What Part Is Considered the Car?

[BigPines]

Wow! I am sorry you feel alienated but I fail to see how that is my doing.

Maybe I misread your intention but you are the one that came here smacking down solrac. Maybe you felt he deserved it but I thought it was a little harsh. Either way, I appreciated the clarification from someone who seems to know.

Then you got attitude with me acting put out that I keep asking a question you already "directly" answered. When I politely point out that my original question has not been answered, I have somehow showed an attitude and alienated you? I meant no offense. Could it be you are just having a bad day buddy?

I would definitely appreciate your help in the future but if you decide to withhold that from me as revenge for some sort of misunderstanding, nothing I can do about that. I'm sure your experience and advice is valuable but I'm also sure I can figure it out without you if necessary.

My apologies for anything I may have said that was rude. Again, that was not my intent.

[Tusabes]

With that attitude i will be sure not to respond when you have further questions about Ca sb100,

good way to alienate The only one in this forum who has actually done the sb100 process recently on a kit car

[BigPines]

No, I'm sorry but you didn't answer my question - not even indirectly. The closest you came was "If keeping it titled as a fiero generally you keep the chassis and drivetrain of the fiero" I didn't ask what people generally do. That doesn't answer the question in my first post which is, what is the least I can use of the original donor and be legal. What if I don't want to keep the drivetrain? What if I don't want to keep the whole chassis? What about just the tub? What about part of the tub? Is it still considered a Fiero or do I no longer have a choice but to go SB100? There must be a definition of what is considered the vehicle out there somewhere but it seems nobody knows it. That is fine. I don't know it either - that is why I am asking.

Sounds like it is not worth trying to find a loophole here if SB100 is really that easy.

[Tusabes]

Yeah No Bull, I will probably do something similar.

I guess nobody knows the answer to my question. I already know of ways to get my car on the road in Cali. I was just looking for a creative alternative. For instance, if I could use 12" of a pre-1976 original chassis (the part that had the VIN on it), that would have some advantages. On the other hand, if SB100 isn't that bad, that may be easiest way to go.

This must come up all the time in restorations. Those guys replace the entire frame sometimes. I wonder what they do?

I answered your question directly . If you're going custom chassis , do sb100.  If you're using a fiero , you have the choice of keeping it as a fiero (which limits your power train mods as you'll need to pass smog ) or do sb100 to get a permanent exemption from smog

No , using 12 inches of a 1975 frame with the VIN stamping in your build will not let you get away with not following the sb100 process , otherwise all the hot rodders would have simply done that .

By the way almost all the articles on sb100 online are outdated . The stories of all the applications being used up on January 2 haven't been true for at least 5 years since the recession . I got my sb100 in August 2011 and another mm member got theirs in October 2012.  They are now available almost year round as the number of custom builds has declined due to the economy

[Tusabes]

It is illegal to change anything that was not meant by the manufacture in California. Here are a few dmv articles. But they don't enforce it which is good for us. Lol.
http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/d12/vc24008.htm
http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/d12/vc28071.htm
http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/d12/vc26101.htm
http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/d12/vc27151.htm

again , you are incorrect . The statutes you list regulate only specific items of the car, they do not make it illegal to change "anything"

the statutes you reference relate to lowered suspensions , glass, lighting and bumpers . There are additional statutes related to mufflers , tinted windows , smog components etc.  but none of those mean that you can't modify a car . You just follow the statute , for example you can lower a suspension but it must comply with the statute . You can put on aFternarket performance parts , but they need a CARB exemption order number . As with all laws , there is an exception to everything .

Making a blanket statement that you can't legally change anything on a car in CA, or that it had to resemble the original car, are simply inaccurate and frankly uneducated comments for those of us into kit cars

[BigPines]

Yeah No Bull, I will probably do something similar.

I guess nobody knows the answer to my question. I already know of ways to get my car on the road in Cali. I was just looking for a creative alternative. For instance, if I could use 12" of a pre-1976 original chassis (the part that had the VIN on it), that would have some advantages. On the other hand, if SB100 isn't that bad, that may be easiest way to go.

This must come up all the time in restorations. Those guys replace the entire frame sometimes. I wonder what they do?

[No Bull]

Couldn't you register it in a neighboring state with less stringent laws to get a clean title from another state and then just have someone from that state "sell it" to you so you could transfer the title to your name and get a California title?

I've bought out of state cars before and all that is required here is a dealer or DMV inspection and a $25 fee.  The inspections are basically a joke and often they just check the VIN and you are on your way.

Chris

[solrac]

It is illegal to change anything that was not meant by the manufacture in California. Here are a few dmv articles. But they don't enforce it which is good for us. Lol.
http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/d12/vc24008.htm
http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/d12/vc28071.htm
http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/d12/vc26101.htm
http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/d12/vc27151.htm

[Tusabes]

Solrac that's simply not correct in CA. You can keep it titled as a fiero regardless of what car it resembles now . The purpose of using a fiero is usually the lower cost compared to scratch building a custom chassis and drivetrain

With sb100 you don't need to use a fiero donor , or any donor at all. You can make the chassis out of steel tubing and still get a VIN number, so under sb100 there is no "minimum " amount of donor car that needs to be used. 

If keeping it titled as a fiero generally you keep the chassis and drivetrain of the fiero , and are subject to the same smog laws as a fiero. Its just like a fiero with an extreme body kit on it

[solrac]

Legally speaking u can't keep it as the regular registration cus u will modify it to the point where it is not a fiero resemblense. As far as sb100. Well u can do whatever u want to it. Lol cus it's a custom car.

[BigPines]

OK, if this is the case, then back to the original question...How much of the 1984 Fiero do I need to keep for it to be considered the same car? The tub? Part of the frame?

[Tusabes]

Sb100 isn't that hard and its what you want to do if you have a modified drivetrain in CA

If you leave the drivetrain stock you can just use the title of the donor car, perfectly legal for a murci replica to be titled as a 1984 fiero

[BigPines]

Oh, you mean you still live in the land of the free? Don't worry, the communists are eventually coming for you too.

[SchulzeA]

Here in my area if Illinois, its no muffler, no converter, no problem. 

[BigPines]

Interesting. I guess if I "gave" it to my bro in AZ, he could loan it to me for "a while"

We just better make sure we don't ever have a falling out!