Never bought a car in Oz so I'm not sure what the score is if...

I buy an unregistered car?

I buy a car with no REGO?

I buy a car registered in another state?

genuine questions, any help much appreciated!

I'll be resident rather than shipping every deccent VW outta Australia! :thumb

in some states i dont think its legal to buy an unregistered car(but everyone does)

no rego and unregistered means the same thing-without registration

most of the time you have a certain timeframe in which to transfer rego which can involve car going over pits depending on states

could be wrong but im sure someone will correct me.

where you from? rob.

South West of England... Exeter.

Had enough, shipping out! Family in Newcastle NSW so crash with them and then find my own way.

Thanks for the advice, would you buy a car without roadworthy etc?

It seems that more cars go unregistered /roadworthied than here in the UK. I wouldn't touch a car without an MOT (ministry of transport) certificate here!

[ Edited on 5-6-2006 by sasquatch ]

It's illegal to buy an unregistered car in some states? Sorry but I find that hard to believe. (Proof would help! :tu
-Staggers.

Never heard of the 'selling a car without rego as illegal' thing. I have lived in a few states so far (QLD, ACT, NSW, NT, SA) but you never know? Most unregistered cars I have seen are for sale as parts etc.
Anyways, yes a lot of cars go off rego here. From what I can understand of the UK MoT rules you can keep it off the road but registered for a cheaper price? Haven't bumped into that here, but then again I have never really looked for it here either.
Pending advice on the above 'illegal' but, from what I know you can buy an unregistered car without what is called a roadworthy certificate (blue slip, whatever depending on the state), it has to be advertised that way BUT if you are trying to buy a registered car it has to have the RWC/Blue/Pink Slip/Whatever done. In some (if not all) cases the RWC has to have been carried out within a specified time to be a valid certificate (1 month I think) of the sale - but that also depends on the age of the vehicle.
As for not touching a car without a RWC/Blue?whatever slip....... you may miss out on quite a few good cars. Up to you, but its not as bad as it sounds.

Cheers matey good advice...

I'm not seeing anything much for sale that is registered and has roadworthy slip.

In the UK you can register a car as "off the road" meaning no road tax or MOT certificate needed...

... I guess thats not a whole lot different than your system, I had a car registered off road with no MOT. I had to register and get road worthy (MOT) to sell.

Under the Australian system I guess the buyer gets the slips and registers?

... getting my head around it all.... just slowly!

It is always easier to buy a car that is registered or has been registered and registration has expired.
In NSW if you can proove 2 years rego you are home and hosed.


Other wise you need to proove existance and that can be a pain. Not impossible but a pain. Especially if you are missing compliance plates etc

Out of state cars are not a real problem. Just a bigger check

cheers that makes sense...:thumb

do people sell much privately.... signs in windows etc?

Or am I on the right track using sites like this and carsales, carpoint etc!

I just bought a car with no rego or roadworthy and it wasn't scary at all. It's a gem of a car! :P And was sold privately although I got the tip-off on here.

Anyway, through VicRoads I purchased a 28 day permit to allow driving of the car to and from mechanics while the car is being restored. There are limitations but it's easy to follow. Once I have a roadworthy certificate, then I can take the car to VicRoads for an inspection and hopefully it'll be registered. Since no paperwork came with the car (but it does have the last rego plates on it) I just need the chassis and engine numbers and all should be good.

I've sold a car through CarSales.com and it was so easy and quick... but then again I have also sold a car with the good ol' note-in-the-window and that too was very quick and easy.

Some cars sold without roadworthy can be dodgy, but then again some sold with a bit of rego can be just as bad! Just a matter of being in the right place at the right time, and being prepared to do some work if you find your dream car.

Good luck with it all sasquatch!

Good advice PBB

Basically, a blue slip and rego can mean nothing... if ya know the right people you can get a blueslip or get or rego on just about anything... which is why my mates Kombi is still on the road... it didnt even have properly working headlights and its leaking oil like a sieve and full of rust!

So just know what you are looking for.... many cars sit for years in sheds out of rego and without a blueslip, but they are often perfectly good cars... in many cases safer than some of the other crap that makes it onto the roads just cos its never gone out of rego, and many of these barn finds are good enough to still pass a legitimate bluey with flying colors after you blow the dust of and change the oil.

