As a former Texas resident, I can tell you that the Lonestar State is a pretty cool place. Sure it gets hot down there sometimes, and certain areas are better than others, just like any other state, but for hot rodding it rules even more than ever. Governor Rick Perry just signed H.B. 890 into law which is allows Texas Street Rod and Custom car owners to register their street rods, custom vehicles, and kit cars more effectively. The basics are that you get a Street Rodl plate and registration class for pre-1949 vehicles that are “altered” and therefore a street rod. In addition,  Custom plates and registration are also specific for altered cars built after 1948 that are at least 25 years old. Non original materials can be used in the build of either class of vehicle. Titling and registration criteria are in place to assign the vehicle a production year that most closely matches the model year they resemble, which also means it only has to adhere to those emission standards if applicable.

This means a Dynacorn Camaro or Mustang is an easy title and registration process now in Texas. So is an all glass ’32 Ford. No need for buying titles and doing anything weird. Major kudos to Rick Perry and the entire Texas legislature, as well as the great people at SEMA who continue to work diligently to support our habit.

The full SEMA Action Network Alert Update is below. To see all of the legislation affecting our hobby, click here.

URGENT LEGISLATIVE ALERT (UPDATE) Texas Street Rod and Custom Vehicle Bill Signed Into Law After an effort that stretched into two legislative sessions, SEMA model legislation (H.B. 890) to create a vehicle registration classification for street rods and custom vehicles (including kit cars and replicas) and provide for special license plates was signed into law by Governor Rick Perry.  Slated to go into effect on September 1, 2011, the new law defines a street rod as an altered vehicle manufactured before 1949 and a custom as an altered vehicle at least 25 years old and manufactured after 1948.  The law also allows for the use of non-original materials and creates a titling and registration criterion that assigns these vehicles the same model year designation as the production vehicle they most closely resemble.  In addition, the law only holds street rods, customs and replicas to the equipment standards specified by law during the model year listed on the title and exempts them from the state’s emissions inspection program. Thank you and congratulations to all who participated in supporting this bill!