M35A3 Title Problems in Georgia

[glcaines]

I finally received my SF-97 for my new M35A3 after about a 30-day wait. I had a very fast EUC experience of only 12 days, but the SF-97 was another story.

Today, I went to the Dept of Motor Vehicles office to apply for a title. This was the State office in Atlanta, not a county tag office. I was immediately informed that M35A3s could not be titled in Georgia without specific exemption certificates from both the EPA and NHTSA. I complained and went up the chain through several people, but to no avail. Has anyone else been having problems in Georgia titling A3s? This story sounds very familiar, in fact almost identical to a recent experiences other SS members have had in Alabama and Wisconsin.

I think I now have what I need from NHTSA, but I'm still looking for something from the EPA on the Cat engine.

 

[ranchhopper]

Wow I was going to move down south thinking you guys have a more relaxed easier to get along with state government but it sounds like the policies of these high strung idiots making laws up here is starting to drift south.

 

[papercu]

easier to get along with state government

They are for the older trucks (1985 and below)but unfortunately the A3 is listed as made in the 90s. Wayne

 

[Jimma]

What year is the truck? On a side note I contacted my tag office and if any truck is considered an antique you dont even need the SF97. Just the bill of sale and the form you can print off from the DMV site and have it filled out by a local police officer verifying the vin number to be legit and not stolen.

 

[shovelheadmike]

Hmm... find the numbers stamped on the frame and get the information on it from carnac and call it an A2 from it's original incarnation?

 

[Jimma]

Sounds like a interesting idea! I assure you the tag office does not know the difference.

 

[poppop]

Absolutly, an A3 is a rebuild of an A2, Get the year of orginal manufactuer and use that.

 

[glcaines]

What year is the truck? On a side note I contacted my tag office and if any truck is considered an antique you dont even need the SF97. Just the bill of sale and the form you can print off from the DMV site and have it filled out by a local police officer verifying the vin number to be legit and not stolen.

According to Carnac, it is a 97, but the axles and other equipment have 1998 date tags on them, so I have been calling it a 98. I'm going to re-submit the paperwork through my local county tag office. Maybe I'll get lucky and it will go through without difficulty. If not, I'm stuck supplying the EPA and NHTSA certificates.

 

[shovelheadmike]

According to Carnac, it is a 97, but the axles and other equipment have 1998 date tags on them, so I have been calling it a 98. I'm going to re-submit the paperwork through my local county tag office. Maybe I'll get lucky and it will go through without difficulty. If not, I'm stuck supplying the EPA and NHTSA certificates.

Are you saying that you got the original FRAME numbers that quick,.had Carnac look.it.up.that quick, and Carnac says it is a 1997?

 

[glcaines]

Are you saying that you got the original FRAME numbers that quick,.had Carnac look.it.up.that quick, and Carnac says it is a 1997?

I got the S/N from the dataplate on the dash. Carnac ran the number and came up with the same unit information printed on the bumpers and a year of 1997. Carnac is very good at what he does.

 

[shovelheadmike]

I got the S/N from the dataplate on the dash. Carnac ran the number and came up with the same unit information printed on the bumpers and a year of 1997. Carnac is very good at what he does.

Hint: you are going to have to crawl under your truck, take a.side grinder with a sandpaper flapper on it, and remove.the.paint from the front inside of the frame.rail. You will.find a.magic number hidden under 35 coats of paint. Send.THAT number to Carnac.

Perhaps you should.use chemical stripper. This would be applied.to the front left frame rail between the steering box and the bumper.

 

[shovelheadmike]

Oh, I would.also use that magic number and get a repop dash plate made up to replace the one.which has the A3 info.on it. Just a thought...

 

[shovelheadmike]

According to Carnac, it is a 97, but the axles and other equipment have 1998 date tags on them, so I have been calling it a 98. I'm going to re-submit the paperwork through my local county tag office. Maybe I'll get lucky and it will go through without difficulty. If not, I'm stuck supplying the EPA and NHTSA certificates.

