Well, I just did it and cleared the final hurdle - BAR inspection and smog exemption! After literally years of research, I've heard all the horror stories. None of which are true! Following all the rules, this was actually a pretty simple and painless process. This is the vehicle in question...…... https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/i-finally-finished-the-roadster.1149860/ I began the process back in 2010. Here's my thread from that era...….. https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...-exempted-today-in-california-no-less.433178/ The one difference is you don't have to stand in line the first business day of the year now for the Certificate of Sequence #. They're pretty much available throughout the year. Apparently, not may people are going the Specially Constructed Vehicle (SPCNS) route anymore. Possibly because of the unsubstantiated horror stories out there. One of which is a SPCNS is required to have all the current smog equipment and vehicle safety features. NOT TRUE! The whole point of a Certificate of Sequence # is that you're registering your car under the SB100 rule. Which basically exempts the first 500 vehicles from smog. My car is registered as a 2010 SPCNS and I've got basic lights and lap belts. I don't even have windshield wipers. Along with a 'Bill of Sale' from the previous owner, you will need 4 forms from the DMV: Form 343..........Application for Title or Registration Form 124..........Application for Assigned VIN plate Form 5036........Statement of Construction Form 256..........Statement of Facts Forms 343, 124 and 256 are fairly straightforward. The Statement of Construction form 5036 is where they'll trip you up. They'll wanna know how and where you acquired the engine/transmission/frame. I told DMV the engine and trans came from a previous car I owned and the frame was homemade. Next form 5036 asked for the total value of the vehicle, including labor. I told DMV the total was $5000 and they were fine with that. BAR however, was not! BAR wanted a dollar amount for the frame and engine along with dollar amounts for other parts not supported by invoices. In addition, they wanted proof that I owned the donor car that supplied the engine/trans. I told BAR the frame materials cost $200, the engine was worth $300, the value of other parts was $300 and the original purchase price was $1100 (supported by the bill of sale). I also showed them the title for my donor car. Apparently, that satisfied them! But I digress. The first step is acquiring your Certificate of Sequence number. Step 2 would be to build the car as close to California regulations as possible. I found this list of 'CHP requirements for SPCNS' on the internet and it was a huge help!! It's from 2006 but it gives you really good guidelines on what CHP, BAR and DMV are looking for. And, as I found out, not everything on the list is even required! http://www.mightyram50.net/vbulletin/attachment.php?attachmentid=7338&d=1386538163 Once the car is built step 3 is make an appointment with the local CHP office to have a permanent VIN # assigned. Typical horror story is that CHP is booked 2-3 months out. Not true. They do VIN verifications and assignments every Tuesday and Thursday. Back to DMV for a 1 day operating permit to legally drive it to CHP. I made an appointment on Friday for the next Tuesday and drove down to the CHP office. The officer looked over the paperwork, asked me if I really built the frame and made lots of positive comments about the car. Then he attached the new VIN to my frame rail...…….. Step 4. Brake and light inspection. Again, back to DMV for another 1 day operating permit to drive it legally to brake and light inspection. Find a certified brake and light inspection station and go have a talk with the guy that's gonna do it. I did and he told me everything he was gonna do. He pulled the wheels to make sure the brake drums were within spec. Verified all lights worked. Headlights/hi-beams, taillights/brakelights, required turn signals and license plate light. Turn signals are not self cancelling (3-way toggle under the dash). Required turn signal indicators and hi-beam indicator. A back up light isn't even required. Then he took it for a test drive to verify the brakes worked. $185 later (ouch) and that step is done. Step 5. Back to DMV with paperwork from CHP and the brake and light inspection. Now pull out your checkbook and brace yourself! You'll be paying whatever your local sales tax is on the total value of the vehicle that you filled out on form 5036 Statement of Construction. Our sales tax is 9-1/2%! You do the math. With fees paid, DMV will issue you a temporary operating permit good for 60 days. Step 6. Make a BAR appointment. They're actually about 2 weeks out. Usually located at the local community college. The tech spent a lot of time on the computer and numerous phone calls to his higher up. He wanted pictures of the build progress. I gave him a link to my build thread. He was very pleased! He forwarded many of the pics to his higher up and 20 minutes later I was approved! Surprisingly, they're big thing is not the smog, it's does the car really qualify as a SPCNS. He said he's done 20 so far this year. Only 3 actually qualified! The cars that don't tend to be the gold chainers who simply cut a check and have a high end shop build it. Think Boyd! BAR officials tend to look at our home built cars in a much better light. Never even put my car on the dyno. Just verified a PCV valve and breather cap vented back into the intake air stream. Done! This is a one time deal. Don't even have to go in for a bi-annual smog check. Back to DMV tomorrow to turn in my paperwork and I should receive my license plates in a few weeks! Holy Grail placed behind the seat...….
Congrats! I'll review your steps to success pretty close. I'll be navigating the process pretty soon. Mike
You know there are those that will flame you for putting those labels on. "There're not traditional, too blingy". I say, "stuff 'em". Wave as you drive your street legal car past them.
Your the only guy I have ever read about who made it.Sure there must be others,but they didnt do a nice job out lining it like you.Enjoy many happy miles.
