Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, and this is one of the most common situations we run into, so don't panic. If you're the last registered owner in TxDMV's system, you can apply for a certified copy of your Texas title using Form VTR-34. You'll need a photo ID for every owner listed, and if there's a lien on record you'll need a lien release too. Mail-in requests run around $2, or you can go in person to a TxDMV Regional Service Center for same-day service for a slightly higher fee. Once you have that replacement title in hand (or sometimes even while it's in process, depending on your situation), we can move forward with an offer and our local towing partner can handle pickup and pay you on the spot.

This happens more than people think, especially with private-party deals where paperwork gets set aside and life gets busy. If the title was properly signed over to you by the previous owner (even if you never filed it), you can typically still complete the transfer yourself using that original assignment, along with an Application for Texas Title (Form 130-U). If you never actually got the signed-over title from the seller, it gets trickier and may require locating them, a bonded title, or other proof-of-ownership documentation. Either way, give us a call and describe your paperwork situation. We deal with this constantly and can usually tell you pretty quickly what path makes sense before you sell.

You can, but the lien has to be resolved as part of the deal. If your loan balance is less than what we're offering, the payoff typically gets sent straight to the lender and you keep the difference. If you owe more than the car is worth, you'd need to cover the gap out of pocket to clear the lien before the title can transfer. Once a lienholder receives full payment, Texas law gives them up to 10 days to release the lien, so if you're close to being paid off, it's worth checking with your lender on the exact payoff amount and lien status before we finalize anything. Just be upfront with us about an active loan when you call — it doesn't disqualify you, it just changes how the paperwork and payment get routed.

We're sorry for your loss, and yes, this is a solvable situation. Texas allows heirs to transfer a vehicle out of a deceased owner's name without going through full probate by using an Affidavit of Heirship for a Motor Vehicle (Form VTR-262), combined with a Form 130-U title application. If there's a surviving spouse, often just that spouse needs to sign as the affiant; if not, all the heirs typically need to sign, and everything has to be notarized. Processing usually takes a few weeks once TxDMV or your county tax office accepts the paperwork. We can talk you through exactly what's needed for your family's situation, and there's no obligation to sell until the paperwork side is sorted out.

If your divorce decree awarded you the vehicle, you don't necessarily need your ex to show up and sign anything. Texas county tax offices will generally transfer the title into your name using a certified copy of the final divorce decree along with the original title, your ID, proof of insurance, and a current inspection. If the decree clearly awards you the car, it can stand in for a missing or incorrect signature from your ex. If there's still a lien on the vehicle, you'll also need that resolved or a decree that specifically addresses the lien. This kind of transfer is also usually exempt from the sales tax you'd normally pay on a title change. Bring us your decree and we can help you figure out the fastest path to a sale.

Yes, this comes up a lot with old work trucks and fleet vehicles. Because the title is in the company's name, TxDMV generally wants documentation tying you, as the person signing, to that entity — this can be a letter of authorization on company letterhead or similar proof that you're authorized to sign on the business's behalf, along with the standard Form 130-U. If the LLC has been dissolved, it can add an extra step, so it's worth talking to your accountant or the Secretary of State's office about your specific entity's status. Bring whatever paperwork you have (articles of organization, an old EIN letter, anything with the company name on it) and we'll help you figure out what's needed to get this one sold.

Absolutely, we buy vehicles with out-of-state titles regularly. The main thing is that the title has to be properly assigned to you (or to us, at sale) with all listed owners signing, and if you're the one selling it here, you generally have 30 days from bringing the vehicle into Texas to get it titled/registered here to avoid penalties — though for a straight sale to us, we can usually work with the out-of-state title directly as long as it's clean and in your name. If there's a language issue (a foreign title, for instance), a certified English translation may be needed. Give us a call with details on where the title's from and we'll tell you exactly what we need.

