Shelby Maverick sighted!

Behold!



Yes it's a slow day.

 

They let you put regular tags on...Cool Did you have to get it inspected 1st?

 

Well, no actually. Although it never had a title, I got a copy of the Alabama registration from two owners ago, (PO never registered it) and they finally let me get a TN title after three attempts waiting in those insane lines for half a day.

As for inspection... I'm in Shelby County, but I'm like one street outside of the Memphis city limits, so there was no inspection of any kind. I think it would have passed, but I'm not sure if they even do that on pre-1975 cars.

I was pretty surprised. In Mississippi where I've always lived until recently, there was always a yearly inspection. $5 at most any auto shop, and they check brake lights, blinkers, horn, maybe make sure you've got seat belts and that's about it. Here, nothing. Unless of course I'm violating the law right now and don't know about it, but I haven't heard or read otherwise despite searching.

(...actually, that got me wondering again. Just called about it - nope, no inspection required. Weird.)

 

I see one every time my son sits in my car (his name is Shelby)

 

You are lucky. You make sure you stay in the county. If you ever move to the city, you will to take that emission test or get antique tags. I got antique tags because I know I wouldn't pass.

 

Memphis will inspect any car. They just don't sniff them all.
You still have to do all the safety checks.

Also, Memphis has a rule, even if they don't sniff, if the car smokes at all, they can fail it. So if you have a musclecar and they think they see a puff of smoke, they can fail you. Luckily the inspections are done free, and done by government employees with the typical beaurcratic lack of motivation.
If you look at them wrong, or complain about the long line, they will fail you for anything they can find, just to be p***ks. Otherwise, to fail you would just mean more work for them.

 

Hmmm, didn't know that about the antique tags. Good to know.

I do know from when Dad got his tags, that they come out and inspect the car for "originality".
My Dad's car has a 6" pro-stock scoop, blatant side exhaust, and headers ready to drag the ground... all 'in your face', and the inspector passed it!
TN law says that antique tags can only be on unmodified cars. That is why there is no sniffer I would imagine.


Edit:
I say they "came out to inspect", but I think they only do that for disabled folks. They sent out a Memphis police officer to inspect the originality of a car.

 

I learned there are apparently restrictions on what you can do with a car that has TN antique tags? Like it's only allowed so many miles per year, or only to be driven to shows or in parades or something like that? In Mississippi, an antique plate just means you don't have to renew it anymore.

Sooner or later they're going to annex my house into Memphis, but maybe I'll have moved by then. I still think I'd pass that test though, as there's no smoke at all. If anything I'm actually idling a bit lean, so the exhaust does sting the eyes a little if you happen to feel the need to put your face in it, but it's not visible. I'm glad I don't have to worry about it though.

I am still shocked there's not at least a state safety inspection. Apparently one could legally register and drive any kind of decrepit Joe Dirt hoopty they want in the county.

 

I live in Roane county and have a 73 comet (daily driver), and a 70 Maverick registered both with regular plates and no inspection of any kind. I was told by the clerks office that the only inspections in TN are the emission and they are only in the 4 major cities, Knoxville, Chattanooga, Nashville, and Memphis. The same goes for the wheel tax. When you live in the country it is a little cheaper to have a vehicle on the road. It costs me the same to register the Maverick, the Comet, and my F-250 SD, $24.00 a year. Gotta love Tennessee.

 

Yep. I'm lovin' that TN state income tax, too.

I think I'm gonna like it here...

 

Holy cow!!! I just renewed the plates on my F250, $190 for 2 yrs.

 

Ok you guys are making me sick. First all of the cars here have to be safety inspected, $17 (guy pulls wheels off and checks brake pads, checks steering and suspension components, lights, mirrors and seatbelts) if I lived in one of the citys around here I would have to get an Emission test also, $25 they are performed on any vehicle that had emission equipment 1967 ane newer, and depending on where you are they even check to make sure the breather is good on your gas cap. Then we have age based registration each year which is not bad, $25 for my 72 Maverick, $25 for my 82 CJ7 $150 for my 2005 Explorer.....It is stupid expensive for brand new or 1 year old vehicles $300 range...

so for my 3 cars if I lived in the city and had to do emissions I would have to pay $326 just to make them drive on the road still it's $251.

 

Yeah, tax-wise, TN is a great place to live.
I couldn't stand the fact that Memphis could just walk into your Shelby county neighborhood anytime it liked and "declare" your property is now part of Memphis.
And you couldn't do anything about it!
Cordova fought it hard, as Kirby did before them, and all they did was waste time and money doing so. Cordova hasn't been part of Memphis long enough (an I don't live there anymore) to tell, but Kirby went down the drain shortly after annexation.
I just moved around when I got annexed, just to stay on the fringe of city limits.

Anyway, gotta love the antique tags there being lifetime!
Here in FL we still have to update them annually.

Oh, I drove a TN trailer in FL and the cop couldn't believe that TN doesn't require tail lights or tags on trailers! He was all about lecturing me on not having a tag... Then he went to check the tail lights, and I clued him in that it was a waste of time because TN doesn't require them, and as a TN vehicle, he was powerless to do anything about it. (No lights required as long as the tow vehicle lights are visible.)

 

Here in NC there is no inspection whatsoever for any car 35 years or older, so my '73 fell into that category this year.

 

I moved to Olive Branch go by willie