Odd vehicle question for Californians

Rob Keeble

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Location
GTA Ontario Canada
I have a somewhat stupid question to ask but going to ask it anyway.

Can a car like say a 2003 GMC Safari van by van i mean something like a service persons van, be purchased in say Buffalo / Niagara area or even say Ohio or Michigan, then be driven across country to California and sold in California.

I know California has very different emissions regulations and i have observed that in buying car parts there are different skus of the same part one being suitable for sale and use in California the other technically being illegal in California.

Reason i ask is my wife has a niece which has plans to come out here, drive to Buffalo, buy a van, (yeah right a used service van from rust alley) then register it (which i have no idea how they think they going to do that without a US address, then, insure it (yeah right again and add their youthful age) then drive it across the Canadian border back to our place, then have the desire that they get either me to help or free access to my shop and tools to kit this van out with a bed and cupboards ( yeah right thats only what 20 seconds on you tube right) then, deep breath, they going to head off across Canada to Vancouver, drive across US border and make their way down to California at which time they will according to them, sell said van and get this they expect to make most of their money back.

Please don't laugh, i did enough of that already when i got told by SWMBO the news this morning.

I think they been watching some hippie movie from 50's or 60's and them old VW vans with the nice simple air cooled engines. Lol.

Any input anyone please, i am trying to restore my sanity.

Of course any facts i present that are contrary to what they want to hear has me labeled Grinch.
 
Having lived in California for 28 years (and was very happy to leave!), I can tell you that if there's visible rust, the van will be very hard to sell because prospective buyers will know it's an out-of-state car. I'm about 12 years behind on California vehicle regs (so my info might be outdated), but they do require passage of an emissions test (by the seller) before the car can be registered to a new owner. At one time, there was also a mandatory 'non-compliance' monetary fee, payable to the Air Resources Board, for bringing an out-of-state, non-compliant vehicle in, unless it was more than 20 model years old.

Bottom line - there's no way they'll make out financially on such a deal.

BTW, most of the Northeastern states now have the same emissions regs as California. Maine might be an exception.
 
I know when I moved to Cali many moons ago, My car had to have a special inspection to make sure it was california compliant, and when It wasn't, I had to pay some sort of 'fee' for it not having the california emissions sticker.

I'm not sure about them making money on the deal, but it does sound like a fun trip. Seems to me the biggest issues will be getting it registered in the US And getting Insurance. I'm sure you've got them covered on the shop time, LOL.
 
No idea about the licensing issues, but I have had lots fun modifying vans. The first was a 1960 Chevy van with the engine between the driver and passenger seat. Oh and the windshield was flat which would often blind oncoming drivers.
Didn't install cabinets but a sleeping platform with drawers underneath and spac to sleep 2 kids. The roof was cut out in the centre and a wooden roof built that could raised up about 2 feet for standup room.
Made a table with folding legs so we always had a picnic table.

It was quite well shot when I bought it, but I was able to keep it going with some fixes including replacing the motor.

The second one was a 15 passenger Dodge van, the blue pig. This only got a platform at the back with drawers underneath. It did take us out to Calgary and then the Grand Canyon. My 2 sons drove it out west a few years later to move a friend from Ottawa.
 
OK. California resident here. All the above regarding seller providing for a compliant vehicle and incurring costs of same is true. The rust issue is so true that not even a junk yard would be interested, as they have to break it down and sell the metal. Not only can the niece not make money on this deal, it likely will cost her more than the whole trip to get here, and worst case scenario result in a totally unacceptable vehicle for which they will have the legal responsibility to properly dispose of. In addition, if she owns the vehicle less than a year, California will also collect sales tax on her original purchase, even though it is from another state. She will need a legal form of bill of sale to verify the purchases as well. I went through that with bringing my California compliant but Arizona registered truck into the state a few years ago.

A LOT more homework is needed here. I would not get within a 100 feet of this deal. There can be no winners.
 