A bonded title is a path to get a legitimate Texas title on a vehicle when you don't have normal proof of ownership — for example, you bought it years ago with a handshake deal and no paperwork, or the title was never properly signed over. You apply through TxDMV using a Bonded Title Statement of Fact (Form VTR-130-SOF) along with whatever partial proof you do have (a bill of sale, cancelled check, invoice, etc.), your ID, and a $15 fee. TxDMV then requires you to purchase a surety bond, typically worth about 1.5 times the vehicle's appraised value, which acts as financial protection in case someone else later claims ownership. One important catch: if there's a recorded lien on the vehicle less than 10 years old that you can't get released, you generally can't get a bonded title until that's cleared up. The vehicle also needs to still be a complete unit (frame, body, motor) — it can't already be junked or nonrepairable. This process can take some time, so if you're not sure whether it applies to your situation, call us and we'll talk through your specific paperwork gap.

This is one of the tougher title situations, honestly. If a vehicle is titled with 'and' between the two owners' names, Texas generally requires both owners to sign off on a sale. If it's titled with 'or' between the names, either owner can typically sign alone. So the first thing to check is exactly how the title reads. If both signatures are required and the co-owner genuinely can't be located or won't cooperate, your options usually involve either tracking them down, working through a family or legal resolution, or in some cases pursuing a bonded title or court action if you can show you're the rightful sole owner now. We'd rather you call us and describe exactly what the title says and what your relationship to the co-owner is — we can give you a straighter answer once we know those details.

It depends on how far back this goes and what documentation you have. If you have any proof at all — a bill of sale, a receipt, even a text conversation confirming the purchase — that can support a bonded title application. Texas law generally requires a title to sell a vehicle to a buyer for the road, though there are more limited paths for selling to a licensed metal recycler or salvage buyer for parts/scrap if a title truly can't be obtained. We're not going to pretend there's a quick trick around this, but we've helped plenty of Texas sellers work through exactly this problem, so call us and walk us through what you do have. We'll tell you honestly whether it's a bonded title situation, a simple duplicate title, or something else. See our full guide to selling a car without a title in Texas for the complete breakdown of every route.

Yes — non-running vehicles are a big part of what we buy every week. Dead engine, blown transmission, electrical gremlins, it doesn't need to start or drive for us to make you a cash offer. That's actually the whole point of a junk car service: you don't have to fix anything, detail it, or even get it running long enough to drive it onto a trailer. Our local towing partner comes to wherever the car is sitting, loads it up for free, and pays you on the spot.

Not at all — flood-damaged vehicles are something we buy regularly, especially given how often parts of Texas deal with heavy rain and flooding. Flood damage does affect value, since water gets into the electrical system, carpet, and engine in ways that cause ongoing problems even if the car seems to run afterward. Depending on the extent of the damage, your insurance company may also have already assigned it a flood or salvage brand on the title. Either way, we can still make an offer — just be upfront about the flooding when you call so we can give you an accurate number instead of a surprise adjustment later.

Hail damage is usually cosmetic — dented panels and a damaged roof — rather than structural, so it's often less of an issue for us than frame or mechanical damage. If the vehicle still runs and drives fine, hail damage alone typically won't stop us from buying it. If your insurer already totaled the car and issued a salvage title because of it, that's fine too; we buy salvage-titled vehicles. Just let us know the title status and how bad the damage is so we can quote you fairly.

This trips a lot of people up. A salvage title means the cost to repair the vehicle's damage exceeds its actual cash value, but the car can still legally be rebuilt and, once inspected and re-titled as 'Rebuilt Salvage,' driven on the road again. A nonrepairable title, on the other hand, means Texas has determined the vehicle is only good for parts or scrap — it's so damaged that state law permanently bars it from ever being repaired, rebuilt, or driven again. If your title says 'salvage,' there's still a legal path back to the road. If it says 'nonrepairable,' there isn't, and that vehicle is headed for parts or recycling one way or another. We buy both kinds, but which one you have affects what a fair offer looks like.

