Road Legal Updates?

Smitty335

Smitty335

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Before you go to all that trouble, do your own homework individually on each state you are visiting.

Registering your rig and obtaining street legal plates will only allow you to drive on the road in a handful of state (the list is very small) and an even smaller list of states that will allow you off-road without a visitor/temporary tag.

Most states (like PA, NY, NV, CA to name a few) don't allow any UTV on the road, regardless if street legal somewhere else.
Most states that have street legal UTV's (like UT, AZ, CO) allow only their street legal UTV's on the road.
Utah requires a safety inspection and liability insurance to be street legal, some states don't.
@Montecresto ?
 
Many_Gs

Many_Gs

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Start Montana LLC through a registered agent.
-Sell your SXS to your LLC with a bill of sale
-Get a Montana title with the owner as your LLC
-Apply for a permanent street legal registration for a Quadracycle


Sell your sxs to your LLC. This step is scary, I feel there may be some loop holes where someone else can claim ownership. I'd have to read more on LLCs as I fear I'm signing it over and it'll be legally removed from me one day.

As others stated, this isn't bulletproof and we all know that. PA can be very particular, your mileage may vary depending on the officer you run into and how his days going.

Thanks for sharing, I'll dig into the LLC and the legalities of signing it over to an LLC.

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bjniceguy

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South Dakota was allowing out of state people to get South Dakota street legal plates and sending renewals to their home in other states. They had so many out of state people who could not fill out the paperwork, then call and give the court house crap cause the paperwork got sent back for corrections, that they now require a personal visit to fill out the original paperwork. Still can get renewals thru mail.

My state of Iowa is unique. They do the street legal plates by county. You pay $35 to $50 PER COUNTY you want to ride in. They require all the normal DOT tires, Turn signals, ETC as rest. Then a town can decide that if you want to come into it, they can have another sticker for say $25 & have certain road that you have to stay off of. In one instance, if I want to go eat in a village 8 miles from my house, I could have $125 in 3 stickers just to be legal (car would start looking like bill board). It shuts up the people wanting UTV on street and is fund raiser for area. Farmers don't have to follow any of the rules or stickers cause they are AG exempt LOL. And you still have to by an off road sticker to register the title, so they get you coming & going. No I don't ride much at home
 
PaulF

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Start Montana LLC through a registered agent.
-Sell your SXS to your LLC with a bill of sale
-Get a Montana title with the owner as your LLC
-Apply for a permanent street legal registration for a Quadracycle


Sell your sxs to your LLC. This step is scary, I feel there may be some loop holes where someone else can claim ownership. I'd have to read more on LLCs as I fear I'm signing it over and it'll be legally removed from me one day.

As others stated, this isn't bulletproof and we all know that. PA can be very particular, your mileage may vary depending on the officer you run into and how his days going.

Thanks for sharing, I'll dig into the LLC and the legalities of signing it over to an LLC.

Sent from my SM-N975U using Tapatalk
None of that makes it legal to drive your rig on PA streets (or most other state's public streets) so why go to all the trouble? On the off chance the officer is nice that day or doesn't know the law in their own state?

All of this is useless to you. Nothing you can do will make your rig street legal in more than a couple of states.

Get plates in MT and play stupid when pulled over is an option I guess.
 
Many_Gs

Many_Gs

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None of that makes it legal to drive your rig on PA streets (or most other state's public streets) so why go to all the trouble? On the off chance the officer is nice that day or doesn't know the law in their own state?

All of this is useless to you. Nothing you can do will make your rig street legal in more than a couple of states.

Get plates in MT and play stupid when pulled over is an option I guess.
Yes, valid point. However I ride in WV and Ohio at times and plans to travel more this coming season. I'm sure it'll be helpful but we shall see.

Just not sure if the juice is worth the squeeze, isn't seeming to be so far.

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SLOWPOKE693

SLOWPOKE693

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"Getting away with it" and legal are 2 very different things. Here is an article on the issue...

MannyG wouldn't be here asking questions about how to register his SxS in his non SxS friendly state if he could just walk into his local registry and get it done.

