Classic Car Dealers in North Carolina

In North Carolina the title comes from NCDMV through a license plate agency, and the state collects a 3% highway use tax at titling instead of a sales tax. The plate you choose matters for old cars: an antique plate changes the inspection rules, the property tax and how you can drive the car.

Titling the car

You must apply for a new title within 28 days of the transfer, and a late application brings a penalty. Buying from a private seller, the seller signs the assignment on the back of the title in front of a notary, no title passes until that assignment is signed and the car is delivered, and you file a notarized title application (MVR-1) at a license plate agency. A damage disclosure statement is part of the paperwork, and an odometer statement is required only if the car is under 10 years old. Buying from a licensed dealer, you should receive the assigned title when you take delivery, with two exceptions: a lender holds it while you finance, or you have a 10-day option to cancel, in which case the dealer delivers it when that period ends.

Plates do not go with the car. The seller removes them and returns them or moves them to another vehicle, so you register and plate the car in your own name. NCDMV requires continuous North Carolina liability insurance before plates are issued.

Cars from another state

A car bought out of state must be titled in North Carolina before it can be registered. If it is a 1980 model year or older car coming from another state, the state will not issue the title until the public VIN has been verified against the car and the ownership papers. NCDMV can register the car while that check is pending, but the registration lasts one year and is not renewed until the check is done.

Antique plates

• Eligibility: the car must be at least 30 years old, measured from its date of manufacture. The plate reads "Antique"; for a model year 1943 or older car the owner may choose "Horseless Carriage" instead.
• First registration: the State Highway Patrol must inspect and photograph an antique vehicle before it is first titled and registered with antique plates, and instant titles are not available for antiques.
• Use: NCDMV says antique plates are for cars used mainly for exhibitions, club activities, parades and other public interest events. By statute a car on a historic plate may not be operated in furtherance of any commercial enterprise.
• Inspections: a car with an antique plate is exempt from both the annual safety inspection and the emissions inspection.
• Property tax: an individually owned antique automobile maintained mainly for shows, club events and parades can be assessed at the lower of its true value or $500 for county vehicle property tax, by filing form AV-66 with the county.

Inspections and emissions

A car on regular plates needs an annual safety inspection before registration or renewal. A private-sale car must pass inspection before it is registered unless it passed within the previous 12 months, and a car moving in from another state can register first and be inspected at its next renewal. Emissions testing applies in 19 counties: Alamance, Buncombe, Cabarrus, Cumberland, Davidson, Durham, Forsyth, Franklin, Gaston, Guilford, Iredell, Johnston, Lincoln, Mecklenburg, New Hanover, Randolph, Rowan, Union and Wake. The state environmental agency exempts vehicles older than 30 years in every county, and antique-plated cars are exempt as well.

Highway use tax and property tax

• The highway use tax is 3% and is paid when the title is transferred. At a dealer it applies to the sales price less any trade-in allowance. In a private sale it applies to the car's market value less any trade-in allowance, and the state presumes that value from its own schedule of values, not necessarily the price you paid.
• If the car has been titled in your name in another state for at least 90 days before you apply in North Carolina, the tax is capped at $250.
• Transfers between spouses, or between a parent and child or stepchild, as a gift are exempt from the highway use tax.
• Counties also charge annual vehicle property tax, which NCDMV collects with the registration. On a new purchase you can defer it for 60 days with a limited registration plate.

Salvage and rebuilt cars

A car is salvage when repairs to make it safe would exceed 75% of its fair market value. Any seller, dealer or private, who knows a car is or was a salvage, flood or reconstructed vehicle must tell you in writing before the sale. For a used car up to five model years old, damage over 25% of its value must also be disclosed in writing.

Dealers, private sellers and cars with no title

A person who buys or sells five or more vehicles in 12 months is a dealer under state law and needs an NCDMV license. The Attorney General notes that most used car dealers sell cars "as is," and that North Carolina has no three-day right to cancel or other cooling-off period unless your contract provides one. Read the contract and get any promises about condition in writing.

If the seller has no title, North Carolina allows titling with an indemnity bond, which is not a quick route. The car must be inspected by the State Highway Patrol, appraised from the DMV value schedule, and covered by a surety bond written for one and one-half times its value, with a $100 minimum, that stays on file for three years. Bonds are refused in several cases, including an outstanding lien with no cancellation, pending litigation and cars not kept in North Carolina.

Sources: North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles (vehicle titles, vehicle types, special cases, taxes, inspections, fee schedule MVR-94), NC Department of Environmental Quality (emissions inspections), NC Department of Revenue (antique automobile form AV-66), NC Department of Justice (used car and car damage guidance) and the North Carolina General Statutes (chapters 20 and 105). Rules and fees change; confirm with a license plate agency before you buy.