And on the flipside, as I said above, rego means nothing, just cos a car is in rego, doesnt mean its worth more than the dirt on your shoe... if a dodgy seller knows the right people, they could get a cardboard box to pass rego year after year... but that doesnt mean that it will pass when you take it to your own mechanic, and does not in any way guarentee the safety of the car. :puke Also, a car that passes in South Australia may not neccesarily pass in NSW.

On a final note, in NSW, rego lasts 12 months from the due date of payment. A not terribly rigourous roadworthiness inspection is required, preferably before the expiry date of the rego, in order to reregister for another 12 months. After the the rego "expires", the vehicle is retained on the register for a period of 3 months, but is not permitted to be driven without proper authority from the RTA... for all intensive purposes you are illegally driving an unregistered car until you pay the rego or unless you have an RTA unrego'd vehicle permit issued. During this 3 month period, the owner can obtain and reregister the car on a standard rego-inspection slip. After three months is up, to all effects the car is cancelled from the RTA register, and re-registration will require a blue-slip, which entails a far more more exhaustive inspection where in most cases, every single aspect of the car will be scrutinised right down to the operaation of the horn! :duh

If you buy a good car, a blue slip should not be too scary still....however if you buy a turd, even a registered turd, it is not guarenteed to pass come the next years rego...

[ Edited on 6-6-2006 by Schmoburger ]

I lived in Exeter for a while, i was probally 7 or 8yo (now 29) i rember the house we were staying in at the time the owners had 2 cars in their garage.. 1 was a Lancia Beta HPE (Always been a favorite) and the other an orange and white Karmann Ghia.... I was so into cars as a kid , this is more than likly where my insanity for Vws originated.

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I agree that a RSC can mean nothing, as this was my experience:

When I bought my Sabre, it was roadworthied and registered. I had test driven the car, and the only thing I didn't like was the braking. Assuming this would be a matter of machining and new pads, or at the worst, a kit rebuild for the calipers and new slaves, I bought the car.

When I was driving it from the Gold Coast to Brisbane (about 60kms) the day I picked it up, I thought the brakes were very weak at highway speed. I drove the car straight to my mechanics, and left it with him to check it over.

The next day, he called me to inform me that the front calipers were seized open and the resevoir and lines for the front were almost bone dry. He assured me that they had been this way for a long time.

I called the company who performed the RSC and told them about this problem. They spewed some crap about not having to check the actual brakes mechanically, they just have to put a brake meter in the car and drive it and as long as it is within tolerance, it passes. I thought this was uinlikely, and so I checked. Guess what? He was lying his ass off.

So after spending $300 or so on the brakes, and informing the Department of Transport about this operators dodgy dealing, I had a car that was actually safe for the road.

So you may find, if you are mechanically minded, buying a car no RSC is not such a big deal.

Good luck.

People do both signs in windows and on line, http://www.drive.com.au  has a few, also look at http://www.tradingpost.com.au. 

I've bought and sold a few cars unregistered in NSW, and got them going and registered legally. Never had anything said to me that it was illegal. Didnt even have old rego papers or proof of ownership, just had to sign a stat dec. I think that you might HAVE to provide a pink slip if requested, but I've never requested or been requested. People buying off me can by in confidence though. I'm the token honest guy in Warilla.

I totally agree that buying a car with a pink and or blue slip thinking that they meant it was roadworthy would be totally foolish. It just means they paid the $30 odd. It will continue to be a complete sham until they charge $150 for them so that mechanics arent losing money doing them properly. Of course rego fees would have to come down to compensate, ie it will never happen.

Top replies chaps (and ladies??)

all good advice, you've certainly increased my confidence in buying whatever takes my fancy... registered.... roadworthied or sat in a barn for 20 years!

maybe we'll bump into one another some time? :thumb

thanks again

the S@ss

Yep, I'm a lady!

Let us know how you're getting on s@ss, and when you're thinking of moving to the Land of Oz!

i brought my rat off ebay it had not been on the road for 10+ years no sign of previous reg ,i made up a fake bill of sale no reciepts on egay got a rwc ,showed my id handed over a small pile of cash went vicroads passed through inspection got a puzzled look about the overall apperance of the car (told them it was a work in progress) and now im driving piss easy