:insert Homer Simpson head here:
 
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PaulF

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MannyG wouldn't be here asking questions about how to register his SxS in his non SxS friendly state if he could just walk into his local registry and get it done.

:insert Homer Simpson head here:
The fact you keep ignoring is he can register in a number of states and still not be legal in ~47 others. Registering your unit in Montana is basically useless because only a couple other states even recognize out of state street legal registrations. Not sure why you don't understand this or how to make it any clearer.
 
toddvdh

toddvdh

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*double checks WI laws*
1648121867602
 
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trigger

Old Ironsides
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I don't get the whole street legal thing. Common sense says that if you have to ride a road for a couple miles to hit a connecting trail then you stay on the shoulder and keep your speed at 25 or less. If it's 20 miles to the connecting trail or on a major highway then you should have trailered it. If it's farm and AG related and 20 miles away then you should've taken the truck. By the time you buy blinkers and horn and pay the states fees you have more invested than you would paying a ticket. If you want to tool around your neighborhood and use it as a golf cart then just keep your speeds down and don't be a nuisance. This will keep you out of trouble with the majority of LEO's unless he just wants to be a prick. In that case, I don't think it matters what paperwork you produce and you'll have more time and money invested in fighting it than it's worth.
It's an off road vehicle and should be used as such. If you're frequently using it to drive on paved roads and mix with traffic at stop lights then you deserve a ticket. Just my .02.
 
Many_Gs

Many_Gs

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It's an off road vehicle and should be used as such. If you're frequently using it to drive on paved roads and mix with traffic at stop lights then you deserve a ticket. Just my .02.

If I were to go camping and want to take the SxS down the road to the local store to grab something quickly, why couldn't I take my SxS if it meets all requirements and road legal? I can buy a kit car and make it road legal, why couldn't I make a $30k utv road legal? This is a grey area for most states, and while I don't agree with it, it's the laws they set.

"you deserve a ticket" is a ridiculous statement, as a law-abiding citizen I'm not out there riding wheelies on my dirtbike and being a nuisance to local traffic. This is no different than a Polaris slingshot which is road legal, I'd bet I'm even safer in my Honda Talon. There is no reason someone deserves a ticket for using a utv on the public streets, as long as they are abiding by the rules of the road like other vehicles and have the required accessories (lights, turn signals, horns etc).
 
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Old Ironsides
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If I were to go camping and want to take the SxS down the road to the local store to grab something quickly, why couldn't I take my SxS if it meets all requirements and road legal? I can buy a kit car and make it road legal, why couldn't I make a $30k utv road legal? This is a grey area for most states, and while I don't agree with it, it's the laws they set.

"you deserve a ticket" is a ridiculous statement, as a law-abiding citizen I'm not out there riding wheelies on my dirtbike and being a nuisance to local traffic. This is no different than a Polaris slingshot which is road legal, I'd bet I'm even safer in my Honda Talon. There is no reason someone deserves a ticket for using a utv on the public streets, as long as they are abiding by the rules of the road like other vehicles and have the required accessories (lights, turn signals, horns etc).

What you paid has nothing to do with it and for the sake of argument, where does it end? What if I put blinkers and a horn on a snowmobile, three wheeler, go cart... good to go?
 
Many_Gs

Many_Gs

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What you paid has nothing to do with it and for the sake of argument, where does it end? What if I put blinkers and a horn on a snowmobile, three wheeler, go cart... good to go?
This is where the state steps in and provides said laws/regulations. This is not something I can control, nor care to. I simply don't see the difference between a slingshot and a UTV as far as "deserving a ticket" and being road legal.
 
D

Djbunkerking

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If you aren't in a SL state, PA for example, Montana is the route to go. I'm in Michigan, so that's the route I'm taking. Going the street legal sxs page on FB, use the search function and you will find anything you need to know. PA has tried to mess with a few people, and they are winning in court. South Dakota route WILL get you in trouble in most states since YOU still own the sxs and it's registered to your address in your home state.

