Learn Me: Art of the Fly -n- Ride

I have located the motorcycle.

It is in AL and I can get a one way ticket for $172. THe other party is a stranger so I am hesitant to send a check for the full amount and trust that everything is fine. Previously when I have done this it was either a small enough outlay to roll with it or I was buying from a somewhat known entity so I have not had to deal with trust issues. This guy seems solid but this is a fairly large amount of dollars to extend trust to someone I don't have any history with at all beyond 3 emails.

So... how do I smoothly pay the man, and get enough ownership to tag and insure the thing to ride home the same day without incurring the wrath of Johnny Law should I be stopped? I expect that the AL tag/title folks don't do PA tags so that's on me to do when I get home.

My instincts tell me to just take my plate off the GSA and use that... but I shall immediately commence to speeding 1200 miles through 7 states on a racing red motorcycle before I get home. I think I need to actually be legal here.

What say the hive?

Do not use your tag.

I've done this three times. Two times I wired the money but one was a dealer and the other trough bring a trailer. The third time I took a cashiers check with me and paid right there and then.

I would bring the cash with me if I was you. I would also ask the owner to let you use his tag and you will Fedex it back. If he is not willing to do that, then ride with no tag but get a bill of sale.

Regardless of what you do, you can get insurance on it without being the owner. Do that.

Buy in Alabama so get a temporary tag from Alabama to get you home and get permanent plates in Pennsylvania.

Someone from AL will likely chime in with details of AL rules.

Additional thought...
The WV and PA parts of your ride could be rather extreme temps if getting the bike in Feb.

Some states have temp/transit tags. Less than 10k maybe cash. More than 10k does the guy bank at a national chain - do you? When I bought the e61 in fla, I flew in, did the transaction at a mutual bank chain, updated my insurance online, went to dmv, paid them (ended up paying the Illinois taxes at the fla dmv). Got a temp tag and drove home.

Ninja edit: know what the home taxes are - for me the il taxes were $65. Fla really wanted to collect around $700. Took an extra hour to educate the fla DMV office on il property tax rules.

JohnRW1621 wrote: Buy in Alabama so get a temporary tag from Alabama to get you home and get permanent plates in Pennsylvania. Someone from AL will likely chime in with details of AL rules. Additional thought... The WV and PA parts of your ride could be rather extreme temps if getting the bike in Feb.

I'm riding in PA today ;)

It is a good reminder for me to bring a pigtail wire to temporarily hook up my heated jacket though.

The last Fly and Drive i did the person I got the car from let me keep the plates on the car until I got home and then I mailed them back to him.

It is far better to ride with no tag and a bill of sale / signed title than it is to ride on the wrong tag.

Get proof of insurance from your insurer before setting out. That's 99% of what the cop is going to worry about.

Our DMV basically has a free form letter you can download that allows you transit from point of purchase to the DMV for registration.

Agree. Paperwork like Bill of sale and proof of insurance are more important than a plate.

Do not put on a plate from a different vehicle.

It would be rare but traveling with more than $9,999 can draw unwanted attention.

JohnRW1621 wrote: Agree. Paperwork like Bill of sale and proof of insurance are more important than a plate. Do not put on a plate from a different vehicle. It would be rare but traveling with more than $9,999 can draw unwanted attention.

I would not travel with cash > $1000. He will accept a money order or bank check or... frankly, no deal.

Good idea on not traveling with large amounts of cash.

In Ohio, it's legal to put your old plates on your new vehicle for up to 30 days. What is PA law? I wonder if that means the car can be operated out of state like that. Relevant section of code:

4503.12(A)(4) "If the original owner of a motor vehicle that has been transferred makes application for the registration of another motor vehicle at any time during the remainder of the registration period for which the transferred motor vehicle was registered, the owner may file an application for transfer of the registration and, where applicable, the license plates. The transfer of the registration and, where applicable, the license plates from the motor vehicle for which they originally were issued to a succeeding motor vehicle purchased by the same person in whose name the original registration and license plates were issued shall be done within a period not to exceed thirty days. During that thirty-day period, the license plates from the motor vehicle for which they originally were issued may be displayed on the succeeding motor vehicle, and the succeeding motor vehicle may be operated on the public roads and highways in this state."

