Any California residents buy new out of state

[KWolff]

Hi new guy here,

I'm looking to buy a Cement grey TRD PRO 4runner and my options are looking better at buying one out of state. I am a California resident and am not familiar with buying a new car out of state. I know the local dealers always say its impossible and they want you to pay a markup but I want to know have any California residents bought new out of state and were their any loopholes or DMV inspections that had to be jumped through?

 

[ChrisA95713]

Same boat as you, except I've been looking at Nevada listings after checking the DMV website. It looks to me like like as long as the vehicle has 50 state emissions you should be able to register it in CA with no issues. My understanding is Reno dealers are used to these transactions and will register a new vehicle in your home (CA) county.

 

[JSparky]

I went to Dolan in Reno to get my Limited, couldn't find one in-state without the third row. They made it super easy and comped my plane flight and hotel room. Got it for 41k as well which was a good deal to me. I have no affiliation with them, I just really appreciate good customer service.

Be aware, you'll have to get it smogged when you bring it back to CA and submit paperwork at the DMV. Dolan provides you with instructions and a packet which you send back to them and they complete the paperwork and your plates show up the next week. I'd do it again if I was set on how a specific vehicle was outfitted.

 

[JSparky]

By the way, welcome to the forum!

 

[KWolff]

I went to Dolan in Reno to get my Limited, couldn't find one in-state without the third row. They made it super easy and comped my plane flight and hotel room. Got it for 41k as well which was a good deal to me. I have no affiliation with them, I just really appreciate good customer service.

Be aware, you'll have to get it smogged when you bring it back to CA and submit paperwork at the DMV. Dolan provides you with instructions and a packet which you send back to them and they complete the paperwork and your plates show up the next week. I'd do it again if I was set on how a specific vehicle was outfitted.

That's good to know and thanks for the welcome.

My question is after the initial smog do you still have to smog it every two years or are you good for six years?

I know when you buy new in California you don't need to smog a new car for like six years.

 

[BrianSD_42]

Hi new guy here,

I'm looking to buy a Cement grey TRD PRO 4runner and my options are looking better at buying one out of state. I am a California resident and am not familiar with buying a new car out of state. I know the local dealers always say iimpossible and they want you to pay a markup but I want to know have any California residents bought new out of state and were their any loopholes or DMV inspections that had to be jumped through?

Why wouldn't you simply go to a dealership (one outside of SF) and ask about putting in a custom order.

If it is price gouging you are trying to avoid then I would go to the out of state dealership in person, Las Vegas would be a great choice, and mention that you are in Vegas for work and want to buy a car then bring it back to CA later in the year when you contract will likely be done. They won't question that much. You can tell you come out to Vegas for work 4 days a week and your home address is California. Fill out all the forms legit and honest. I work for a California company and fly all over the place, sometimes for weeks or months. Now if you tell them you want to buy out of state to avoid high prices they may meet you have way and still mark it up.

Alternatively (+ much quicker & easier) .... just browse the online inventory of dealers in AZ, NV and then negotiate over email. They don't need to know if you are a local or not and I don't think they can revoke the price if you tell them you are going to drive it to California once you show up to buy it and start the paperwork. Of course YES you have to pay CA taxes to import it but that is no different than here. When I bought my Lexus I emailed several dealers, starting chatting about what I wanted and pretty quickly figured out how low they would go. I am pretty confident if you contacted 5 dealers in AZ over email with what you want (excluding rare TRD pro) you can get within $500 of the bottom price. Then just go pick it up and drive to CA. BTW, most of the 4Runner's on Camelback Toyota's website listed as currently in inventory say they are 50-state emissions vehicles.

Remember. You are communicating over email. If they ask where you live just ignore the question but reply with the rest of the details like I'll be paying cash or I have a pre-approved loan from ____ super reputable bank. I work in sales and my customers ignore questions all the time. It doesn't stop the rep from wanting to proceed with the sale.

https://www.camelbacktoyota.com/new-inventory/index.htm?

-Brian

 

[KWolff]

Hi Brian,

I have had such a nightmare of a time with dealers in California trying to get a TRD PRO 4Runner that I have given up and am looking at out of state dealerships now. I am no means trying to avoid taxes I just want a truck with no gimmicks or games.

First dealership would not even look in inventory until I left a deposit of 500 dollars. Once I did they said they would call me and let me know if they are getting one in. After three months they would not let me special order one nor could they promise an allocation. They said it could be 6 months to a year. I just got my deposit back after three months of no results. They got an interest free loan off of me.

