I found a van, I need some help.

[Van Yeti]

I found a van here in southern California in really good shape for a really good price. Problem is I don't have my license yet and won't until the end of February but I have a place to park it.

How can I get the van from Riverside to San Diego, about 1-2hrs. Can I get temporary insurance and have my sister drive it? Is there anyone around here who would be willing to trailer it for me to San Diego?

[paintdrying]

Put an ad on craigs list asking for someone with triple a to help tow your car. I always have AAA plus. Four free tows up to a hundred miles. I would join, wait like three days then tow it yourself. Van must be registered, with plates and have all current inspection stickes in place. Maybe you will even need insurance but I do not think so.
Not sure about Cali, but somethings to watchout for, you have a certain number of days to title the van before you have to pay a fine. I generally call my insurance company up and give them the vin number and have them add the car to my policy. Print up the card and go to the dmv and get a three day temp tag.
Every state is a little different, here in Pennsylvania it is a frickin nightmare trying to navigate the fees and fines of registration.
Deals on vans are a dime a dozen, always be prepare to walk away if need be. When I was younger I would lie awake at night worried about the good deal that got away. Might just be easiest to wait till you have your licence then just buy a van and drive it home yourself.

[Van Yeti]

Well there are certain extenuating circumstances surrounding my need to purchase a van before March 1st. Ones which I would explain in private if someone were interested in helping.

The van I was interested in slipped away. But there is another one further north I inquired about. Problem is it's passenger and I am not sure I want the hassle of gutting it and closing off the windows. I guess I'll see when I get the VIN and check the CarFax.

I have a month so I am going to keep my eyes open and wait until the last week or two.

My sister and I talked and she is considering putting me on her and her husbands policy to help with the insurance costs. As well as driving up there and driving back down here for me if I can't have it brought down here.

[justsomeguy]

Maybe see if the seller would drive it to your place for you. Offer him/her the gas money, some extra money for their time to cover a meal and a few hours out of their day, and a bus ticket to get home.

Other option, call some towing companies and see if they'll give you a good deal on a flat rate for towing. If you're not in a rush (like having your car broken down at the side of the road), you have time on your side. When I bought my Windstar in Florida, I had it shipped by a vehicle shipping company, but it had to get to their depot (terminal to terminal shipping). Only, the van wasn't licensed, so the shipping company added an extra $100 to have a tow truck take it from Miami to Fort Lauderdale. You could contact some vehicle shipping companies, but I think they're only worthwhile for longer distances. Then again, I could be wrong.

Or, wait for a good van to come up for sale a bit closer to where you are! If I were closer (and believe me, I'd love to be SoCal right now - I hate winter) I'd love to drive that van home for you!

[Van Yeti]

Well the deal fell through. But I am going to wait until I get my license to purchase. My budget was pretty tight but I worked something out and raised it a bit which is making it much easier to find deals.

[RECox286]

The plight you are in is not unheard of. Here in NJ I work for several clients that are "Snowbirds", here for the summer, and in Fla for the winter. Quandry: what to do about the car when you don't want to drive it from here to there and vise versa each spring and fall.

1. They have us drive the car for a fee that allows us to buy gas, etc for the car, and also to provide us return transportation via airline, plus a fair fee for the service.

2. There are truckers who, for a fee, will "car carry" their vehicle to and from the required destination. This entails some forethought about the length of time they will be without their own vehicle, due to the amount of time the trucker is finding enough cars to have a full load for the trip to be worthwhile for him. It could be as much as 2 weeks, and has been, on occasion, even longer.

3. Buy and maintain 2 cars, one at each location.

4. There is such a thing here as the Auto Train. You drive the car to the northern most station just south of DC, and they load it in a special car and you ride in a pullman, allowing both to get to the southern destination at the same time.

I doubt if any of the above will suit yourself. However, I just wanted to illustrate that there are more ways to skin the cat than you might imagine.

Getting back to your situation: Why not have your sister purchase the vehicle in her name, and then she could just drive it home. A simple transfer of title when you are legal would be the way to handle this, I should think. The transfer between family members can to done for very small amount of change. Here in NJ family members are allowed to "give" a vehicle as a gift, or you can make the price as low as $1. I think I would look into this solution. Asking at your local DMV will not cost you a dime.

Good luck, sir.

Bob

[Van Yeti]

We had thought about that but I am going to wait to get my license and much it much easier.

[RECox286]

Sounds like a wise decision on your part. You will no doubt have more $$ by the time you are looking to buy. Don't fret that there will not be any vehicles for sale at that future time, because there will always be
vehicles for sale, perhaps even, with the price of fuel going up, the price of the current fuel burners will be going down.

Keep on Truck'n

Bob

[Black89cs]

Don't lose hope, you'll find something. I was all for looking for a bigger vehicle and even test drove some Blazer/Jimmys and Explorers.. I couldn't find anything I was satisfied with, but several months later at the lot I went to there was the 97 and I wasn't going to take no for an answer. Needless to say It's sitting in my driveway now.

[manny951]

i live in riverside county bro lol u could just drive it and have ur sister follow u not such a big deal u could simply say i just bought it