CA Legal Golf Cart to LSV Question

[floridatony]

Dear amazing members of buggiesgonewild!

Today I have my appointment with San Diego DMV to try to get a Low Speed Vehicle designation and license plates for my 1990 Western Golf and Country (same platform as EZGO Marathon.) I wanted to check with you knowledgable folks before I waste anytime there.

So in terms of equipment, I believe that my cart has everything. (blinkers, headlights, taillights, top mirror, windshield, seatbelts, hazards, phone as gps speedometer, horn, windshield wiper) Going against the advice of Scottyb, I put 6-8v batteries into the cart and drove it for approx 2 blocks and got up to 22mph. I do not plan to have this as a long term solution.

I also have a title from AZ with a VIN number of only 8 digits, but it clearly says "Vehicle Identification Number" on the title. It also says the body style is "GC" Golf cart.

I really want this cart to drive around here in San Diego with license plates, and want this to go as smoothly as possible. I know that I am supposed to have a 17 digit vin, but online it is not always clear whether or not it matters (anecdotes of real experiences.) I also have no DOT approved tires.

What do you guys foresee happening at my appointment? Do I stand a chance? Any first hand advice?

Best,

FloridaTony

[yurtle]

I'd go ahead with the appointment and see how it goes. Hopefully if something's amiss, the folks at your DMV will be knowledgeable enough to tell you specifically what you need, if you fall short.

My previous job had me working with many State and Federal regulators. They often get a bad rap, but many times the lawmakers fail to get the language exactly right, and once they regs are rolled out and problems arise, it's up to the regulators to work with them to develop guidelines. With something like this, the golf cart industry probably worked with them (lobbyists) to help clarify the bill before it passed. This is one instance where the lawmakers and the industry BOTH wanted to get buggies on the road.

Even if the particular DMV employee doesn't have specifics, they may have an FAQ or you can use Google.

My state recently passed legislation defining "minimum standards", but didn't allow buggies to be driven anywhere. They left it up to local cities and/or counties to pass their own ordinances. In my case, I have two counties splitting my lot, and a city butting up against my back yard, meaning it's possible I'd need to meet three different sets of rules.

Good luck.