In many cases, yes. If your insurer paid you out and you kept the vehicle (sometimes called a 'retained salvage' situation), or if you're still deciding whether to accept their settlement, it's worth getting a second opinion from us before you hand the car over. Depending on your policy and state, you may or may not have the option to keep the car after settlement, so check with your adjuster on that specifically. Once the vehicle has a salvage or nonrepairable brand from the insurance total-loss process, we can still make you a cash offer — just have the paperwork on hand (settlement letter, any title work already done) when you call.

Not for whether we'll buy it — we regularly buy cars that haven't moved in five, ten, even twenty years. What it usually means practically is flat or rotted tires, a dead battery, rust, rodent damage, and sometimes the car is partially grown into the landscape. All of that is normal for us and our local towing partner is equipped to pull vehicles out of grass, mud, or tight spots that a regular tow truck might struggle with. The one thing worth checking on your end is the title — cars that have sat that long sometimes have title paperwork that's gone missing, so it's worth digging through old files before you call.

Yes, we buy plenty of vehicles that are missing an engine, transmission, or other major components — sometimes because a previous repair attempt stalled out, or parts were sold off separately. It obviously affects the value since we're then looking at more of a parts/scrap valuation rather than a running-vehicle valuation, but it doesn't disqualify the car. Just tell us honestly what's missing when you call so the quote you get on the phone matches what we see when we arrive — that's how we avoid any awkward price changes at pickup.

No, missing keys are pretty common with cars that have been sitting a while or were inherited, and it's not something that stops us from buying. Our local towing partner has the equipment to load a vehicle without keys and without it needing to start or steer under its own power. Just mention it when you call so pickup is set up correctly.

Yes, and we'd rather tell you upfront than waste your time. We can't buy a vehicle that doesn't have a legitimate way to establish ownership — no title, no bonded title, no bill of sale, nothing — because we can't legally take possession of it that way. We also can't touch anything reported stolen; any vehicle we take in gets its VIN checked, and a stolen report will stop the transaction cold, for your protection as much as ours. And a vehicle that's missing its VIN entirely or has no real frame or body left (just a stripped shell or a pile of parts) usually falls outside what we can process as a vehicle purchase versus scrap metal recycling. Outside of those situations, condition alone rarely disqualifies a car — we've bought plenty of rough ones.

Yes, we're not limited to sedans. Pickup trucks, SUVs, cargo vans, box trucks, and old work or fleet vehicles are all things we regularly buy, whether they're beat up from years of job-site use, sitting unused since a business closed, or just outdated and not worth maintaining anymore. If you're clearing out a small fleet or a single work truck that a company no longer needs, the title situation is often the bigger question (see our note on business/LLC-titled vehicles) rather than the vehicle's condition itself. Give us the make, model, and rough condition and we'll get you a number.

It's not as mysterious as it feels. We look at your year, make, and model, current mileage, overall condition (does it run, drive, and stop safely, or is it sitting with a blown engine), your title status, how much demand there is for usable parts off that specific vehicle, current scrap metal pricing, and where in Texas you're located since towing distance and local market access affect what our local buying partner can net on resale or salvage. A 2016 Camry with a clean title and a bad transmission is going to price out very differently than a 2003 sedan that's been rear-ended and rusted out, even though both are technically 'junk cars.' We're happy to walk through the specific reasons behind your number instead of just handing you a figure and moving on.

No. Getting a quote costs you nothing, whether you call, text, or fill out the online form. You give us the vehicle details, we give you a real number based on that information. There's no obligation to accept it, and no charge just for asking.

That's a real and well-documented pattern in this industry: a company advertises free towing to get you on the phone, quotes you a number, then at pickup subtracts a 'transport fee,' 'processing charge,' or similar line item you were never told about. It works because by the time the driver shows up, most sellers just want the car gone and don't want to argue. Our answer to that is simple: the price we quote you is the price that gets paid, in full, at pickup. The tow is arranged through our local towing partner and it costs you nothing, period. Nothing gets deducted for hauling the car away. If any buyer's final payout doesn't match the number they gave you over the phone, that's the moment to stop and ask why.

