Unless otherwise exempted by law or this chapter, the owner
of any motor vehicle that is required to be registered in accordance
with Transportation Code, Chapter 502, shall apply for a Texas title
in accordance with Transportation Code, Chapter 501.
(1) Motorcycles, motor-driven cycles, autocycles, and
mopeds.
(A) The title requirements of a motorcycle, motor-driven
cycle, autocycle, and moped are the same requirements prescribed for
any motor vehicle.
(B) A vehicle that meets the criteria for a moped and
has been certified as a moped by the Department of Public Safety will
be registered and titled as a moped. If the vehicle does not appear
on the list of certified mopeds published by that agency, the vehicle
will be treated as a motorcycle for title and registration purposes.
(2) Farm vehicles.
(A) The term "motor vehicle" does not apply
to implements of husbandry, which may not be titled.
(B) Farm tractors owned by agencies exempt from registration
fees in accordance with Transportation Code, §502.453, are required
to be titled and registered with "Exempt" license plates
issued in accordance with Transportation Code, §502.451.
(C) Farm tractors used as road tractors to mow rights
of way or used to move commodities over the highway for hire are required
to be registered and titled.
(D) Farm semitrailers with a gross weight of more than
4,000 pounds that are registered in accordance with Transportation
Code, §502.146, may be issued a Texas title.
(3) Neighborhood electric vehicles. The title requirements
of a neighborhood electric vehicle (NEV) are the same requirements
prescribed for any motor vehicle.
(4) Trailers, semitrailers, and house trailers. Owners
of trailers and semitrailers shall apply for and receive a Texas title
for any stand alone (full) trailer, including homemade or shopmade
full trailers, or any semitrailer having a gross weight in excess
of 4,000 pounds. Owners of trailers having a gross weight of 4,000
pounds or less may apply for and receive a Texas title. House trailer-type
vehicles must meet the criteria outlined in subparagraph (C) of this
paragraph to be titled.
(A) The rated carrying capacity will not be less than
one-third of its empty weight.
(B) Mobile office trailers, mobile oil field laboratories,
and mobile oil field bunkhouses are not designed as dwellings, but
are classified as commercial semitrailers and must be registered and
titled as commercial semitrailers if operated on the public streets
and highways.
(C) House trailer-type vehicles and camper trailers
must meet the following criteria in order to be titled.
(i) A house trailer-type vehicle designed for living
quarters and that is eight body feet or more in width and 40 feet
or more in length (not including the hitch), is classified as a manufactured
home or mobile home and is not eligible for a Texas title under Transportation
Code, Chapter 501.
(ii) A house trailer-type vehicle that is less than
eight feet in width or less than 40 feet in length is classified as
a travel trailer and shall be registered and titled.
(iii) A camper trailer shall be titled as a house trailer
and shall be registered with travel trailer license plates.
(iv) A recreational park model type trailer that is
primarily designed as temporary living quarters for recreational,
camping or seasonal use, is built on a single chassis, and is 400
square feet or less when measured at the largest horizontal projection
when in the set up mode shall be titled as a house trailer and may
be issued travel trailer license plates.
(5) Assembled vehicles.
(A) An assembled vehicle is a vehicle assembled from
the three basic component parts (motor, frame, and body), except that
a motorcycle must have a frame and motor, and a trailer or travel
trailer will have no motor, and that is:
(i) assembled from new or used materials and parts
by someone not regulated as a motor vehicle manufacturer;
(ii) altered or modified to the extent that it no longer
reflects the original manufacturer's configuration; or
(iii) assembled from a kit even if a Manufacturer's
Certificate of Origin or Manufacturer's Statement of Origin is provided.
(B) A newly assembled vehicle, for which a title has
never been issued in this jurisdiction or any other, may be titled
if:
(i) it is assembled and completed with a body, motor,
and frame, except that a motorcycle must have a frame and motor, and
a trailer or travel trailer will have no motor;
(ii) it is not created from different vehicle classes,
(as established by the Federal Highway Administration, except as provided
by subparagraph (C) of this paragraph), that were never engineered
or manufactured to be combined with one another;
(iii) it has all safety components required by federal
law during the year of assembly, unless the vehicle qualifies and
is registered as a custom vehicle or street rod in accordance with
Transportation Code, §504.501;
(iv) it is not a vehicle described by paragraph (6)
of this section;
(v) for a vehicle assembled with a body, motor, and
frame, the applicant provides proof, on a form prescribed by the department,
of a safety inspection performed by an Automotive Service Excellence
(ASE) technician with valid certification as a Certified Master Automobile
and Light Truck Technician, certifying that the vehicle:
(I) is structurally stable;
(II) meets the necessary conditions to be operated
safely on the roadway; and
(III) is equipped and operational with all equipment
required by statute or rule as a condition of sale during the year
the vehicle was assembled unless it is being inspected pursuant to
Subchapter G of this chapter;
(vi) for a vehicle assembled with a body, motor, and
frame, the applicant submits a copy of the Certified Master Automobile
and Light Truck Technician's ASE certification;
(vii) the applicant submits a Rebuilt Vehicle Statement;
and
(viii) the applicant submits the following to establish
the vehicle's vehicle identification number:
(I) an Application for Assigned or Reassigned Number,
and Notice of Assigned Number or Installation of Reassigned Vehicle
Identification Number, on forms prescribed by the department; or
(II) acceptable proof, as established by the department,
of a vehicle identification number assigned by the manufacturer of
the component part by which the vehicle will be identified.
(C) Component parts from the following vehicle classes
may be interchanged with one another or used in the creation of an
assembled vehicle:
(i) 2-axle, 4-tire passenger cars;
(ii) 2-axle, 4 tire pickups, panels and vans;
(iii) 6-tire dually pickups, of which the rear tires
are dual tires.
(D) The ASE inspection for a newly assembled vehicle
required under subparagraph (B) of this paragraph is in addition to
the inspection required by Transportation Code, Chapter 548, except
a vehicle that qualifies and is registered as a custom vehicle or
street rod in accordance with Transportation Code, §504.501,
is exempt from the inspection required under Transportation Code,
Chapter 548, for the duration the vehicle is registered as such.
(E) An assembled vehicle which has previously been
titled and/or registered in this or any other jurisdiction is subject
to subparagraph (B)(i) - (iv) of this paragraph, but is not subject
to subparagraph (B)(v) - (viii); however, it is subject to the inspection
required by Transportation Code, Chapter 548, except a vehicle that
qualifies and is registered as a custom vehicle or street rod in accordance
with Transportation Code, §504.501.
(F) An assembled vehicle will be titled using the year
it was assembled as the model year and "ASSEMBLED" or "ASVE"
as the make of the vehicle unless the body of the vehicle is established
to the department's satisfaction to be an original body from a particular
year and make. An assembled vehicle utilizing an original body may
be titled by the year and the make of the original body but must reflect
a "RECONSTRUCTED" remark. An assembled vehicle not utilizing
an original body may obtain a title with a "REPLICA" remark
featuring the year and make of the replica if the vehicle resembles
a prior model year vehicle. This subparagraph applies regardless of
how the vehicle's model year or make was previously identified in
this or any other jurisdiction.
(6) Not Eligible for Title. The following are not eligible
for a Texas title regardless of the vehicle's previous title and/or
registration in this or any other jurisdiction:
Cont'd... |
