Okay...this is getting more interesting.
I drove to the capital today, to save a day of Snail Mail time, but mostly to meet Melisa in the Salvage office for the first time. (She probably doesn't know it, but we've spoken a dozen times on the phone over the past few years regarding this car and my salvage bikes.) I hoped she'd review the docs then and there and give me an initial indication, but feared I'd only get to leave it for her in a folder.
Good news, I met Melisa and she is an efficient, friendly person. A real pleasure to work with. She looked through everything and said it all looked in order and that I could expect my VIN plate in a week or so.
When she looked at the TC96-196 form, (Application for VIN), she asked if I was building a Dune Buggy. "Umm...I guess you could call it that." (I really didn't know what this meant...still don't.) It certainly looks like one in it's current state, I'll admit. She asked me to change where I'd written in "Passenger car" for the type of vehicle and change it to "Dune Buggy." (The form suggests Passenger Car / Truck / Motorcycle / Trailer ) I did this, and she was happy with this, so I wasn't about to make waves.
This is the first I've noted any significant use of the term "Dune Buggy." As I mentioned above, the term is used in the title of a regulation checklist memo (lights, horn, brakes, etc.), and at least one official got a light bulb when the term Dune Buggy came up, but I had considered it a colloquial term, not a legal definition.
I searched the Kentucky Revised Statutes (KRS) (Kentucky's state laws) and the word "dune" does not appear.
I Googled a bit, and the only relevant citation I found was this page:
http://www.bullittcountyclerk.com/motorvehicles_dunebuggies.aspThis is essentially an editorially-expanded version of the "How to Title a Dune Buggy" document I promised to scan last night. (Guess I don't have to scan it now!)
The second sentence scared the crap out of me, but the following sentences calmed my racing heart:
Quote:
Dune Buggies
Dune Buggies are light vehicles having oversized tires designed for recreational and highway use. Dune Buggies are not allowed to be titled and registered unless they meet certain standards set by the Kentucky Statutes. Owner/buyer will need a handwritten inspection on letterhead stating the dune buggy complies with Chapter 189 of the Kentucky Statutes.
The following KRS must be met for any vehicle to be operated on the highway:
* KRS 189.020- requires every vehicle be equipped as to make the minimum of noise, smoke or other nuisance
* KRS 189.040- requires every vehicle be equipped with at least two headlamps, ...
[snip...horn, brakes, glass, etc.]
So, I'm not sure where this Dune Buggy classification comes from, but I think it will all work out alright. I suspect this is an administrative program (as opposed to a statutory definition) set up to "do something" with the crazy car builders...most of which I guess build dune buggies?
But in the end, as long as I get a license plate, I really don't care what they call it or what forms they want me to fill out. We'll see in the next few weeks. A Lotus Seven, Baha Edition. Why not?
-dave "while I'm waiting, can you make me a banana?" hempy
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...nowadays people are so intellectually lazy and lethargic that they can't build ANYTHING with their hands. They'll spend hours watching whiny people marooned on an island, but won't spend a second adding anything to the world. -weconway
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