This is another well-known trick, and it preys on the same instinct as the towing fee scam: once your car is up on the flatbed or partway winched onto a rollback, walking away feels like more hassle than just accepting whatever new, lower number the driver gives you. Some operators bank on that. A legitimate offer shouldn't move once it's been made based on accurate information. If our driver gets there and discovers something material you didn't mention, like the car actually has severe frame damage not disclosed, we'll talk to you about it before touching the vehicle, not after it's already on the truck. You should never feel pressured to accept a lower number just because the tow is already in motion.

Curbstoning is when an unlicensed dealer buys up cars cheap and resells them while posing as a private individual, usually on Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace, to dodge dealer regulations, sales tax, and disclosure requirements. Texas actually ranks among the states with the highest reported auto sale fraud, and curbstoning is a big part of that. A telltale sign is the same phone number showing up on several 'private party' listings for different cars. That whole model depends on the next buyer not knowing the vehicle's real history. We're the opposite of that setup: we're buying your car outright, as a licensed buyer, for scrap and parts recovery, not flipping it back onto the used-car market to an unsuspecting private buyer. There's no hidden reselling to someone who doesn't know what they're getting.

No, and you should treat it as an immediate red flag. Whether it's called a 'processing fee,' 'title handling fee,' or a deposit to 'confirm the appointment,' asking a seller to pay anything before pickup is not standard practice for a legitimate junk car buyer, it's a common scam setup. The transaction should run entirely in the other direction: the buyer pays you when they pick up the car, not the other way around. We never ask for money from you at any point in the process. If a company asks you to pay first, walk away.

A few real reasons, beyond someone just lowballing you. Buyers differ in how they make money on a vehicle: some are scrap-only operations paying close to metal weight, others pull and resell parts first and can afford to pay more because they've got a second revenue stream on the same car. Distance from the buyer's yard or partner network affects their towing cost, which affects the number they can offer. And some quotes are simply inflated bait, meant to get you off the phone with a high number that won't survive contact with the actual vehicle. If one quote is dramatically higher than every other one you've gotten, it's worth asking that buyer directly how they arrived at it and whether it's guaranteed at pickup.

Both, depending on the vehicle. A car with a blown engine but a good transmission, working AC compressor, and undamaged body panels is worth more to us as a parts source than as scrap weight alone, and that gets reflected in your offer. A car that's rusted through, badly wrecked, or missing major components is priced closer to straight scrap value. Either way, the value of what can be recovered from your specific car, not just its weight, factors into the number we give you.

Get more than one quote using the same accurate information about your car (same mileage, same condition, same title status) so you're comparing apples to apples. Ask each buyer to confirm, in writing or by text, whether the number they quote is the number you'll be paid at pickup, with nothing subtracted for towing or fees. Ask who's actually doing the tow and whether there's any cost to you. And be skeptical of any offer that's noticeably higher than the rest with no clear explanation, like the car having unusually valuable parts or you being unusually close to their facility. A buyer who welcomes those questions is generally the safer bet.

Yes, and it's worth understanding why. A clean title makes the transaction simple and gives us the most options for what happens to the vehicle afterward, which supports a stronger offer. A salvage title, a lien that hasn't been released, or a missing title complicates the paperwork and can limit what a buyer is able to legally do with the car, so those situations typically bring the number down or require extra steps. If you're missing your title, tell us upfront. There are often still ways to work through it, but it's better to surface that early than to have it come up as a surprise at pickup.

Often the same day or next day, depending on your location and our local towing partner's schedule in your area. Metro areas like Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, and Austin tend to have the most flexibility since there's more towing capacity nearby. Rural pickups can take a little longer to coordinate simply because the tow has farther to travel, but we'll always give you a realistic window rather than a vague promise.

You pick a day and general time window that actually works for you, we don't just hand you a rigid company-only slot and expect you to rearrange your day around it. We coordinate the pickup around both our towing partner's availability and your schedule, whether that's a weekday evening after work or a weekend morning. The goal is to make this convenient for you, not the other way around.