AHA! I did not notice the "in this state" part of the code until I was highlighting it. Hm.

Last time I did this in OK, I was able to register the car and get insurance for it before I flew out.

Arrived there, put my plate on, drove home.

z31maniac wrote: Last time I did this in OK, I was able to register the car and get insurance for it before I flew out. Arrived there, put my plate on, drove home.

Did you pay for the car? How did you register a vehicle without a signed title?

In Iowa, the previous owner keeps the plate (they need to return it to get a prorated registration refund) and you're allowed 30 days grace period before a new plate/registration is required. Private sales don't get paper plates; you just have to keep your bill of sale, signed title, and insurance on hand. Yes, I've been pulled over for no plates and yes, I've been let go immediately when they see that it's been under 30 days.

Alabama details are here. The seller keeps the plate. You have 20 days before registering. As a non-Alabama resident, they will not issue you a title. You'll get that done where you live.

The nice thing in Texas is I can get a 30 day tag on anything with a VIN and insurance.
My big fly and drive was.....well, you were there. Took my kid who was 9 at the time. Worked well.

SC has a 5 day temp tag that I think all you need is the VIN and proof of insurance to obtain. I haven't gotten one yet, I keep going with the no tag and having the paperwork in order. I've only been stopped once doing this and the nice officer let me go with a verbal warning to get to the DMV and take care of things.

Huckleberry wrote:

JohnRW1621 wrote: Agree. Paperwork like Bill of sale and proof of insurance are more important than a plate. Do not put on a plate from a different vehicle. It would be rare but traveling with more than $9,999 can draw unwanted attention.

I would not travel with cash > $1000. He will accept a money order or bank check or... frankly, no deal.

You'll probably be okay bringing the full amount in cash, as long as it's not obvious when your in the airport. You should probably try to conceal it by strapping it to one of your legs in case someone tries to steal your wallet. Maybe strap a gun to your other leg just to be safe.

Well... that ended in disappointment for more than one person.

The bike has a lien and there isn't enough tire to make the trip home so... between the cost of airfare, hotel, cab, shipping my gear and new tires it was getting pretty close to just paying the big dealership in CT to roll a lightly used one to the curb and trading the GSA at the same time.

Combined with the hassle of dealing with a loan payoff and all that titling nonsense that is bound to occur for a quick a fly and ride I decided to pass despite the bonus content of hitting the bike museum at Barber, and riding all the famous roads in Tennessee when no one else is out riding to clog up my way.

Back to the search engines. False alarm. Nothing to see here.

My fly and drive story....btw I had the PO get a ppi at BMW of Dallas, which turned out to be basically worthless. Also I arranged insurance ahead of time.

I flew to Dallas early one morning to pick up my k1200s several years ago. Took a bunch of cash, my helmet, jacket, gloves, was wearing my boots, took a firearm, which was much easier to check than expected....and legal in each state i was riding. Arrived in Dallas and took a cab to the nearest Burger King. Paid for the bike, got the title and bill of sale, hit the road on the tags that were on the bike and was back in Nashville around 11 or so that evening after around 700 miles. Was fun and I'd like to do it again at some point. I bought my k1300s in Chattanooga, which wasn't much of a road trip. So I guess I pretty much did what Woody suggested, but I checked the gun.

Huckleberry wrote: ...the big dealership in CT ...

Max BMW?

In reply to Woody: Si

I am from Alabama. For Alabama, you just need a dated receipt of sale, Alabama gives you 10 days to get it registered. (it is not uncommon to see cars without plates in AL) Do not run it with a plate from another vehicle.

I've done lots of fly and drives, maybe 6 in 8 years? Always left a deposit via paypal that would be refunded when I agree to purchase. Then I Pay cash in full, or go to a bank with seller and do a transfer right there.
I insure the vehicle before I leave.
I make sure the seller knows that if the vehicle has been misrepresented, I'll buy a ticket home without hesitation.
I usually have a fellow GRMer lays eyes on it for me, except the last one.
Drive home on the sellers plate and mail it back, or drive commando.....and without a plate .