How do I purchase a car outside California and bring it in state?

Asked by mikemckinniss Feb 22, 2022 at 08:45 PM about the 1997 BMW 3 Series 328i Convertible RWD

Question type: General

I live in California, and I am about to purchase a car private party out of state.
With California's SMOG test requirements, I cannot obtain registration for the
car until it's SMOG tested in state. Has anyone had experience doing this in
the past? How have you gone about the process of transferring title,
transporting the car, then obtaining registration in California for a car
purchased out of state?

2 Answers
202,415

Ed92626 answered 2 years ago

I've brought several cars to California. Check under the hood of the car for a California CARB sticker; I believe even back in "97, all cars in the US were California compliant. Go to the DMV here and apply for registration. They'll give you paperwork that you take to a smog station. The station sends a PASS report to the state immediately, and you then just complete the registration. It's really simple.

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