That happens, and it's not a problem. Just call or text us as soon as you know, and we'll rework the pickup time with our towing partner. There's no penalty or fee for rescheduling.

The core process is the same, free towing and on-the-spot payment either way, but rural pickups usually need a little more lead time simply because the tow truck is covering more distance and there are fewer trucks working that area on any given day. In metro areas we can often move faster because our towing partner has more coverage nearby. Wherever you are in Texas, we'll give you an honest estimate rather than promising something we can't deliver.

Yes, in all of those situations. For apartment complexes we may just need to know about gate codes, visitor parking rules, or a spot the tow truck can actually access. Repair shops and storage lots are usually straightforward since the vehicle is already off the road. Ranch or rural property pickups just need decent driving access for a flatbed or rollback, let us know if there's a locked gate, a long dirt driveway, or anything else the driver should expect ahead of time so pickup goes smoothly.

You need to be there, or have someone you trust there, since payment happens on the spot and we need someone authorized to sign off on the vehicle and hand over what paperwork is required. You don't have to babysit the whole process, but someone needs to be present to complete the handoff.

Yes, this comes up often, for example if you're selling a car that belonged to a family member, or you're at work when the tow is scheduled. Just let us know ahead of time who will be there in your place, and make sure that person has whatever ID and paperwork is needed and is clear on the agreed price. We'll confirm the details with you directly so there's no confusion about who's authorized to accept payment on your behalf.

Remove your personal belongings from the car, glovebox, trunk, under the seats, since once it's towed away it's gone for good. Grab your title and any ID you'll need for the paperwork. If you have a second key or fob, have that ready too. Beyond that, there's not much else required on your end, we handle the loading and the paperwork on-site.

Free towing applies statewide across our Texas coverage area, it's not limited to a small radius around one city. If you're further out from a major metro, it may affect how quickly we can schedule the pickup since the tow has more ground to cover, but it doesn't change the fact that towing itself costs you nothing and the payout you're quoted is the payout you receive.

Yes. Non-operational vehicles, whether the engine's seized, the wheels are locked up, or it's been sitting for years, are towed using a flatbed or rollback truck that winches the car on without needing it to move under its own power. This is routine for us. Just let us know upfront that the car won't roll, steer, or brake so the right kind of truck and equipment gets sent out instead of showing up with the wrong setup.

Yes, in most cases you can turn down the insurer's total-loss buyout and sell the car yourself instead, as long as you haven't already signed the title over to the insurance company. Once you sign the title over in exchange for the claim check, the car legally belongs to the insurer and you're out of the decision. If you haven't signed anything yet, you're free to negotiate a private sale (including to us) instead of accepting their number. Just keep in mind that if the vehicle has already been branded a total loss or salvage in your state's records, that status typically follows the car regardless of who buys it next, so we'll ask about that before making an offer.

It's tough to sell before the lien is released, but it's not always a dead end. Once you've paid off a loan in Texas, the lienholder has 10 days to release the lien, either by mailing you the paper title or clearing it electronically with TxDMV. If you're still making payments, we can typically structure the sale so the payoff amount goes straight to your lender and any remainder comes to you, which is standard practice for cars with an active loan. If a lienholder simply won't respond or release a lien that should already be satisfied, Texas law allows an owner to apply for a bonded title (Texas Transportation Code Section 501.053) or pursue a court order in more difficult cases, but let's talk through your specific situation first since there are usually faster paths.

It depends on which path you took. If you signed your title over to the insurance company as part of accepting their settlement, the car is no longer yours to sell; the insurer now owns it and disposes of it themselves. But if you chose the owner-retained option, where the payout is reduced by the estimated salvage value and you keep the car, the title comes back to you stamped 'Salvage,' and you'll still need that title in hand to sell it. Salvage-titled cars can't legally be driven, but they can absolutely be sold as-is for parts or scrap, and we buy them regularly. If your title is lost, you'd need a certified copy (Form VTR-34) from TxDMV before the sale can go through cleanly.

