Hi Guys,
Been looking to get a 4 wheeler,
But seeing a lot with just a bill of sale.
How do you go about getting a plate
without a title? Can it be done?
I live in Pa. Thanks
Hope this post is in right place.

 

Your best bet is to contact your local Registry of Motor Vehicles and see what they require. It's kind of a state by state thing. I know in NH you can usually get away with a Bill of Sale but here in Mass. you have to have a title last time I checked.

 

How old and how much money? Even in a state that does not require a title I would be real hesitant to drop down $5k without a title. Would hate to have to register it to find out it was stolen. I did less then $1k for a pair of old ones with just a bill of sale. But a bill of sale is a joke as anyone could write and sign one, registration office would have no clue where I got them from or have anything to compare it to since they were never titled or registered anywhere after leaving the dealership 16 years ago. Here in FL you do not have to register them, but you are suppose to title them but not many do. I am actually taking them to some property in NC where there is no process to title or register them.

A quick google search
PA DCNR - ATV Registration
shows that all ATV with a few exceptions must be registered and titled in PA, so if you are buying them from someone in PA without a title that would be a little scary. If outside of PA you would need to look or read what it takes to title or register them there.

 

I'm from Canada where you can't even sell something without a "Ownership" I guess that is what you Americans call a title?

I live on the border with Michigan and have bought snowmobiles , trailer and atvs in the states many times and never once met a person selling without the paper work or else I could not get it back over the border to Canada.

Watch yourself if these guys have no "Ownership/title" slip.

Don,t know how it works in the states but in Canada you can't even get insurance without a ownership/title and without insurance you cant ride them off your property.

First thing the police or game wardens ask for if you meet them on the trail is ownership/title followed by proof of insurance.

So I call a ATV without ownership/title a parts bike at best.

 

It varies from state to state and also how old the machine is. Illinois has required titles since the 1990's at least but other states still do not have titles for new atvs. I'd be leery of buying something relatively new and expensive without a title. If someone is selling a 1996 Yamaha Timberwolf for $600 with no title, not such a big deal. If for example you're looking at say a 2011 Grizzly 700 for $5000, then its a different story. A lot of times an older atv will have had many owners and at some point the title many times gets lost. As I said in another thread about stolen atvs, an old machine won't get much attention. A newer machine being hauled around in a junk vehicle is an automatic red flag for police. A $5000 quad being hauled in a $1000 truck is hard to justify. If you had the money to buy a quad that expensive, most would have bought a nicer truck first.