With over 369,000 miles of roads, California is a car-driving state. With limited public transportation, living in the Golden State almost requires car ownership. However, with its strict emissions requirements, sometimes owning an older vehicle can present its owners with added expenses to keep their clunkers legal. Keeping junk cars on the road in California could easily turn into an unwanted hole in the wallet. But if you’re on a budget, what other options do you have?
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3 Reasons Why Your Junk Car Doesn’t Belong in California
Living in a state where it’s necessary to own a car can present numerous challenges to those residents who own older vehicles. While other states may allow any kind of old clunker to grace its public roads, things are a bit different in California. It’s also an expensive state to live in, and add in inflation and other economic factors, your junk car may be costing you more than you think. Here’s a look at why your junk car doesn’t belong in California anymore.
California Smog Check Program
Anyone who’s lived for more than a minute in this beautiful state knows that its emissions regulations are amongst the strictest in the entire country. In 1984, California implemented the Smog Check Program to improve the state’s air quality. While this may be a good thing for the state’s residents and visitors, it has proven to be a costly annoyance to the owners of older vehicles that may require expensive and time-consuming repairs to keep them street-legal.
To keep a vehicle registered in California, owners must submit to a smog check every two years. If it doesn’t pass, the owner will not be permitted to renew the vehicle’s registration until the required repairs are performed, and it passes the smog check inspection.
The Costs Associated With Junk Cars
Owning and operating a junk car in California can be expensive. Junk cars are typically defined as those over ten years old and/or have over 100,000 miles. These vehicles are incredibly difficult to trade in for a newer car and even more difficult to sell privately. Junk cars are notorious for spending more time in a mechanics shop than they do on the road. The more worn down it is, the more expensive repairs they’ll need.
Older vehicles usually will require at least one major repair in their lifetime. Things like timing belts and head gaskets can easily cost more to repair than the value of the vehicle. If the expense is equal to half or more of your junk car’s value, it’s time to consider the possibly difficult task of selling it.
The Safety of You and Your Occupants
Many junk cars that are still on the road are an accident waiting to happen. Without dumping loads of hard-earned cash into them, many junk car owners on a budget don’t properly maintain them. Driving an unsafe vehicle puts you and your passengers at risk of not only an accident that could cause bodily harm and liability but could also break down in the middle of nowhere. Not all California locations are safe, and becoming stranded in a less-than-friendly area could prove to be dangerous.
How To Sell Your Junk Car in California
Southern Californians, sell your junk car in Long Beach to a specialized dealer. They won’t bat an eye at its mileage, age, or condition. Have yours towed away while being paid for the privilege. Don’t throw good money after bad. Sell your junker to a junk car dealer.
Anything with the word junk in front of it will prove difficult to sell, cars included. With an abundance of used vehicles for sale in California, selling one that’s considered junk could most likely be fruitless. If yours needs costly repairs or is having problems passing the smog check inspection, you may think that the only way to dispose of it is by paying a shady business to haul it away to the nearest landfill. Not only is this untrue, it’s also bad for the environment.
The easiest and most profitable way to unload a junk car is to contact a junk car dealer in California. They’ll come to you and tow it away while leaving you with cash in hand. Junk car dealers will offer more than a junkyard will for cars in any condition. They aren’t concerned about mileage, age, costly repairs, or being unable to pass California’s strict vehicle emissions inspection. Most will haul yours away within 24 hours.
Reasons Why Your Junk Car Doesn’t Belong in California Explained
California residents understand the necessity of car ownership in the State where driving is almost the only way to get around. The owners of junk cars usually end up putting far too much money into them to ensure that they pass the state’s smog check requirements. Older cars can be a money pit, so why not unload it the easy way by selling it to a California junk car buyer?