Yes, but the lien has to be dealt with as part of the sale, either paid off and released, or, if you're the shop or storage facility that placed the lien, foreclosed on properly through TxDMV's process. If you're the vehicle owner and a repair shop or storage lot has filed a lien against your car for unpaid bills, that lien has to be satisfied (or the lienholder has to sign off) before a clean title can transfer. If you're on the other side, a lienholder who has legally foreclosed under Texas rules (using forms like VTR-265-M for mechanic's liens or VTR-265-S for storage liens) can sell the vehicle at public sale, and the winning bidder then applies for title using the foreclosure paperwork plus Form 130-U. Bring us whatever lien documentation you have and we'll help sort out what's needed.

Yes, as long as you can show clear ownership. What you'll need depends on how you ended up with the vehicle. If you're the original owner and got the car back, you'll need whatever release paperwork the lender provided showing the debt is settled. If you bought a repossessed vehicle from a lender or at auction, you'll typically need the lienholder's title (or their application for one), a copy of the security agreement, and, if the original owner never signed off, the Repossessed Motor Vehicle Affidavit (Form VTR-264). If it went through a sheriff's sale, the original or a certified copy of the Sheriff's Bill of Sale needs to accompany the title application. Have whichever of these documents you were given ready when we talk.

We work with vehicle owners, not insurance companies directly. In practice, insurers rarely sell wrecked cars straight to a buyer like us anyway; they typically move total-loss vehicles through salvage auctions or auction networks after they've taken title. Where we come in is either before you sign your car over to the insurer (if you decide to sell privately instead of accepting their buyout) or after you've taken the owner-retained payout and have the salvage title back in your name. If you're not sure which stage you're at, give us a call and we can walk through it with you.

Yes, being 'upside down' on a loan doesn't stop a sale, it just means the payoff amount is bigger than what the car alone is worth. We can pay your lender directly as part of the transaction, but if the payoff exceeds our offer, you'd need to cover the difference out of pocket to release the lien and complete the sale free and clear. Some owners in this position instead choose to keep paying the loan rather than sell at a loss, so it's worth running the numbers with your lender first. If your car was in an accident and this is about a total-loss payout specifically rather than a voluntary sale, that's a slightly different situation, see our note on GAP insurance below.

This is the classic GAP problem. After a total loss, your insurer pays out the actual cash value of the car (what it was worth right before the accident), and that check goes to your lienholder first. If you still owe more than that ACV amount, the leftover balance, often called the 'gap,' is generally your responsibility unless you had GAP insurance or a GAP waiver that covers it. Texas doesn't require GAP coverage, though many lenders push it at financing time. If you have a GAP policy, check with that provider before assuming you're stuck with the balance. If you don't, and you're now dealing with a totaled car plus a remaining loan balance, we're still happy to make an offer on the vehicle itself (or what's left of it) to help offset what you owe.

ACV is what your insurance company decides your car was worth right before it was damaged or totaled, based on age, mileage, condition, and comparable sales, not what you paid for it or what you still owe. If you financed the car, your loan balance and the ACV are often two very different numbers, especially early in a loan when depreciation outpaces what you've paid down. That gap is exactly why some owners end up needing to sell a damaged vehicle for whatever cash they can get, just to put something toward the remaining loan instead of walking away with nothing. When we make an offer, we're valuing the vehicle in its current condition, which may differ from your insurer's ACV number, so it's worth getting both figures before deciding your next move.

At minimum, bring your Texas title (signed over on the back to the buyer, or to us) and a valid photo ID. If you still owe money on the car, bring your lender's payoff information. If the title is lost, you'll need to get a certified copy from TxDMV first using Form VTR-34 before a sale can close cleanly. It also helps to have your registration, and if the vehicle is out of state or missing a VIN plate, there may be an inspection step involved. We'll tell you exactly what's needed for your specific situation when you call, since it varies a bit depending on whether there's a lien, a lost title, or an out-of-state title involved.