Second dealership called me after I put in the request via Toyota's website for a TRD Pro. They told me MSRP no problem they have one in stock. Had me fill out the credit paperwork and everything. I even arranged a ride to pickup the truck. Salesperson calls me in the morning and says manager made a mistake their is a 5k markup. I walked and what pissed me off the most was they ran a hard credit check on my Fico which as you know can bring down your score if too many are ran. They continued to advertise the 4runner for MSRP on their website for over a week before it sold. They did so with no intention of selling it at MSRP.

So here I am just fed up with shady dealers. I just want a truck not trying to avoid extra taxes etc. If a dealer is reading this and you have a cement grey TRD PRO let me know I will buy it.

 

[JSparky]

That's good to know and thanks for the welcome.

My question is after the initial smog do you still have to smog it every two years or are you good for six years?

I know when you buy new in California you don't need to smog a new car for like six years.

I'd just call Dolan and tell them exactly what you want to know, they specialize in out of state sales. I honestly don't knownabout the resmoggong and probably should so I'll have to ask. I don't see why you'd have to keep it quiet why you're out of state, it's perfectly legal.

 

[BrianSD_42]

Well that explains most of it. You are trying to buy a super rare product like the NES Classic. It sucks those dealerships were jerking you around. I bet that they 1) did want to sell you a TRD Pro and 2) were hoping for the best knowing they may not get one in.

 

[FourEyedWilly]

I bought a boat in Colorado didn't register there and moved to Nevada. When I registered the boat I was forced to pay sales tax. Check to see if California has this crap loophole. Maybe it was only a boat thing. Ask DMV. They will have the low down for you. Might even be on their website.

 

[the_dude33]

Not sure how rules / laws vary in your area, but I live in Wyoming, and have Never purchased a vehicle in state. I have purchased in Colorado a few times, and South Dakota a couple of times. My parents have purchased in Oklahoma, California, you get the idea. The process has always been very easy and quite painless. The only thing that I have personally encountered is that Colorado Law requires that sales tax (Wyoming in my case) be paid at the time of sale, where as, if I make the same purchase in Wyoming, I can defer the sales tax until I register the vehicle. Aside from a possible VIN inspection, or Smog check, don't worry about it. Find the vehicle you want, at the dealership you want, and buy the thing. Best of luck!

 

[MeefZah]

I just did this, twice. I live in extreme norCal, and our local Toyota dealership are pieces of shit, so I went to the "next" one, which is in Grants Pass, Oregon.

You buy the truck like normal - cash, financing, whatever.

The dealer collects the registration / title fee and the sales tax for your county in California. Note that a dealer close to the border probably has more experience with this than, say, a dealer in Missouri would.

The dealer then submits the sales tax and reg / title fees to the DMV closest to you, they will coordinate with you in advance to make sure they file at the DMV of your choosing.

You get a temp tag from that state, and technically you have to go to the DMV as soon as you get back in Calif and get a Calif temp, but no one does.

You get a smog test done.

You wait until the dealer calls you to tell you that the DMV has your shit (15 days-ish), then you take your smog test to the DMV and pick up your reg and plates (and title, if you paid cash). There is no more money out of hand to the DMV. There is no DMV inspection (but note that for a used car bought private party there IS a VIN inspection).

Smog tests after initial smog / registration are up to the counties, mine does not require them. Yours might, so I can't comment on that question.

 

[KWolff]

Thanks for all the replies and info so far.

I am still looking for a TRD PRO at MSRP, one person PM'd me and it was already sold when I followed up on it. So if there is a dealer reading this let me know. Cement TRD Pro 4runner. I don't mind ordering and waiting either as long as my allocation is guaranteed.

 

[KWolff]

I just did this, twice. I live in extreme norCal, and our local Toyota dealership are pieces of shit, so I went to the "next" one, which is in Grants Pass, Oregon.

You buy the truck like normal - cash, financing, whatever.

The dealer collects the registration / title fee and the sales tax for your county in California. Note that a dealer close to the border probably has more experience with this than, say, a dealer in Missouri would.

The dealer then submits the sales tax and reg / title fees to the DMV closest to you, they will coordinate with you in advance to make sure they file at the DMV of your choosing.

You get a temp tag from that state, and technically you have to go to the DMV as soon as you get back in Calif and get a Calif temp, but no one does.

