Shipping a car without plates

we always take our plates off when we get to Tropical, never wanted to take the chance of them disappearing.

I bought a car in Florida and shipped it down directly from the dealer. It didn't have any plates. I'm not sure how the dealer got it from his shop to the port (it was right across the street in West Palm)--perhaps he towed it? Regardless, it didn't have plates until I registered it down here. This was shipping with Tropical in 06.

If not mistaken, all you need is a clear title. If you don't want the hassle of registering before leaving port, have the new car or new to you car towed to the port where it will be leaving. If you buy a car from any of the dealers any where near the port, they would probably tow it there for you as a courtesy. If they buy a car near the port, I would highly recommend buying from a dealer than off the street.

Now with that being said, you or they will still have to register the title and have the title transferred into their name before loading onto the barge or carrier I expect. But if they call Tropical, they are very nice people and will do everything they can to help you.......except ship your car for free.

Hi all, Thanks for the quick replies. I'll pass it along. I bought my car when I got here. I wasn't sure how it worked or if you even could ship without plates.
But I guess the road tax applies wherever it's bought.

stxem: The dealer if Fla. probably put their dealer plate on it to get it to the port. Much cheaper that way. 2 peeps vs. a tow truck

we shipped a used car once, that we'd purchased from a private person, so he signed the title over to me, I got insurance and some sort of temp plates in NY, they were paper and only good for a couple weeks, I think. Drove the car to FL, processed it through Tropical and customs etc, and did not actually turn in the NY title from the other owner till I got to stx. Then, because titles are just signed and not notarized in NY, I had to buy a form from the DMV notary lady ($20), and sign and pay her to notarize it. The form said the title was not notarized...then they were happy. Stupid.

You state should be able to give you temp plates to get it to the shipping port.

I would also recommend to wait until you get on the island and buy a vehicle. It's not like it was years ago because there are a lot more people following their dream and headed to the islands with their vehicles, but then leave the islands a few years later and leave their cars behind. This has caused a large number of cars on the islands. Check out Craigslist or the Island trader

I would also recommend to wait until you get on the island and buy a vehicle. It's not like it was years ago because there are a lot more people following their dream and headed to the islands with their vehicles, but then leave the islands a few years later and leave their cars behind. This has caused a large number of cars on the islands. Check out Craigslist or the Island trader

The problem with buying on island is she'll spend 4 to 5k for a real POS here. For about 1k where she lives in NJ she can get something in way better shape. It would be worth it to pay the 2k to get it here.
Check out the Jeeps you can get on NJ Craigs list. I did. I couldn't believe my eyes.

When I sold cars for a living, they were all without plates. I hired a drive service to deliver them to the Port. They were insured to do so and it always worked out.

The problem with buying on island is she'll spend 4 to 5k for a real POS here. For about 1k where she lives in NJ she can get something in way better shape. It would be worth it to pay the 2k to get it here.
Check out the Jeeps you can get on NJ Craigs list. I did. I couldn't believe my eyes.

I have to disagree. Over the decades here I've never paid more than $3K for a vehicle and each and every one has served me well and I've never had to junk one either, always resold. The last one I bought was a '98 Explorer four years ago for $1999. I've invested total $2K into it and plan on having it for several more years to come. What I've ALWAYS done is spend the money (usually $50-$100) to have a good mechanic I know check out something I'm interested in after test-driving it myself and doing the usual layman checks.

As mtdoramike says, the transient population leaves many people here very motivated to sell once they decide to leave. Any vehicle you bring here is going to be dinged up very quickly, shipping it back is very expensive and with all the dings and scrapes it'll be worth next to nothing when you get back home.

The problem with buying on island is she'll spend 4 to 5k for a real POS here. For about 1k where she lives in NJ she can get something in way better shape. It would be worth it to pay the 2k to get it here.
Check out the Jeeps you can get on NJ Craigs list. I did. I couldn't believe my eyes.

I have to disagree. Over the decades here I've never paid more than $3K for a vehicle and each and every one has served me well and I've never had to junk one either, always resold. The last one I bought was a '98 Explorer four years ago for $1999. I've invested total $2K into it and plan on having it for several more years to come. What I've ALWAYS done is spend the money (usually $50-$100) to have a good mechanic I know check out something I'm interested in after test-driving it myself and doing the usual layman checks.

As mtdoramike says, the transient population leaves many people here very motivated to sell once they decide to leave. Any vehicle you bring here is going to be dinged up very quickly, shipping it back is very expensive and with all the dings and scrapes it'll be worth next to nothing when you get back home.

Hello OT. Thanks for your feedback. I viewed a couple of Jeep Grand Cherokees' that she's thinking of buying. I've also looked on Craigs list here and there's no comparison. The '97 jeep she was going to buy looks brand new. It has 105k New Jersey miles and was garage kept. It looked to good to be true for $1195.00. But it checked out fine with the exception of a couple of burnt out light bulbs. I can't find anything here that comes close. Even if it costs $2500.00 shipping it's worth it.
I saw a Cherokee here for $3500.00 and it's not very appealing. And it has mechanical issues.

Yes, but anything she brings down to the island will be a POS within a few months anyway. My point is, there are soooo many cars needing new owners because the old owners are leaving the island that the old owners would be willing to negotiate a better price than advertised because they want to leave and sell the car before they leave.

But I agree, you can definitely buy a nicer car in the states than what she could probably find on island. Hoopties go for about $5000.00. If you want a decent car on island, you will need to spend a minimum of $8000.00 and up. What ever she buys whether it be here or there, make sure and spend the couple hundred dollars and have it gone over by a good mechanic.

Thanks everyone for your feedback. I think that she's trying to avoid buying a car here because there's going to be enough challenges when she gets here. Dealing with a clunker on top of everything else would be too much.

mtdoramike: Thanks. She knows that if she buys something nice it may not stay that way for very long. She feels that she'd rather not buy a POS on island just to have it turn into a huge POS if that makes any sense. I know what she means and I tend to agree.

But. We got off the original topic and thanks for everyones help.

My first vehicle that I had ever owned was a 1967 VW Bug. I bought it from a News reporter who had owned it for two years before leaving the island. I paid $350.00 for it, back in 1973, that was a lot of money. The first day I drove it around Blue Beards Castle where I was living and working at the time and ran over a speed bump and the left front tie rod end popped out and drove me into a rock wall. My girlfriend was in the car with me at the time and wondered what kind of piece of crap I bought. That wasn't bad enough, the passenger floor board had a huge gap in it under the door so who ever was riding shotgun would have to lift their feet or suffer with wet shoes when we went through a puddle of water. But I loved that old VW. It got me where I needed to go.

I learned to drive on St. Thomas in an old Ford F100 Pickup with three on the tree and slammed on the breaks which throw the DMV driving inspector into the windshield causing his clip board to fall to the floor of the truck. But that's a story for another day. Fond memories for sure.