Yes, and we strongly recommend it. The VTR-346 is a free one-page form you file with TxDMV after selling, gifting, or trading a vehicle, telling the state you no longer own it. TxDMV recommends submitting it within 30 days of the sale date; filing within that window is what gives you the strongest protection from liability for tickets, tolls, impound fees, or worse, crimes committed with the vehicle after you've sold it, since your name would otherwise still be attached to it in state records. You can still file it after 30 days and TxDMV will note it on your record, but the protection isn't guaranteed the same way. It's quick to do online at TxDMV.gov, or by mail or in person at a regional office, and there's no fee. We recommend filing it the same day you hand over the keys.

Generally yes. Vehicles coming in from out of state typically need a VIN verification as part of getting a Texas title, and this is usually done by a Texas safety-inspection station using Form VTR-270 (VIN certification), or in certain cases by a law-enforcement VIN inspection (Form VTR-68-A) if there's a title problem, salvage history, or the vehicle needs closer verification. If the vehicle is still physically out of state at the time of the paperwork, self-certification of the VIN may be allowed instead. Requirements can vary by situation, so we'll help confirm exactly what's needed for your car before we finalize anything.

Take it seriously, but you usually have a window to act. Under Texas Transportation Code Chapter 683 and most local ordinances, cities can declare a junked or abandoned vehicle a public nuisance and require the owner to remove it, and notice requirements typically give you at least 10 days to respond or request a hearing before the city can move to remove the vehicle itself. The exact process (how notice is delivered, hearing rights, timelines) varies by city, so read your notice carefully for the specific deadline and your city's contact info. In many cases, the simplest fix is exactly what you'd expect: sell or dispose of the vehicle before the deadline. We buy junk and non-running cars across our Texas service areas and can often schedule a pickup quickly, which resolves the notice on your end. Just don't ignore the letter, missed deadlines can lead to fines or the city removing the vehicle at your expense.

Yes. Under Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) rules, used motor oil, oil filters, antifreeze, lead-acid batteries, and scrap tires are not supposed to go out with regular household trash. Batteries in particular are almost always recyclable for a small credit through auto parts stores, and many service stations and household hazardous waste programs accept used oil and antifreeze for free. The good news is that when you sell a car to us, you're not dismantling it yourself. We take the vehicle as a whole unit, fluids and all, and any recycling or disposal of individual components happens downstream through licensed recyclers, not something you need to handle yourself before the sale.

Yes. Being stationed in Texas under military orders doesn't require you to retitle your vehicle in Texas, and you can sell a vehicle here even if the title is from your home state. One thing to be aware of: the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act protects your legal residency status for tax purposes, but it does not exempt you from Texas motor vehicle sales tax rules if you or a subsequent owner titles the car here. That said, when you're simply selling the vehicle (not registering it in Texas yourself), the process is largely the same as any out-of-state title sale. Bring your out-of-state title and ID, and we'll walk you through anything Texas-specific that applies.

We buy cars from sellers all across Texas, not just around our Houston office. Whether you're in a major metro area or a smaller town, reach out with your ZIP code and vehicle details, and we'll confirm pickup availability and timing for your specific area. Coverage and pickup logistics can vary a bit by location, so it's always fastest to just call (214) 617-0955 and we'll tell you exactly what we can do for your area.

In Texas, license plates belong to the owner, not the vehicle, so you should remove them before handing the car over. Once removed, you have a few options: transfer them to another vehicle you own (as long as it's the same vehicle classification), hold onto them for a future vehicle, or deface and dispose of them if you're done with them. Whatever you do, don't leave your plates on a car you're selling, since the registration and plate are still tied to your name until you either transfer them or the registration expires. Pair this with filing your Vehicle Transfer Notification (VTR-346) promptly, and you've covered your bases on both fronts.

Yes. If you're clearing out multiple old cars — a family estate, a property cleanup, or years of accumulated vehicles — we can make offers on all of them at once.

You're paid at the time of pickup — no waiting on a mailed check or a bank transfer to clear.