The Paper Trail

So first thing Monday I took the car into my newly discovered favorite BMW shop (thank you E34M5 mailing list!) to look at the bearings. I had originally considered doing the job myself, but research showed it would be quite an undertaking and worth the labor cost to have someone do it (especially since they have the tools). Quick drive around the block with the mechanic showed that it was indeed the right bearing. Insider tip: weave car left to right to isolate which bearing is bad. They quoted a reasonable price, but couldn't do the job that day, so I decided to head off down the street to the DMV to square off the paperwork.

Having not scheduled an appointment, I braced myself for the worst; bringing along my trusty iRiver and several unread magazines. But even without an appointment, the lines were surprisingly short. My number was called in about 10 minutes.

I was a bit nervous given the strange ownership trail that the car would end up stolen or some other weird crap, but luckily everything checked out. Big problem, though...I (stupidly) put down the wrong sell date on the back of the title. The guy tells me, "you'll have to go back and get a revised bill of sale from the seller with the right dates." Oh, great. That's not gonna happen. I ask, "Could I change the date I wrote down on the title?" "Sure," he said, "but you'll have to pay late registration fees". Great. I don't care, I just want the paperwork done with. Turns out that it was only $16 in late fees (woo hoo!). And so, after some typing in his computer and a $54 debit on my card, I was good to go. Registered! I love buying ratty old cars: forty-odd bucks in total registration fees and taxes! As opposed to the two thousand something initial layout and $300+/year for a brand new car.