I didn't realize that Carnac could do an A3 number. Cool, when I get home next I will get my FRAME nnumber and send both to.Carnac for.the.history on mine.

 

[wreckerman893]

This is another reason I avoid the A3's.

Since they went through a rebuild at an outside vendor (as opposed to being rebuilt at a military facility) they got a new VIN and were redesignated a a "new" vehicle.

This makes them a lawn ornament in some states.

As far as getting it registered there's more than one way to skin a cat, there just ain't no way to make him like it.

You may have to get creative.

 

[3dAngus]

I was under the impression the following;

1. This included a 13 county area surrounding Atlanta only. Georgia has 159 counties in the state.
2. It is for light duty vehicles only, where vehicles are exempt over 8500 pounds.
3. There are further exemptions for older Americans in Georgia, Military get temp exemption of six months for various reasons, and motocycles, and the year of the vehicle is taken into consideration as well where there is a slot between 3-25 years or so that need follow the smog rules and inspection.
4. According to the town you list under your avatar, you do not fall under this guideline and should be exempt. You should be going to your own county tax office and handling this matter rather than going to Atlanta.

I live in Georgia and don't fall under the same category as you for a number of different reasons, and I don't have to get any kind of smog report or inspection.

You are penalized due to the huge population around Georgia's biggest city, where smog becomes much more critical due to the masses.

It all makes sense to me. Here is a listing of the affected counties;

• Cherokee

• Clayton

• Cobb

• Coweta

• DeKalb

• Douglas

• Fayette

• Forsyth

• Fulton

• Gwinnett

• Henry

• Paulding

• Rockdale

 

[mktopside]

According to Carnac, it is a 97, but the axles and other equipment have 1998 date tags on them, so I have been calling it a 98. I'm going to re-submit the paperwork through my local county tag office. Maybe I'll get lucky and it will go through without difficulty. If not, I'm stuck supplying the EPA and NHTSA certificates.

Remember how we were talking about mine being titled as an 83?

 

[pmramsey]

I believe the problem is in the fact that you are requesting an SF-97 from GL. Ask for a title from GL. They now deliver an Arizona title when requesting a title from them. Take it to the DMV and it becomes a simple transfer of title like any other out of state vehicle sale. Just make sure it is signed and a corp seal is affixed to the GL corp signiature. One can also simply transfer the title and NOT purchase tags. This costs but $10 in my state. Tag it later when you havethe bugs worked out of it and up and running. My last five vehicles from GL in the last year have been a piece of cake walk through the DMV and I keep trucks in both Virginia and Georgia. The trucks included two M818s, two A2s, and an A3. The A3 even has live and legal road tags with a state inspection. However, it does not come cheap. The tags cost me $960 a year for the A3 so you had better have a good reason to put it on the road.

 

[big1096]

"there's more than one way to skin a cat, there just ain't no way to make him like it."

Good one!

 

[Monica]

My 109 took less than 30 minutes to tag, and I'm in one of the afflicted counties. The problem is certainly in part due to the revised "age" of the vehicle. Good luck, and keep us informed, please.

Remember, if you get the information off of the frame, (the A2 info) you're probably going to have to take a DMV person out to the truck to confirm the ID. Make sure you show them the right data plate!

 

[glcaines]

I was under the impression the following;

1. This included a 13 county area surrounding Atlanta only. Georgia has 159 counties in the state.
2. It is for light duty vehicles only, where vehicles are exempt over 8500 pounds.
3. There are further exemptions for older Americans in Georgia, Military get temp exemption of six months for various reasons, and motocycles, and the year of the vehicle is taken into consideration as well where there is a slot between 3-25 years or so that need follow the smog rules and inspection.
4. According to the town you list under your avatar, you do not fall under this guideline and should be exempt. You should be going to your own county tax office and handling this matter rather than going to Atlanta.

Unfortunately, I'm not talking about the emission inspectionrequired in the metro counties. I live in Towns county and we are not subject to this law. The EPA certificate they want is from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and covers the engine and vehicle showing that the combination meets federal EPA regulations for the year of manufacture.