Congrats man! Thanks for taking the time to share the process. I'm sure it will help others and it was a interesting read.
I think a lot of people forget it is their sandbox and they get to make the rules. We get to follow them.
A 1960 2.3 Ford with Fuel injection ???? . Damn, I was doing the brake and lamp tests for $99 back in 2006.
Hello, Was interested by the CHP officer which asked you if you actually built the chassis. Do you know if you can use a donor chassis? Or can you use a donor car for only "parts", and not the full chassis (without transmission, engine, body, etc...)? Thank you!
@Ian McLoughlin welcome to the HAMB. You might want to read the rules and do an introduction. While @evintho was last here yesterday, he did this in 2019, so your question might not get noticed. I included him in this reply so he should get notified. As far as using a different chassis, the US doesn't have the strict regulations of say New Zealand where each major part is looked at by engineering. That said, the main focus is making sure it isn't stolen, then safety. Try to purchase the big chunks with receipts, so they prove it's yours and they can tax you. He also noted the build pictures were asked for. Document your build and modifications, it will probably help. I hope OP will reply, but that's my understanding of the process. They also provided all the forms, it would be in your interest to download and print out all of those and any instructions for them. Gov't websites tend to be pretty poor in trying to find answers, but with the information provided, it's at least a roadmap that worked for OP.
BAR actually encourages you to use a donor chassis! That way they recognize it as two separate cars joined together to make one, which qualifies as a Specially Constructed Vehicle (SPCNS). However, in order to do that you'll need the qualifying paperwork (title in your name along with VIN#) for the donor chassis.
Somewhat amusing story when I got my Specially Constructed registration from NCDMV on the roadster.. When all the hoops were jumped thru , the DMV officer came to my shop to install the sticker. He proceeded to affix one to the firewall , the other one to the drivers door B pillar... Nothing on the frame !! So , technically , I could put the body on a lawnmower and be legal !!!!
@evintho , which begs the question, is this a 2 into one = thin the herd? What about the body removed from the chassis? Can it use the same title to apply for another Special Construction VIN and title? I get that 'parts car' usually is take the good and create something new, but this can end up in a mess like the 'bitsas' where there are 2 cars with the same heritage, although with a new tag/ID, it's not exactly the same. @Turbo26T, looks like your body is metal. It's funny, every fiberglass bucket I've seen with a state issued tag has had it located on the left side frame, near the firewall. I wonder if there is a directory on placement? Your situation seems strange with 2 labels, unless it's a case like the first post, where there are 2 different types? Perhaps because it's a roadster and the area is not only visible, but able to be accessed at any time by anyone? I know; you were just happy to get it done, and questions were not going to help that. REFERENCE https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-49/subtitle-B/chapter-V/part-565 The VIN for passenger cars, multipurpose passenger vehicles, low speed vehicles, and trucks of 4536 kg or less GVWR shall be located inside the passenger compartment. It shall be readable, without moving any part of the vehicle, through the vehicle glazing under daylight lighting conditions by an observer having 20/20 vision (Snellen) whose eye-point is located outside the vehicle adjacent to the left windshield pillar. Each character in the VIN subject to this paragraph shall have a minimum height of 4 mm.
I'm far from an expert on this and I can only report what I was told and went through. The BAR tech told me because my car was two cars made into one, it qualified as an SBCNS. He saw and understood the frame was homemade from 2"x3" rectangular steel. He also noted that the '27 body was originally a pickup truck with a bed attached to it and that I had acquired a complete turtle deck from another source. I combined the two and coupled that to the aforementioned homemade frame. This constituted a SPCNS. His supervisor at the other end of the landline in Sacramento agreed. It greatly helped that I had a very detailed build thread on another website that they could reference. Also, keep in mind there never was an original VIN for my car as I believe the identifying number was stamped on the engine block back in those days. Also, it seems to me if you removed a body from a chassis and used that chassis combined with another body to create one SBCNS, the VIN on that chassis would be void as CHP would issue a new VIN for the SBCNS. Then, if you were to use the removed body and combine that with another chassis, those VINs would be voided because CHP would issue a new VIN for the second SBCNS? I don't know man! I could be way off base here! Gimpy........where are you?!
Thanks, that sounds right, since they issue a new number. I can just see 2 builders both using the same donor VIN or serial number (1 body, 1 frame) throwing red flags in the system. I don't know how detailed the records are, but most gov't computer systems are very primitive compared to private and individual computers, still using F command keys. The couple times I had to deal with the referee stations (as a working certified smog tech but bringing in a car they had to inspect) they were decent but pretty mum about process and procedure. This was decades ago, so it's old information. They were also much more knowledgeable about older cars than the DMV people, like serial numbers, body numbers and engine numbers. Funny that it looks like your tag is on the right rail. Glad to hear your outcome and experience, especially if it helps others navigate the red tape maze.
They are not antiquated anymore. They had a complete technology refresh. The backend is now scalable in both processing and storage. Records no longer age-out to save space. CHP favors the right rail. I saw a certain local rock star out in his T. It's on the right rail, too, and has been for decades.
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