Any information I have will be decades old, but in 1963 I went home from the navy to attend my brother's funeral. On my way back to Calif. I stopped off in Chandler, AZ where my mother was at the time, (she had already returned home after the funeral and I stayed a day or two longer with my Dad)... I bought a 1959 Chevy Impala in Arizona, that was sold originally in Tennessee. Somewhere along the way the car was converted from an automatic on the column to a 3 speed stick on the floor via a Herscht conversion. I drove it into California and drove it for a couple of years... it was insured in California, but licensed in Oklahoma, and I drove on a Texas driver's license. Never had a problem with any legalities, but may have been due to fact I was in military.... a year after I was out of the Navy, I drove it back to California from Texas, still with Oklahoma plates, and used it as a trade in on a 1964 Corvette... still no problems with legalities.

I lived in Calif for 15 years and went through several cars. Memory of the emissions regulations are a little fuzzy now, but remember having to pay $250 for an emissions test in Tucson when I moved there in '94.

All this said, I have to agree with Mr. Delaney... don't think things are going work out as your niece thinks....
 
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If they are viewing it as "An Adventure of a Lifetime" and not necessarily to make a profit, go for it. Not sure how much money they'd make on it though (not to mention the hassle). Make sure they (not you) do the homework of looking up all the regs for California, insurance, registration, etc. before hand. Is CA a specific destination they want to go to? Why not just stop in WA or OR or one of the less regulated states along the way?

Are they planning to make enough of a profit to pay for their airfare back home? Have enough money to stay in a motel for a day or two while their non-compliant car needs to be repaired in CA to meet the regs? Again, not to be a Grinch, either, but seems like they really need to do their homework, first, so you don't have to bail them out later.

It would be an awesome trip and maybe good lessons learned along the way. This coming from someone who was too cheap to repair her Toyota and had to travel frequently from Phoenix, AZ to So. Calif. in 120 degree weather running the heater the whole way (windows down) to keep the engine from over-heating. :rofl::doh:
 
Thanks folks i appreciate all the info and pointers.
But then i like u all deal in fact.
I dont want to get one bit involved with youngsters that dont want to hear but want someone else to bail them when their ideas go off the rail.
 
Whattttt?

Hey Rob, I'm thinking about doing the opposite. Sort of. I need to buy an older truck for my business. This would be a 2002 back to 1996 Ford F-350 or F-450 crew cab long box 4x4 possibly dually. What I need is a heavy duty truck with the 7.3 liter diesel. I want this engine because I can save tons of $ on fuel as i will be burning Veg oil form my business in it, and that engine is one of the best. The modern diesels won't put up with that.

So what I want to do is fly out to California, buy one of these trucks and take a few weeks, or as long as I can stretch it out, on a boondoggle trip of aimless wandering going back to Michigan. I told my wife it will be our second honeymoon. :huh: Here's the beauty; California is fining such truck owners because they don't meet emission standards, so folks are dumping them. I have found several prospects that have low and very low mileage. No rust, look dang near new.
 
1)rent a camper van in Toronto from a national outfit
2) drive across and have a great time
3) drive down coast to Cali, another great time
4) drive back up a different way, great time #3, maybe stop for free meal with Dowells
5) drop van in Vancouver and walk away
 
Hey Rob, I'm thinking about doing the opposite. Sort of. I need to buy an older truck for my business. This would be a 2002 back to 1996 Ford F-350 or F-450 crew cab long box 4x4 possibly dually. What I need is a heavy duty truck with the 7.3 liter diesel. I want this engine because I can save tons of $ on fuel as i will be burning Veg oil form my business in it, and that engine is one of the best. The modern diesels won't put up with that.

So what I want to do is fly out to California, buy one of these trucks and take a few weeks, or as long as I can stretch it out, on a boondoggle trip of aimless wandering going back to Michigan. I told my wife it will be our second honeymoon. :huh: Here's the beauty; California is fining such truck owners because they don't meet emission standards, so folks are dumping them. I have found several prospects that have low and very low mileage. No rust, look dang near new.

Sounds like my Truck!

1)rent a camper van in Toronto from a national outfit
2) drive across and have a great time
3) drive down coast to Cali, another great time
4) drive back up a different way, great time #3, maybe stop for free meal with Dowells
5) drop van in Vancouver and walk away

They would be welcome!
 
Great idea, Peter.

And if they get as far south as San Diego, have them give me a call.

And Paul, I have such a truck with that engine. It will be available for sale later this year. F250 body on a 1 ton chassis (F350) with the 7.3 Ltr diesel engine. Thing can pull a train up hill. Never owned such a strong truck.
 
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