Mechanics in Philly tell me that they will not inspect an out-of-state vehicle prior to its PA registration. I would prefer to have my vehicle inspected before PA registration.

 

PennDOT says I can and refer me to this publication:

 

http://www.dot10.state.pa.us/pdotforms/pub_45/section_ab.pdf

 

(go to page 8)

 

Any comments on this?

Show regulation to the mechanic and his mger-if they still don't want to do it complain to whatever state agencies license/certify the inpectors/inspection stations.

I would call PenDot. The regulation says "may" which means in legal speak no one has to.

 

Why do you want it inspected before you register it in PA ? Are you going to a full service station?

 

nipper

there is no reason why they wouldn't inspect your car without the pa reg. BUT you will NOT get a sticker on the car though. If you are doing it so you can see what it needs etc. there shouldn't be a problem (it won't be free) but part of the "real" inspection is that the paperwork is to be verified with the vin and that you have valid insurance. This is one of the first steps in doing an inspection.

 

Just so you know.... when you go to the notary to get your PA paperwork you will need to have the car with you so that the notary person can physically verify your vin to your paperwork.

 

Hope this helps you out.... FWIW, I have an inspection license BTW.

until there is a PA plate on the car, no cop is going to be looking for a PA inspection sticker. While the temporary registration is in effect, you should be able to get it inspected.

The deal is that once you go to the notary or title/tag agency and get your temporary PA tags, then you have 10 days to get it inspected.

 

On the other hand, as long as you still have your MD plates, you are not time restricted in terms if you want to fix things yourself, or maybe even sell the car. If I have the car on MD plates, I can take a buyer out for a spin, they can test the engine, listen for rattles, etc. If I have it temporarily registered in PA and it fails, then I won't be able to take anybody out for a spin. The car becomes "dead weight".

 

When I previously brought the car into MD, I had VA plates on it, which was great because I could drive it around and have things fixed cheaply or do things myself. I would like to have the same freedom in Philadelphia (no Elton John pun intended).

 

The car is legally insured (the insurance papers only state the VIN, not the license plate), so that shouldn't be a problem.

 

I called around and found a pepboys that will inspect it while it is still on MD plates.

Yesterday I went and got my wife's Toyota PA inspected while still on MD plates. I still need to take my own two cars through the same process.

 

The Toyota got both window stickers (emissions and safety). The PennDOT rules explicitly state that it is LEGAL to affix PA window stickers to an out-of-state vehicle.

 

Other than the stickers, I don't have any paperwork to show that my wife's car has been inspected, but I assume that this information is stored under the VIN in the PennDOT data base.

 

I hope it will go smoothly when I go to get the car registered. As the car is inspected, I don't need temporary tags, so my situation may be a bit different. I have learned that here in PA, one goes to a tag/title agency or an auto club (AAA) to deal with the paperwork. That is not how it is in AZ or MD or most other states. If I want to do it myself, there is only one place in the whole state, PennDOT HQ in Harrisburg, that will deal with me directly. That's 80 miles away.

 

Daneinbalto