[olhogrider]

Last year the founder of Classic Motorworks, the former importer of the Royal Enfield brand, had some bikes for sale. All he had was a hand written bill of sale. I bought all three. Sold two of them and put the most complete one back together. Kevin said he would try to get the title information from RENA but that never happened. Undaunted, I proceeded to put on LED headlight, tombstone taillight, a Lithium battery, turn signals, a bunch of relays, new tires etc. I even installed an Amal carb from Hitchcock's. Appointments at the DMV are running about two months apart. I was a little concerned because I only had a bill of sale, no title. I should have been worried. My first clue was the DMV clerk. She was helpful and friendly. She gave me an inspection form to have filled out by a motorcycle shop. "Just bring that back and we will issue you a title" I was thrilled! So today, two months after my last visit, I presented my paperwork. They said "Where's your title?" I told them my whole sad tail. They hemmed and hawed and typed frantically on the keyboard. They made phone calls. They did everything except issue a title. Bottom line is without some previous title the state of Nevada says it doesn't exist.

This is the point where the wisdom of the internet will tell me all the ways I can get past this hurdle. I'm done. Someone else can try fighting the bureaucracy.

This is a complete, 2012 Classic Chrome. It has a dent in the gas tank where the right switch housing hit sometime in its past. Everything works.

First $1000 takes it. Located in Las Vegas.

[AzCal Retred]

Title it thru a friend in Mohave County across the line. Try a salvage title, or abandoned vehicle. Couldn't hurt.

[olhogrider]

Title it thru a friend in Mohave County across the line. Try a salvage title, or abandoned vehicle. Couldn't hurt.

They weren't interested in even a salvage title. Just a stone wall of bureaucracy. I'm going to try the Vermont title route and see how that goes.

[suitcasejefferson]

I wouldn't give up, even if it winds up being more trouble than it would otherwise be worth. I just can't deal with letting the government win. In AZ, you take the bike to an MVD office, they inspect it, get the VIN off it, verify that it does indeed exist and has not been reported stolen, then issue the paperwork to get a bonded title.

About 15 years ago, AZ decided that all dirt bikes had to have titles. Used to be that dirt bikes didn't come with titles. Buying a dirt bike was like buying a lawn mower. But to ride it anywhere but private property, it not only has to have a title, but an RV plate and an OHV sticker. While there were provisions for getting all this stuff for bikes that never came with titles, it often cost more than a 30+ year old dirt bike was worth to the owner. So for a couple of years there were a lot of old dirt bikes for sale dirt cheap on Craigslist. 

[Bilgemaster]

My Norton "Desert Sled" had a similar back story: never registered as a vehicle, it was officially considered a "farming implement" on a ranch near Hearne, Texas before I got it with just a bill of sale. I guess through dumb luck I managed to get it titled. The matter went before some magistrate behind the scenes I never even met, he or she signed off on it, and Presto! I had a title. I don't recall it even costing me any extra, or at least not so as to be the least memorable now, 20 years later. This was as it should be. If there's no hanky-panky with the VIN, there's some sort of bill of sale or other legal chain of custody, and it conforms to DOT/EPA norms for its year of manufacture, then a title should be issued, if perhaps a conditional one pending no challenge of it for a reasonable period. I'm tired of this recent spate of stories of good folks getting steamrolled by bureaucracies making us dance like meat puppets to whatever tune they may be hearing in their heads.

[Richard230]

Or you could do what a fellow did for years in my area of California. He had a sign made up and attached to his license plate hanger saying "License Applied For". To my knowledge he was never pulled over for not having the bike registered.    Or maybe he eventually did and his bike was confiscated. 

However, one thing I can verify is that the neighbor behind me came from Idaho to my city in CA 20 years ago and has never registered his Jeep in the state. It still has its old Idaho license plate on the vehicle and he drives it several times a week. He also parks it on the public street in front of his home and it has never been tagged by the local cops even though they have seen the Jeep parked there for 20 years. So it seems to me that as long as you don't live in a cash-hungry city like San Francisco having a vehicle registered with the DMV in this state doesn't appear to be too big of a concern to the authorities. 

[olhogrider]

A few months back I bought a 1985 pickup. Drove to the DMV, did all the proper paperwork(hours). On my way home I got stopped by the police. He said I didn't have a valid license plate. I told him I was literally just leaving the DMV and on my way home. He saw that the tiny sticker was one digit off from the plate. The DMV person had typoed the number. The cop said that the sticker number is what goes in the computer, not the plate. Since I'm an old white guy he just said "have a nice day" but told me to go back the next day and get it fixed.

These guys are serious! I'm not taking any chances.

[olhogrider]

So, I had one guy enthusiastically say he wanted the bike. He was coming tomorrow to pick it up! Then yesterday he said "sorry". This is a perfectly functional, 2012 chrome and black C5. Everything works. 7" LED headlight and functional off switch, new Dunlop K70 tires, Lithium battery, new fork seals and oil, Amal carb conversion.  Not stolen, never wrecked, it just doesn't have a title. The Vermont title company did say they could get a "bonded" title if I give the state 150% of its value. If it were 15 years old they could do a title and plate for $200.

Anyway, it is still sitting here collecting dust. For anyone needing a parts bike or willing to slap the wrong plate on it and ride, it is in Las Vegas for $1000.

[olhogrider]

Update! Another buyer expressed interest