What are the primary differences between registering a car in PA as classic or antique? The information on the dmv website seem a little vague to me. Thank you

 

I left Pennsylvania in 2011, but the definitions look the same. Although classic to me, my '66's were registered as Antiques.

Antique Motor Vehicle - A motor vehicle, but not a reproduction thereof, manufactured more than 25 years prior to the current year which has been maintained in or restored to a condition which is substantially in conformance with manufacturer specifications.
Classic Motor Vehicle - A motor vehicle, but not a reproduction thereof, manufactured at least 15 years prior to the current year which has been maintained in or restored to a condition which is substantially in conformity with manufacturer specifications and appearance.

“It is unlawful for any person to operate a motorcycle or vehicle with antique, classic, vintage, collectible or historic military vehicle registration plates for general daily transportation. Permitted use shall be limited to participation in club activities, exhibits, tours, parades, occasional transportation and similar uses.” Occasional transportation and similar uses are defined as no more than one day a week. Antique, Classic, and Vintage registration plates may not be displayed on a vehicle used to transport people or property.

 

theres also some dumb lighting rules and there were hours of operation rules, you couldnt use it from 1 am till 5 am with antique plates, but antique had NO PA State inspection, as Classic does have Safety inspection but No emission inspection , but both are not for daily use, it was going to a show or Gathering for autos only!

 

And that's why I went Antique, to avoid the inspection requirement for Classic's.

INSPECTION Classic vehicles are subject to an annual vehicle safety inspection. Antique vehicles operated exclusively between sunrise and sunset are exempt from the normal lighting requirements of the Pennsylvania Vehicle Code, but must have their original lighting equipment. Antique vehicles are not subject to the annual vehicle safety inspection. Antique and classic vehicles are not subject to emissions inspection.

 

I'm getting mine on the road for the first time in 30 years so I went classic for now because I want to have it inspected to make sure everything is safe. Being that I had every nut and bolt off the car. Maybe in a few years I'll change it to antique.

 

If you want it inspected by a garage then have them look at it as often as you like....no use having a yearly mandatory inspection if you aren't forced to do so.

I purposely avoided classic plates because of the inspection & waited to get antiques.

The cost of classic plates with notary fees is about 3 years worth of regular plates, so it does not save you money short term unless you are forced to get emissions inspections also.

 

Why should they give a rat’s A$$ when you drive it, impose a bunch of restrictions and pay dearly for a lousy piece of metal! You pay the registration (I assume a highway use tax) which should allow you to drive on the streets. Just get a regular normal everyday license plate.

 

a normal plate you get emission inspected and if it fails ( as most older cars do ) you keep paying up to a point $500 to $750 cap it's not worth it!

 

Registration is separate from inspection (safety and emissions) in PA. How you register (standard, classic, antique) determine what is required for inspection (as noted in above posts). Subject vehicles for emissions "include gasoline powered 1975 and newer model year vehicles". Also if you drive less than 5,000 miles in the previous 12 months, you should be emissions exempt. I have used that exemption with a standard plate. Per the 1975 and newer inclusion, my assumption is if the car is older, you will not be subject to emission testing even with a standard plate, though I personally have not used that exemption.
For all the rules see p 18:
http://www.dot.state.pa.us/public/dv...ns/pub_763.pdf

 

Classic plates, in states without inspection, were always an also ran, if there were antique plates. It seems like PA is using it for different levels of government oversight.

 

The laws might have changed since I left PA, but the biggest differences between registering classic or antique in PA were the following...
Antique
1. The car had to be 25 years or older.
2. Not a hot rod. The car had to restored (and picture documented) back to as close to stock as possible.
3. Best part... If you did somehow follow all of their restrictions and manage to get antique tags, PA paid the insurance.

Classic - I know that the car had to be at least 20 years old. But other than that, I am not sure. My father and I dealt mainly with antiques back then.

 

Standard plates, '95 car, less than 5000 miles, no emissions.
With classic or antique tags, there are restrictions on the use and hours the car is operated.
Tom was kind enough to include a link to the Pennsylvania Motor Vehicle code. FYI: When my car turned twenty-five (25) years old, my collector car insurance was underwritten as an antique and no longer a classic car. This saved considerable insurance premiums and I have a regular tag.
My tags first character is " D" which refers to cars manufactured in year 1995.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vehi...f_Pennsylvania

Welcome to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Tom Wolf Governor. I live in Philadelphia. We still can't get go inside and eat a burger.

 

100% agree with finding a mechanic who knows what to look at on older cars.
Also, make sure you insure it with Classic/Antique insurance...J.C.Taylor, Grundy, Hagerty... with an "agreed value" policy.
Bringing a car out of hibernation requires servicing/replacing many items.

See post # 20 & 47 in this thread:

https://classicoldsmobile.com/forums...decade-145080/

 

I got a 99 Ford ranger with a topper I got can I have that on with antique and classic tags in the state of Pennsylvania

 

Antique plate can be driven after dark as long as it has approved lighting (headlights, taillights, turn signals, etc.). The daylight driving rule was written back in the day for vehicles that did not have lights. The daylight hours are to "hinder" someone from driving it regularly. I have antique plates on my 1990 Dodge D150 pickup and 1992 Mack MH612 semi tractor. Both have been driven in the dark with no issues. The Mack is always driven to and from shows, etc. and many times during dark hours. No issues (been on the PA Green Stamp many times in the dark). The Dodge is "exercised" locally as time permits (a whopping 100 miles in 2023). One can argue that the vehicle needs to be driven regularly to keep it road worthy. If and when I get the 1972 CS road worthy it will have antique plates.
If one would get stopped, tell the officer you are going to get fuel. And it does not need to be the closest station.

 

With antique plates there is NO allowable payload for trucks.
If you have an empty "cap" on the truck, I would not expect a problem, but if it is a heavy camper then you could have a problem.
They revised the gross weight to the unladen weight on my trucks making you subject to overload fines if caught hauling anything.

 

It has to be 25 years old for an antique plate. You should be able to register it as an antique 1999 model year + 25 years = 2024. I have a topper on my 1990 D150 and no issues. The topper has been on it since new (34 years).