Background....Bought a brand new Tacoma on June 3rd, 2006. Got it to NC via a trade with a dealer in Florida and drove it home on 6/3. The dealership I purchased from is 2 hours from my house.
So Saturday evening the wife and I decide to go to shopping and take advantage of the tax free weekend and get some stuff for the kid. We're cruising down the road and come up on a license check. No problem. I'm in my NEW truck that I've had for 9 weeks, we don't drink or do drugs, seatbelts are all buckled, wasn't speeding. Figured I'd show my license and tell the trooper to have a nice day and be on my way. WRONG!!! The lady looks at my license and says, 'Do you mind telling me why you haven't had your truck inspected?' I said 'This truck is brand new. I just bought it the first weekend in June.' She said 'Well, your inspection expired in June. Since it's been since June, I'm going to write you a ticket for it. Please pull over here.' I was LIVID!!!! Not so much at the trooper (she was doing her job, but come on....), but at the dealership! Some moron at the dealership punched the inspection sicker for 06 instead of 07! Who checks for that on a brand new vehicle? Now I have a $135 ticket, I have to pay $30 to get the truck inspected and I have to take time off work to go to court on 9/27 and plead my case to the judge to try and get the ticket thrown out. I KNOW the dealership is going to pay for the inspection and if I can't get the ticket thrown out they are going to pay for it as well whether they know it yet or not. Man I was (and still am) so pissed about this! I know it's not going to cost me anything, but having to go to the courthouse sux ass.
So, let this be a warning boys and girls. Check those inspection stickers, even on your brand-damn-new trucks!
If you call her headquarters and talk to her superior, the ticket may be dropped. As long as you are not an ass with her or her superior, and you are just calling to alert them to a mistake that they can fix before you have to take it to court, they may see your point.
Oh yeah, have the dealership overnight it or sent someone out to get you a correct sticker. You should not have to pay to have it done again and you shouldn't have to drive 4 hours for their mistake. If you get the sticker quick, and the troopers are close by, you can show them you are acting in good faith.
Good idea Joe. I'll give that a try. I tried explaining it to her, but she said that I had had since June to take care of it and since I had no way to prove the truck was new she 'had' to write the ticket. Whatever. Then when she brought it to me she told me to get it inspected, show it to the judge and it would be thrown out. Then why even bother writing it in the first place?
To complicate matters, the dealership I purchased from is in a non-emissions county and I live in an emissions county so I can't take it back to them for inspection anyway. Nor can they send me a sticker because their stickers are different. I have to pay the $30 for the inspection local, then send them the receipt. If there's an upside, it's that my stepmom works at the dealership and I dealt directly with the GM so I have some pull there.
Our inspection stickers are a different color every year so that part can't get screwed up. They can punch out the wrong month though.
Different inspections between counties in one state? Nothing like overcomplicating things.
Doesn't your truck registration show the date it was registered? That would prove it was new.
__________________ Current truck...
2008 Tundra TRD Off-Road DC 4x4
Previous truck...
2005 Tacoma SR5 DC 4x4
Our inspection stickers are a different color every year so that part can't get screwed up. They can punch out the wrong month though.
Different inspections between counties in one state? Nothing like overcomplicating things.
Doesn't your truck registration show the date it was registered? That would prove it was new.
In Rhode Island we have 2 years or 24,000 miles before we have to get an inspection on a new car.
You can't tell it was a new car since I bought the truck in May and the registration tag says March. I guess I better get an inspection before March '07.
On a side note, my fiance drove around for 10 months with an expired registration and inspection. Could be because her brother is a cop. Future brother-in-law.
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2005 V6 4x4 Silver Access Cab, K&N/AEM Hybrid Intake, GC + 3oz. ARx, K&N HP-2009
265/70/17 Nitto Terra Grapplers, Black KMC XD Enduro Wheels, TRD Exhaust, URD Short Shifter
Doesn't your truck registration show the date it was registered? That would prove it was new.
I was thinking the same thing... Registration may or may not help, but if you have an invoice, sales receipt, or even a reciept for the down payment on the truck you could prove it was new. Registration I don't know about as the registration could've expired and you renewed it. Depending on if it had time to expire from the time the truck was built.
I'd make the dealership pay a local toyota shop or inspection shop to do it for you. If they can't get the right sticker.
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Toytec 3" lift & AAL, 285/75r16 Kumho Road Venture
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I was thinking the same thing... Registration may or may not help, but if you have an invoice, sales receipt, or even a reciept for the down payment on the truck you could prove it was new.
Yeah I've got all that at home. Like most people, I don't carry that with me in the truck at all times! I was told to take that with me to the judge as well 'just in case'. She had my registration when she wrote the ticket, so I guess that wasn't proof enough.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Angus_NB
Our inspection stickers are a different color every year so that part can't get screwed up.
Our inspection stickers in NC are different colors for emissions or non-emissions counties. The years are listed the top and the months on the side. The technician is supposed to use a hole punch and punch the month and year of expiration.
That inspection stuff is BS, and just another way to take our money.
We finally got rid of that stuff in Ohio. No safety or smog checks here. Since there are so many new vehicles on the road there's really no use in doing the smog check. The car will show a CEL if there's an emission problem.
If CA started vehicle inspections a full 1/3 would not pass because of bald tires, burned out lights, expired plates, etc. What a revenue source that would be for the state!
__________________ 2006 Tacoma DC PreRunner
TRD "Off Road" package w/17" Sport alloys and hood
If CA started vehicle inspections a full 1/3 would not pass because of bald tires, burned out lights, expired plates, etc. What a revenue source that would be for the state!
shut up
somone in the california legislature might be reading.
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Future brother-in-law. 
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