Classic Car Restoration Shops in Texas

Texas does not license auto repair shops, so an owner should know the rules on sales tax, titles, plates, inspections and unpaid bills before a restoration starts.

Sales tax on restoration work

Under Comptroller rules, labor to repair, maintain or restore a motor vehicle is not taxable. Parts are taxable, and so are consumable supplies such as body filler and sandpaper. Who pays the tax depends on how the shop invoices. On a lump-sum invoice the shop pays tax to its suppliers and does not charge you tax on any part of the price. On a separated invoice, with parts and labor stated apart, the shop collects tax from you on the parts and on any separately stated consumables, but not on the labor.

• Remodeling is taxed differently. Changing a vehicle's style, shape or form is a taxable service, and tax is due on all parts and all labor. Replacing a worn or defective component with a working one is repair, not remodeling.
• A restomod mixes both, so ask the shop in advance how each line will be classified.
• Parking and storage charges are taxable under a separate Comptroller rule, so a storage line on an invoice may carry tax.

Titling a project car

For a car with no title, TxDMV points to a bonded title. It is open to Texas residents only, the vehicle must be complete (frame, body and motor), and the application is Form VTR-130-SOF with a $15 fee. The bond is 1.5 times the vehicle's value. For a vehicle 25 or more years old an appraisal can set that value, and appraisals under $4,000 are treated as $4,000.

If the VIN is missing or unreadable, a law enforcement inspector completes Form VTR-68-A, and TxDMV can assign or reassign a number for a $2 fee.

A car rebuilt from component parts can count as an assembled vehicle, a category that includes custom vehicles, street rods and replicas. Before the county tax office will process it, a TxDMV Regional Service Center must issue an approval letter. The paperwork includes evidence of ownership for the motor, body and frame and, for most types, a safety inspection by an ASE master technician. The frame or body of a nonrepairable vehicle cannot be used.

A car carrying a Texas Salvage Vehicle Title can be rebuilt and retitled as Rebuilt Salvage, with a $65 fee on top of the title fee, plus Form VTR-61 listing the repairs and replaced major parts. A nonrepairable title issued on or after September 1, 2003 can never be retitled.

Plates and use during restoration

• Antique plates: the frame, body and motor must each be at least 25 years old, and replicas do not qualify. Use is limited to exhibitions, club activities, parades and similar functions, not regular transportation. A five-year plate costs $50 ($40 for cars built before 1921). A replacement motor must itself be at least 25 years old.
• Classic, Custom Vehicle and Street Rod plates: there is no fee for the plates themselves, though regular registration still applies. A custom vehicle is at least 25 years old, a 1949 or later model, and altered from the original design; a street rod is a pre-1949 design that has been altered.
• Year of manufacture plates: an original Texas plate from the car's model year may be used instead, with county approval.

Inspections and emissions

Since January 1, 2025, non-commercial vehicles no longer need a safety inspection to register. Emissions testing continues in 17 counties: Brazoria, Collin, Dallas, Denton, El Paso, Ellis, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Johnson, Kaufman, Montgomery, Parker, Rockwall, Tarrant, Travis and Williamson. TCEQ's program covers gasoline vehicles 2 to 24 years old, so a car 25 or more years old is not tested.

Shops, estimates and liens

TxDMV advises getting written authorization before any diagnosis or disassembly, then a separate written repair order stating the work, parts, labor, storage charges, completion date and warranty, with written approval for added work.

A shop that repaired your car may keep it until the agreed price is paid. It must then send certified mail notice to the owner and recorded lienholders and file a copy with the county tax assessor-collector. A public sale cannot take place before the 31st day after that filing, you can ask to have the repairs inspected first, and any excess sale proceeds go to the person entitled to them.

Sources: Texas Comptroller (Publication 94-113, Rules 3.290 and 3.292), TxDMV, TCEQ, Transportation Code chapter 504 and Property Code chapter 70. Rules and fees change; confirm with your county tax office and the Comptroller before you commit.