New Speedster Owner - Questions?

Welcome to the Madness, (insert first name here, as I'm not going to call you WTF)! Tell us what you know about your car- who built it? how old is it? engine (the more details the better!)? trans? wheel width and tire size? discs or drums? anything else you can think of? It looks nice, but then I may be a wee bit biased; I think a Speedster is one of the most iconic (and beautiful) shapes in the automotive world...

I would think that since it already has a CA registration that transferring it to you shouldn't be difficult, but I'll let the California boys inform you on that. Same thing with insurance. And call me Al (come on; you know the tune.You should be thinking Paul Simon here...) 

I'm a Calif.  Speedster owner and if you currently possess a Cal registration for the car you should have no problem.  Is it reg'd as a VW based pan car (Vintage or JPS) or as an SB 100 custom construction?  Either way it should be smog exempt if model year is before 1976.  No inspection is needed, just pay the fees. 

Try Hagerty Insurance first.  I have full coverage for $25,000 agreed value for less than $300 year.  They even have a classification  for Speedster Replicas.

I vote for everyone updating their real name on their profile so we know who the hell we're addressing.  This thread really points that out.

You can tie it in with something cute if you want, like "Fredspeedsternut" so at least we know your name is Fred!  I don't get the desire of so many to be incognito on here.  

Maybe someone can explain using the wierd handles rather than your actual first name---then we'll get back to the regularly scheduled thread.  

End of rant.

I totally agree

x3

I have American Modern. http://www.amig.com/insurance/

Mine is an Agreed Value Policy for $30,000. Same coverage limits as my daily driver and it's about $300.00 per year also.

Hi Greg,

No matter which insurance company you choose, it's to your benefit to buy an "Agreed Value" policy, NOT a "Stated Value" policy, since stated value depreciates the value of the car in case of a total.  There are lots of threads on insurance: types, companies, coverage differences, etc.  You can use the Search button to get up to speed if you're not already.  Welcome!

Greg in all likelihood, being  a new VS, it's titled on the year of the VW chassis, that VS used. On top of the transmission tunnel, directly in front of the rear jump seat, there should be a carpet flap, that lifts to reveal the VIN/chassis number. That number is searchable at several sites online, sambavw, vw-resource.com

No worries all CA. DMV  cares about is collecting "their" money. Take proof of insurance, current reg., and title.  Oh and your checkbook. If you are a AAA member they will also do the registration in their field offices.  If you are buying from a CA dealer they are required to collect the sales tax. Otherwise, private sale, it will be collected at the DMV.

BTW, Hagerty requires a lockable garage no carports. They also will want several photo's of the car.  Front, back sides, engine compartment, interior. It can all be done online.

Oh and follow Jim's good advice on Agreed Value.

Welcome to the madness.

Art

I had State Farm and was glad to get away from them.  I moved to the Red Man to American Modern and am pleased with them.  State Farm tripled my umbrella policy as a result of insuring my special car elsewhere.  I no longer do any business with them at all.  

Hoss,

What was your beef with SF?

No rant at all, Jack. I've bemoaned the practice since I got here. ALB slapped me once gently and told me his name and we like each other. :-))

I think it would be more polite to enter a forum with some bit of an intro and then ask questions. Your attitude may improve your results. Just sayi'n....

Hey, David; how the heck are you! And Greg, it wasn't really a slap; more of a little tickle (a couple of the guys say he is kind of cute)...

In all seriousness (well, as serious as we get), most of us on here are a little more relaxed than on a lot of forums. A lot of guys have met at either the yearly east (Carlisle) and/or west coast (SLO) get togethers and are friends, so there's a different feel here. One of the biggest differences is we share information willingly, as everyone wants to see other peoples' cars run as well as they can.

I consider a lot of these guys good friends, and I've never actually met most of them. One of these years I'm going to make it to either Carlisle of SLO....

And Jack- When we know and use everyone's first names, you'll know my work is done...   Al out.

Its built on a 72 VW Chassis.. And since its already registered in California I'm hoping its an easy transaction. I do like the AAA option, that seems like the simplest way to  handle it. We are AAA members, do they handle the sales tax as well? 

I was sort of hoping State Farm would be an affordable option since we're already with them. What sort of issues have other owners had with them.  It won't be a daily driver for me. I actually only put approximately 3500 miles a year on my daily driver. What is the normal milage for a policy if there are restrictions? And it would be kept in a locked garage. 

