Buying a car out of State

[Bell]

Any thoughts, experiences, tips, facts, opinions or inane comments on buying, transporting, inspecting, transferring title, registering, paying taxes, transferring money or anything semi related to buying a car out of state and bringing it back to Dallas?

[Treibenschnell]

...inane comments...

Those I'm full of... among other things.

Someone will chime in soon.

[srivendel]

Should be straightfoward. The seller is responsible for collecting sales tax on the transaction. If he doesn't worry about it, neither should you.

Then it should be a simple matter of taking your title to the DMV and getting a Texas title issued for the car. I imagine you can do this at the same time you register the vehicle. Not sure where smog fits into this process, but I imagine you have some sort of grace period.

Use an escrow agent to hold the money until you have the title in hand.

No advice on transporting. Enclosed is a lot more expensive, and most people have zero problems with open transport, so unless the car is really bling bling, enclosed transport probably isn't worth the

Whadja buy?

S.

[Dave04]

Should be straightfoward. The seller is responsible for collecting sales tax on the transaction. If he doesn't worry about it, neither should you.

Not true... from reading his message... he's buying a car from out of state. Therefore, when he goes to title it in state (and changes the registered owner), the state of Texas is going to ask for their sales tax at that time. Now... if you can get the seller to write the bill of sale to read $1, that's another matter.

[Bell]

Recomendation or example of an escrow agent?

Thinking about buying this...

http://forum.e46fanatics.com/showthread.php?t=351468

I'm just terrified to buy a car unseen. What are the chances of flying up there then having the balls to turn around and fly home if something is wrong. Thought about having him take it to a dealership to have a pre-purchase inspection on my dime. Think that sounds reasonable?

[Treibenschnell]

Nice ride... but you'd be the third owner. Is that an issue?

The pre-inspection sounds reasonable provided he can find a reliable dealership to do it at.

[channelmaniac]

When I bought my Spec project car it was simple... I sent the down payment to him, drove up... paid the rest... and towed it home.

However, you must get an inspection before you can register it and get the title transferred. That could end up being a pain if the car won't pass.

If you want to drive it home, I'd suggest a vehicle inspection at the local dealership. Make SURE they hook it up to a code reader to make sure it isn't throwing any. If it is, that could delay things before you could get the title transferred & the vehicle registered to you. Plus... they may find something that could break down on your trip home.

Raymond

[POS Racing]

I see the seller has only 31 posts up. Are any of his other posts are about any problems he has had with the car?

[Shoefly]

I've bought and sold a ton of cars out of state. Cool thin about BMW's is that you can call a dealer and read them the VIN, they should be able to provide you with it's dealer service history or if not, what dealer to call to get the info.

I've transported cars and used http://www.dasautoshippers.com/ before with a really good experience. However, if you have the time, it's usually cheaper to fly up and drive the car home. Get the car checked out at a dealer or a performance shop that knows BMW's before hand though. It's probably still under warranty if its under 50k miles.

Good luck and enjoy.
-s

[HudsonHawk]

To get the title transefered you will have to have an inspection certificate provided by the place you get it done. You will have to have proof of insurance. You will have to have the bill of sale and you will be required to pay tax on the sale amount even though it was an out of state purchse. You have a small time frame to do all this in before they penalize you too.

If the car will not pass inspection and needs work done to it. There is an option. I was able to get a project car title to my CJ when I bought it. It was an Arkansas Jeep. I was in the process of tearing it apart and rebuilding it so I did not need tags or insurance. Once it was road worthy, I had the inspection done and went in and had it changed to a regular car title.

[Bell]

I see the seller has only 31 posts up. Are any of his other posts are about any problems he has had with the car?

Read those and it he seems to be a conscientious owner.

This is a great method to finding out info about a car though. I was very interested in a similar car in Austin a few months ago. Found one of his threads that read "Does my car have a LSD? I was able to throw the back end out on my Lexus 330 all the time. Every time I try it with this car only one of the wheels start slipping and I get a heaving pinging sound in the engine." Yeah, bye bye.

Calling BWM is an awesome idea. Great idea!

[srivendel]

Have you sold your Miata?

S.

[Bell]

Have you sold your Miata?

S.

Nope.

Typical lots of interest, nobody serious.

[POS Racing]

Found one of his threads that read "Does my car have a LSD? I was able to throw the back end out on my Lexus 330 all the time.

That's quite a trick in a Bling Bling Front Wheel Drive Camry!

BTW. I had a car transported for Pennsylvania to Ft. Worth for $750 on an open carrier, bet with the higher prices of gas that would be closer to a grand today.

[altiain]

When I bought my Spec project car it was simple... I sent the down payment to him, drove up... paid the rest... and towed it home.

Raymond

Keep in mind that Rainman's Spec project had a cardboard box where the motor should have been when he bought it, so his experience may not carry over to buying a $30k BMW.

I'd suggest paying for a pre-purchase inspection at an authorized BMW dealer out of your pocket - on a car like this, especially from out of state, it would be well worth the cost imho.

[Treibenschnell]

Keep in mind that Rainman's Spec project had a cardboard box where the motor should have been when he bought it, so his experience may not carry over to buying a $30k BMW.

That would be a very important detail!

[Sharpie]

Did I see that the car was from Michigan? There are plenty of cars that haven't been exposed to the elements, whether he says it was garaged all winter or not.

My dad bought a miata from Illinois and every nut and bolt was a pain to get off.

[channelmaniac]

Keep in mind that Rainman's Spec project had a cardboard box where the motor should have been when he bought it, so his experience may not carry over to buying a $30k BMW.

I'd suggest paying for a pre-purchase inspection at an authorized BMW dealer out of your pocket - on a car like this, especially from out of state, it would be well worth the cost imho.

And keep in mind that I had first hand experience on the part of: If it doesn't have an inspection and it can't pass inspection then you can't transfer the title & register it.

[Bell]

And keep in mind that I had first hand experience on the part of: If it doesn't have an inspection and it can't pass inspection then you can't transfer the title & register it.

So what would a Michigan dealership have to do to make sure it could pass inspection in Texas?

And what are the chances of such a new car not being able to pass inspection?

[Titus]

So what would a Michigan dealership have to do to make sure it could pass inspection in Texas?

And what are the chances of such a new car not being able to pass inspection?

If the lights work, the horn works, the brakes work, and it doesn't throw any codes, you are fine. I would imagine any decent dealership inspection should cover these items. It was a little more complicated for CM because his older car had to go on the rollers and pass the sniffer tests.