborough County.

Read the title for brands. Florida must brand flood vehicles, rebuilt cars, kit cars, replicas, custom vehicles and street rods, and a seller must disclose those brands in writing (s. 319.14). A flood vehicle is one declared a total loss because of water damage.

Antique, Horseless Carriage and year-of-manufacture plates

• Antique (regular): for a car of a model year after 1945 that is at least 30 years old. The license tax is a flat $7.50 instead of the weight-based rate (s. 320.08), and Hillsborough County lists the antique auto registration at $21.10. The registration is renewed every year. The statute puts no exhibition-only limit on this plate, and an owner can choose a regular or specialty plate instead.
• Horseless Carriage: for model year 1945 and earlier. The plate is permanent and needs no renewal while the car stays with the same owner. It is issued by FLHSMV itself on form HSMV 83045, and you need a Florida title and Florida insurance.
• Antique (permanent): for historical vehicles 30 years or older used only in exhibitions, parades or public display. FLHSMV says it does not apply to a car driven daily.
• Year-of-manufacture plate: an original Florida plate from the car's model year, furnished by the owner and authenticated by the tax collector. The statute says model year 1974 or earlier; FLHSMV's procedure manual says 1975 or earlier, for cars, motorcycles and pickups of 5,000 pounds or less. It is renewed every year, cannot be replaced if stolen, and can pass to a new owner if the seller gives it up.
• Custom vehicle and street rod plates are for altered cars, and the title must carry that brand first.

Emissions and inspections

Florida ended its vehicle inspection and maintenance program in 2001, according to the Department of Environmental Protection, and there is no periodic safety inspection. That makes an independent pre-purchase inspection your only real check on the car.

Sales and use tax

• The state rate is 6%. County surtax applies only to the first $5,000 of the price and follows the buyer's home address, and some counties levy none. In Hillsborough, at 1.5%, a $10,000 car carries $600 state tax and $75 surtax.
• A dealer collects the tax. On a private sale you pay it at the tax collector's office when you title the car. A trade-in reduces the taxable price (s. 212.09).
• Buy out of state and bring the car in, and Florida use tax is due, less any like tax you lawfully paid to the other state (s. 212.06). A car used in another state for six months or longer is presumed not to have been bought for use in Florida.
• A resident of another state buying from a Florida dealer pays tax at the home state's rate, capped at Florida's, and signs a notarized statement that the car will be registered at home within 45 days (s. 212.08).

Dealers and consumer protection

Anyone who buys, sells, offers or displays three or more vehicles in a 12-month period is presumed to be in the business and needs an FLHSMV dealer license (s. 320.27), and licensed dealers must post a surety bond or letter of credit with the state. FLHSMV publishes the list of licensed dealers, so check a seller before you deal with one. Read the Buyers Guide on the window. FLHSMV's consumer guidance is blunt: there is no three-day cooling-off period in Florida. The state lemon law covers new vehicles only (s. 681.102), so it does not apply to a classic.

Checking for flood damage

When an insurer totals a flooded car it brands the title and reports it to FLHSMV. For a Florida-titled car, FLHSMV's online Motor Vehicle Information Check shows brands by VIN or title number, and a National Motor Vehicle Title Information System (NMVTIS) report shows title history from other states. Not every state brands flood cars, so a car flooded elsewhere can arrive with a clean title. In person, FLHSMV suggests smelling for must or heavy air freshener, looking for a waterline or mud in the glove box, under the dash and in the trunk, and checking underneath for rust that seems out of place.

Insurance

To register, you need $10,000 of personal injury protection and $10,000 of property damage liability, on a Florida policy from an insurer licensed in Florida. Coverage must stay in force even when the car is not driven, which matters for a car in storage: turn the plate in before you cancel, or the license and plate can be suspended and a reinstatement fee of up to $500 applies. An agreed-value collector policy is a separate decision on top of these minimums.

The Florida classic car scene

The calendar runs through the winter. Mecum's Kissimmee auction at Osceola Heritage Park is scheduled for January 5 to 17, 2027, and Barrett-Jackson lists its Palm Beach auction for April 15 to 17, 2027. The Daytona Turkey Run, a nonprofit car show in Daytona Beach, runs every March and November; the next one is November 25 to 29, 2026. Cars bought at auction still go through the same title, VIN and tax steps above.

Sources: FLHSMV (procedures RS-25 and TL-70, form HSMV 82042, consumer, dealer, insurance and new resident pages), the 2026 Florida Statutes (chapters 212, 319, 320, 324, 627 and 681), the Florida Department of Revenue, the Department of Environmental Protection, and the Hillsborough and Manatee county tax collectors. Fees and rules change; confirm with your county tax collector before you buy.