LMTV California Registration

I've just returned from my 1st of many trips to the DMV. There were some stale threads on this topic I didn't want to resurrect. Here is the current information for anyone looking to transfer a vehicle here. My LMTV was previously registered in Florida so I have a title in hand for it.

The DMV said the following is required:

• Title
• Ca Sales Tax proof or you pay for declared purchase price
• Weight Certificate
• CHP Inspection and verification of the VIN
• Smog Certificate
• One time transport permit to allow the vehicle to get inspected

The local DMV required manager override because the VIN doesn't have enough digits. For any vehicle over 10,000 lbs there is a yearly CVRA fee. The fees go up per 5k. So we are in the 15-20k lbs range.

The vehicle is also registered as a Commercial vehicle due to weight. I told them mine is a large flatbed pickup truck. Who knows maybe there are other categories for RVs or Vans.

I’ve heard some mention that an expedition rig can be registered as an RV much simpler than the commercial truck route. Even though it is not yet an RV, you should be able to register as such and build it. Did you try this angle with the DMV?

Aernan said:

I've just returned from my 1st of many trips to the DMV. There were some stale threads on this topic I didn't want to resurrect. Here is the current information for anyone looking to transfer a vehicle here. My LMTV was previously registered in Florida so I have a title in hand for it.

The DMV said the following is required:

• Title
• Ca Sales Tax proof or you pay for declared purchase price
• Weight Certificate
• CHP Inspection and verification of the VIN
• Smog Certificate
• One time transport permit to allow the vehicle to get inspected

The local DMV required manager override because the VIN doesn't have enough digits. For any vehicle over 10,000 lbs there is a yearly CVRA fee. The fees go up per 5k. So we are in the 15-20k lbs range.

The vehicle is also registered as a Commercial vehicle due to weight. I told them mine is a large flatbed pickup truck. Who knows maybe there are other categories for RVs or Vans.

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I do know from my line of work as an auto dealer I too own an m1078 and have already confirmed Vehicle inspection will be needed but if you keep your truck "as is" the weight fees will kill you annually. $1000 bucks. If you convert to a RV it has to be already done and permanent in nature. And no a tent on the back with a port-a-potty won't fly guys.

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The annual CVRA (weight) fee is over $400 annually. I will re-register it as an RV once I have a box on the back.

Aernan said:

The annual CVRA (weight) fee is over $400 annually. I will re-register it as an RV once I have a box on the back.

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The box needs to be permanently converted for human habitation to qualify and needs to be inspected and signed off. The motor vehicle code spells out the required equipment

Mine is registered in CA as an RV. I am in the Tracy area PM me if you need some help.

Did some more reading. I found a great sticker on the top of my engine that is a California Smog Cert. I was also able to find an air resources board document for our Cat 3116 Engines:
https://www.arb.ca.gov/msprog/onroa...30059_6d6-6d6-6d6-10d3-14d6-14d6_5d0-0d25.pdf
According to the DMV website it should be smog exempt.

I have been told there are services called VIN Verifiers that can help verify the short VIN (serial number) on the vehicle to expedite the DMV registration to avoid going to CHP for verification.

Aernan said:

The annual CVRA (weight) fee is over $400 annually. I will re-register it as an RV once I have a box on the back.

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Is this just in CA or is AZ and NV exempt?

DukeNukem said:

Is this just in CA or is AZ and NV exempt?

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CA law is only applicable to California.

Good for you that you have a title!!! I've heard they are a bear if you don't. Congrats!

It looks like the CVRA is a Commercial Vehicle thing that is specific to California.
https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/dmv/d...70cA-Rf477VSP71zgoIfx0dW-Pi5qy_Ri4cvR_SpFg!!/

With regards to the VIN. According to the California DMV it's short and therefore needs to be verified. A Verifier the California Highway Patrol (CHP) or a VIN Verifier needs to find the VIN on the vehicle in two places. There is another thread and the only place the VIN appears is on the data plate near the steering wheel. So that means you need to manufacture a matching VIN plate and locate it somewhere else on the vehicle. I have been told the inner door jam is a good place to put it.

Aernan said:

. So that means you need to manufacture a matching VIN plate and locate it somewhere else on the vehicle. I have been told the inner door jam is a good place to put it.

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Is that legal?

When I was ready to register my truck, as an RV, I just went to DMV and they took my number and just added zero's at the beginning to make it 17 digits. I chose the number on the dash plate that I wanted to use. I then had to have a brake and lamp inspection done to certify the two systems were working. Then took it to CHP and they looked at the truck and verified that it met the needs of an RV, looked at my brake and lamp certs, and then verified the vin. It was really easy. I wrote my entire process up. Just look it up under my posts if you want. I was amazed that it was so easy. I wasted more time trying to talk to people trying to figure out how I was going to get it through the system then if I just went down and did it! People told me to do it as a parade vehicle and all these other ways. The right way was faster and easier in the end. Good luck and I hope that yours is just as easy. I didn't have to have two vin locations on my truck.

DukeNukem said:

Is that legal?

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Why wouldn't it be? You're simply displaying the proper VIN number in an additional location...

Where you'd get it problems would be if you altered the VIN in any way.

Be advised, the information in this thread is *specific* to California and does not in any way apply to AZ.

My advice - do not under any circumstances add zeros in front of your VIN to make it fit the 17 digit format. In AZ that will bite you in three different ways :

1) any mismatch anywhere in the system and they revoke your title and plates. You find out when they pull you over...

2) LEO sees an insurance card with zeros and a data plate without zeros. LEO interprets that as you have no insurance.

3) stamping additional zeros onto your data plate can easily be construed as felony VIN tampering...

From what I'm told to do an RV registration I would need a box on the back plus some stuff. Is it possible to do it as an RV with no improvements?

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Aernan said:

From what I'm told to do an RV registration I would need a box on the back plus some stuff. Is it possible to do it as an RV with no improvements?

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Varies by state. In California the state must visually inspect your RV equipment to ensure it meets the requirements.

98G said:

Why wouldn't it be? You're simply displaying the proper VIN number in an additional location...

Where you'd get it problems would be if you altered the VIN in any way.

Be advised, the information in this thread is *specific* to California and does not in any way apply to AZ.

My advice - do not under any circumstances add zeros in front of your VIN to make it fit the 17 digit format. In AZ that will bite you in three different ways :

1) any mismatch anywhere in the system and they revoke your title and plates. You find out when they pull you over...

2) LEO sees an insurance card with zeros and a data plate without zeros. LEO interprets that as you have no insurance.

3) stamping additional zeros onto your data plate can easily be construed as felony VIN tampering...

Click to expand...

I agree! Do not personally add or alter your vin. Only DMV can do it. That's why I posted that "DMV added zeros to my number to make it 17 digits" If you alter your vin= game over!

It sounds like registering my vehicle as an RV won't work for this year and I should have no trouble registering it as a commercial truck. Just add some zeros to the VIN.

Do not add 000 to the vin DMV will not register it if the vin is at all different from the Title. Good luck with commercial registration in CA www.arb.ca.gov/msprog/decsinstall/eobuyerbeware.htm it will need a DPF or a small fleet waiver but they stopped giving those out. It would need smog for commercial plates RV are smog exempt. Also remember that messing around with DMV could raise some alarm bells and make it harder if not impossible to register these trucks if it is not done correctly. Not trying to be a downer but I have registered two of these trucks that are converted to full Expo RV. We looked at all the ways to register them as trucks and its just not that simple with CA smog rules these days.