You get a smog test done.

You wait until the dealer calls you to tell you that the DMV has your shit (15 days-ish), then you take your smog test to the DMV and pick up your reg and plates (and title, if you paid cash). There is no more money out of hand to the DMV. There is no DMV inspection (but note that for a used car bought private party there IS a VIN inspection).

Smog tests after initial smog / registration are up to the counties, mine does not require them. Yours might, so I can't comment on that question.

Did you still have to get a smog every two years after that?

I am still trying to figure out if an out of state purchase requires smogs as opposed to buying in state after the Initial smog when you bring it into California.

 

[trailtruck]

Did exactly this with Right Toyota in Scottsdale, AZ. Smooth as silk transaction.

1. Flew there and bought truck.
2. Drove truck back.
3. Right Toyota airmailed the title (since it couldn't be procured within the hour or two window that I spent at the dealership)
4. Took title and all paperwork to DMV, had it inspected, paid registration fees (registration fees were paid in AZ as well but dealership refunded difference of what I paid in AZ - $600 from what I paid in CA - $300) and was on my way.

I spent more time at the DMV waiting, filling out paperwork, waiting, having vehicle inspected, waiting, paying, etc. than it took to actually fly to PHX, get picked up by the dealership and driven to the dealership, and then buy the truck.

 

[MeefZah]

Did you still have to get a smog every two years after that?

I am still trying to figure out if an out of state purchase requires smogs as opposed to buying in state after the Initial smog when you bring it into California.

See the last sentence in the post of mine that you quoted.

That's up to your county. The smog requirement is not the same statewide, once you get the first one.

Ask your DMV, they will know. It may be buried on the DMV site, but I'm not looking for ya!

 

[MeefZah]

Did exactly this with Right Toyota in Scottsdale, AZ. Smooth as silk transaction.

1. Flew there and bought truck.
2. Drove truck back.
3. Right Toyota airmailed the title (since it couldn't be procured within the hour or two window that I spent at the dealership)
4. Took title and all paperwork to DMV, had it inspected, paid registration fees (registration fees were paid in AZ as well but dealership refunded difference of what I paid in AZ - $600 from what I paid in CA - $300) and was on my way.

I spent more time at the DMV waiting, filling out paperwork, waiting, having vehicle inspected, waiting, paying, etc. than it took to actually fly to PHX, get picked up by the dealership and driven to the dealership, and then buy the truck.

I would wager that dealership doesn't do a ton of California sales. A border dealer would expedite the process by communicating directly with the DMV so everything is set before you go in.

OP, call Mike Smith at Grants Pass Toyota. I know he can get your truck and the price will be fair, and the dealership will handle the DMV for you.

 

[simple]

I bought a used 4runner out of Flagstaff and drove it back to San Diego. Same deal as the guy above. The only thing that was painful was that I didn't want to pay the truck in full and got a loan through my bank. The CA registration process required the actual title to convert it from an AZ title. My bank refused to give that up and after several phone calls, I determined that despite this being a large bank, I must have been the first person ever to do this to them. They were clueless, so I ended up paying the vehicle off to get the title. The dealer provided a 90 day title though to allow time to get this handled, so that was nice.

A couple points to be aware of. Somehow, the tax rate (with state/local tax)I paid was equal or greater than CA, because I didn't owe any taxes to the DMV. I found it odd, because AZ I think is 6% and CA is 8%, but I didn't owe more money to CA which made me happy.

Another big point with taxes is if you're trading a used car. I was trading a car that exceeded the value of my 4runner purchase. AZ allows you to offset the cost of the new vehicle with trade-in value of your old one. So a 10k new vehicle and a 5k trade-in equals you only paying tax on 5k of the new purchase. This meant if I traded my car there, I wouldn't have to pay any tax at all. I couldn't find anywhere that CA would reciprocate this and not charge me the additional tax, so I ended up just trading my car in here, and flying over there.

 

[SoCal5thGen]

I bought a Mercedes out of state and the only problem was the loan. My credit union wouldn't finance out of state so I had to finance through MB and then refinance when I got it here.

 

[KWolff]

Thanks so far for the feebdack. I got a 2012 SVTPP Shelby GT500 I'm selling or going to sell to pay for most of my 4Runner purchase so financing is not a major concern.

I am still looking for a dealer with a TRD PRO 4Runner so if anyone knows of one PM me.