Those saying it's illegal to drive a SL sxs in most other states is illegal, are wrong. CA is about the only exception, NY as well I believe. All other states have reciprocity, which is why you can take your daily driver and drive in that state.

With all of that said, expect to get harassed by the police. They enforce what's written, they do not interpret the law, which has been proven in PA to be legal by from what I know, a couple judges in PA.
 
TOGR

TOGR

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I live in Montana. To get my Talon licensed I had to fill out a form certifying it met all of Montana's requirements for legality, and the DMV took my word for it--no inspection required. The ONLY thing I had to add was mirrors! No requirement for turn signals, horn, windshield and so on. That I know of, I have no restrictions on where I can drive it, anywhere in the state.

I was given BOTH a permanent license plate AND a permanent off-road registration sticker. This one-time, permanent registration set me back a whopping $65 for both.

Some states are just more pleasant to deal with and see their role as to help the needs of their residents.

However, I am also familiar with California and know that if I were to be pulled over there, and if I had a California driver's license, there would be all sorts of violations and fines for tax avoidance. There would likely also be fix-it ticket items involved, and they probably would not accept that the thing was street legal there. I have a Montana driver's license so would avoid the tax evasion fines and violations, but would surely still be on the hook for everything else.

Best to know your own state's laws on this and to do what is needed to comply with their laws so you do not go to a lot of work and still wind up in trouble.
 
Bigshow

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According to local news (live on OH WV boarder, OH side) you can get your UTV/SxS street legal in WV now. I know in OH people get their SxS titled as a under speed vehicle, but the law says the under speed vehicle is NOT allowed on roads with more than a 35mph speed limit. But in OH (unless the law has changed since I was a pig) TWP roads are 55mph, all roads unless otherwise marked are 55mph outside corp limits. So that puts the kabosh on the under speed vehicle. Others have gotten them retittled as a SUV, but gotten in trouble later for factious plates as a SxS is not an SUV. Luckily my county is pretty soft on a SxS on roadway unless you are acting like an idiot.
 
C2Corvette1

C2Corvette1

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Some states I see that most have plates, others not so much especially if near a state park. This is pretty typical of what we see on our travels through small towns in Wy, Montana, Colorado, Soth Dakota, and New Mexico. No doubt if you "act like an idiot" they can write you a very long ticket.

I added turn signals, mirrors, and horn in addition to the standard tailights and headlights, but don't really see the requirement in the code section that allows operation of UTV on under 35 mph roads here in Texas. Insurance says off road vehicle but covers any operation that is legal.

IMG 5171
 
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ODAMO

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Even if the state has a form to declare it's been safety inspected does not mean it can be driven on the streets in certain jurisdictions. My city in Ohio will allow golf carts but not UTVs, period. On the bottom of the form it states that it's up to the operator of said vehicle to check Where and If they are allowed. At my police dept. they pretty much laughed and said you aint drivin that here, but I see kit cars, trikes, golf carts, and electric bicycles driving all over town without a care. I feel very Discriminated.
 
C2Corvette1

C2Corvette1

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In Wyoming pretty much every quad and sxs/utv we saw had a plate with an annual sticker. No idea if any inspection or added equipment is required.

Wyoming UTV
 
L

LarryAmboy

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Even if the state has a form to declare it's been safety inspected does not mean it can be driven on the streets in certain jurisdictions. My city in Ohio will allow golf carts but not UTVs, period. On the bottom of the form it states that it's up to the operator of said vehicle to check Where and If they are allowed. At my police dept. they pretty much laughed and said you aint drivin that here, but I see kit cars, trikes, golf carts, and electric bicycles driving all over town without a care. I feel very Discriminated.

Is it just possible that your UTV identifies as a golf cart. In today’s crazy world anything can self identify as anything else???


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ODAMO

ODAMO

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Is it just possible that your UTV identifies as a golf cart. In today’s crazy world anything can self identify as anything else???


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Maybe I need some golf cart body panels and throw a set of clubs in the back. And some "Pro Golf" stickers for the sides.
 
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