Selling and Smog

Hoping someone has the answer.

 

In CA, the seller is responsible for smogging the car, but what are the consequences of not doing providing a smog certificate and letting the buyer take care of it? I haven't been able to get a clear answer.

 

If the buyer wants to take on the responsibility of smogging it, how much trouble could the seller get into if something goes wrong with the smog?

Depends on if the seller sold vehicle "as is". Are you having trouble smogging a vehicle or did you get the vehicle with semi-new registration?

Depends on if the seller sold vehicle "as is". Are you having trouble smogging a vehicle or did you get the vehicle with semi-new registration?

 

I'm the seller in this case. My smog was done over 90 days ago so I would have to smog it before selling to comply, and I have to invest time and money to do it. Need to borrow a DP, swap it in, smog it, swap my Perrin catted DP back in and sell the car. Or, go with an alternate route, which will still cost money.

 

I'm assuming that if I sell the car out of state, the CA smog requirement wouldn't apply, but I have also been unable to find a definitive answer to this.

Go to the California state website and they can tell you what you need to do or you could go to an AAA office and ask them.

When it comes to smog in CA you cannot sell the car "as is" - it is your responsibility to provide the buyer with a valid smog certificate. Of course you CAN sell the car and let the buyer handle the smog portion, which a lot of people with modified cars do as the sellers and purchasers of these types of vehicles are aware of the issues when it comes to this - but be aware that the buyer still has the legal grounds to come back and force you to pay for both the smog check and any work required to make the vehicle pass the inspection. If you're worried about this and don't know the buyer very well, it is probably in your best interest to bring the vehicle back to a smog legal status and get the car to pass before selling. You can always sell the car with all of the parts included and have the buyer put them back on.

I have sold an old car with a written agreement (signed both by buyer and seller-me) that buyer is responsible for smog. I had disclosed the car issues (CEL on due to 1 or 2 bad sensors) to the buyer and of course I sold the car below its value to account for the issues. I didn't want to go through the hassle of repairing and getting the issues fixed because the added value wasn't worth it to me.

 

On the other hand, I have also bought used cars where as a buyer I agreed to smog them. But before buying them, I inspected them to make sure they'd pass smog.

"As is" sales are not recognized in CA, regardless of any contracts you have signed. Until the car is smogged, ownership cannot be transferred and is therefore your responsibility as it is still in your name. Like I said, people do this type of thing all the time - but if it comes down to going to court, the seller is responsible.

you cannot register the vehicle in your name until a smog is completed but you can transfer title and ownership. Otherwise it'd be impossible to transfer ownership of a non running car.

Better wording, thanks.