Classic Car Restoration Shops in Colorado

Restoring a classic in Colorado is shaped by three things: how a shop invoices parts and labor for sales tax, a repair statute that steps aside for old cars, and a shop lien that lets an unpaid shop keep your car. Know all three before you hand over keys.

Sales tax on restoration work

• Colorado generally does not tax services. Parts and accessories installed in a car are taxed, and the taxable amount is the total charge for the parts minus any separately stated labor. Labor shown as its own line on the invoice is not taxed.
• The state rate is 2.9% plus state-administered local taxes, and some home-rule cities collect their own.
• If your shop subcontracts a job such as glass or chrome, tax is charged on the parts in the subcontracted work. Supplies a shop consumes, such as sandpaper and masking tape, are taxed to the shop, not billed to you as tax.
• Parts you buy yourself from an out-of-state seller who does not collect Colorado tax fall under the consumer use tax.

Titling a project car

Colorado does not allow a skipped title. A car with no usable title goes through bonding for title at the county motor vehicle office, which starts with a certified VIN inspection. Vehicles over 25 years old do not have to buy the surety bond and follow a separate DMV checklist instead. A non-roadworthy collector car at least 25 years old with at least a rolling chassis and no ownership papers can get a rebuilder's title, and converting it later takes a certified VIN inspection and a bond or deposit of at least twice its value.

Kit cars, custom-built cars and cars that need an assigned VIN also need a certified VIN inspection by a P.O.S.T.-certified inspector, who checks the hidden VINs and whether the car is roadworthy. A bill of sale marked "parts only" or "junk" cannot be titled. Collector's items, horseless carriages and street rods are not treated as salvage vehicles. A project that sits unfinished still has to be registered or pay specific ownership tax.

Plates, emissions and use

• Collector's item registration lasts five years and is open to model year 1975 and older. A car at least 32 years old can qualify with an affidavit limiting driving to 4,500 miles a year. Horseless carriage plates (50 years or older) allow only limited use, and the plate stays with the car when it is sold.
• Emissions testing applies in Boulder, Broomfield, Denver, Douglas and Jefferson counties and parts of Adams, Arapahoe, Larimer and Weld. A 1975 or older car with collector plates is exempt; without them it is tested annually at $35. Street rods, kit cars and horseless carriages are not tested.
• Removing the factory emissions controls from a 1968 or later car, or driving one on a highway, is a traffic infraction with a $35 fine.

Repair shop rules for old cars

Colorado's Motor Vehicle Repair Act requires written consent, an estimate and a cap of 10% or $25 over it. The statute states that it does not apply to repairs of a vehicle 25 or more years old or a collector's item. A restoration is therefore governed by your contract, so put the scope, price, billing schedule and storage terms in writing.

Liens and unpaid bills

A mechanic who works on your car at your request has a lien for the labor and materials, and no antique exemption applies. To sell the car the shop must sue and win a judgment, give notice and sell at public auction, and the owner gets any surplus. A shop that sells without substantially following the statute owes the owner the car's value, at least $100, plus attorney fees. A shop that wants a title to a car left behind must run a VIN inspection and title search, send certified-mail notice with a 30-day claim period, and post a bond of twice the car's value.