Thanks again for the replies!

I've used them for 10 years, Greg. No issues of any kind. I tell them how many miles I'm going to drive it annually, and I've got no restrictions.

I'd really like to hear why Hoss was so happy to be rid of them. I've got everything personal with SF (house, three cars, umbrella, etc.). The business stuff is with Auto Owners (could not be happier with them, BTW), but I'm at SF specifically because they allow me to use my car like... well, a car (rather than a garage queen).

Greg;

RE: Sales tax;

At, AAA, as I recall, you write a separate check to either DMV or State Board of Equalization, (ain't that a great name for a tax collecting gov. agency?), but AAA process it for you.

Art

GREG

BOUGHT A USED SC SPEEDSTER IN OCT.2014. IT WAS A CALIFORNIA CAR TITLED AS A1969 VW .I HAD NO PROBLEM WITH THE DMV. I ALSO HAVE GRUNDY INS. UNDER $300.00 FOR FULL COVERAGE

Greg

I purchased a Vintage Speedster in Washington State 2 years ago and brought it back to CA. The Washington title stated the car was a 'Kit' but also included the 1963 VW VIN. This caused the CA DMV some head scratching but in the end they registered the car as a 1963 'SPCN' which is not one of the options I was expecting! That said, if you have a VW pan and the car is already registered in CA, you should not have any problems.

I use State Farm for 2 cars and a motorcycle and I'm generally happy with the service I get. None of the specialists would touch me because I don't have a dedicated garage.

Good luck with the registration process.

Chris

Stan, the rep I was dealing with told me that I could have a agreed value policy.  All I had to do was have the car appraised.  I had that done and brought my paperwork in to the office.  She called the underwriting department and was informed that they couldn't do it because the car was not 10 years old.  I stayed with them, foolishly, I think, and as I approached the 10 year mark I asked again about an agreed value policy.  I was told that the underwriting department was not going to do this.  Also, my paperwork for my renewal came to me with my car listed as a 2004 VW.  I called back and told them that it wasn't;  I had supplied them with a Manufacturer's Statement of Origin specifying what the car was and why had they arbitrarily changed the make? She told me it she was going to change it, but we would probably have to do this each renewal (???!!!).  I asked what the actual cash value would be for a 2004 VW if it was stolen or totaled and was told that this would be worked out at the time of the incident.  That's too late, right?  That was the final straw and I cancelled the coverage for the car and went with American Modern.  As a final gesture, SF changed my insurance class because I had a car covered by another carrier, resulting in the big increase in my umbrella. At this point, I went shopping, cancelled my remaining policies and went with another carrier.  'Nuf said, Stan?

You are patient man Hoss.

Art

In order:

Banks

Insurance companies, all types

Cable / Sat. TV companies

Phone companies, all types

Politicians, any party (why is it called a party?)

Utility companies

Did I miss anything?

Wow. That'd be enough to send anybody into the arms of somebody else.

Perhaps it's a small-town thing, but I have had no problems whatsoever. My agent is a friend, my car is titled/registered as a 1958 Intermeccanica Replica (Illinois SEMA "custom car" title/reg), that's how my policy reads. My agreed value matches the appraisal (which I need to do again).

I've opined multiple times (too many, really) about the dangers of improperly registering and insuring these cars, so just suffice it to say that I have a lot of peace of mind (justified or not) insuring my car with a local agent in my corner.

Again, this in no way diminishes your experience- I'm really sorry it was so bad for you. If I'd have had it, I'd have switched too. But my experience couldn't have been better.

Greg, I live in California and have a Vintage Speedster.

When I owned my Speedster I had State Farm.

Full coverage, agreed value, no restrictions and very low

premium.  Less than $300 per year.

Robert--you should add many lawyers to your list.

Thanks, I really appreciate all the great information.. My experience with State Farm up to this point has been wonderful. I've had three claims during my 20 years with them, one was a stolen vehicle and I had a check in my hand within 7 days. I will give them a shot. 

I was wondering if any Vintage Speedsters owners might have a PDF version of the owners manual they could share. I haven't been able to find one on the world wide web.. 

Thanks again!

Robert, that's an understatement.  

Art