How much road tax do you pay?

[Spiddy]

I'm interested to know what yearly tax you people have to pay to put your cars on the road.

In the UK it's called a Road Fund Licence, and if your car was first registered during or before 1973 then it's FREE. However, if registered after '73, well that's a whole different ball game! The Government have jumped on the "Global Warming" bandwagon which gives them carte blanche to hit the motorist hard. So now, the more the "threat", the more you pay. If you drive a big 4x4, you are considered a social outcast! It's based on CO2 emissions (g/km): Band A, Up to 100, FREE. Then it varies up to Band F, Over 185, £210. However, if your pride and joy is over 225 and was registered after 23/03/06 then you need to fork out £400 ($788) for the pleasure of using it. Oh, I nearly forgot; if you fail to tax your car, then they hit you with an automatc fine of up to £1000.

Here in Spain there is no such thing as a freebee, but I only pay 120 euros ($188) which I consider excellent value for money. The charges vary province to province and are based on engine size.

So, how does it pan out where you are?

[baltobernie]

In Maryland, USA, fees are as follows:

∙ one-time registration fee of 6% of the retail value of the car, plus $50
∙ license plates are $64 - $90 for passenger cars per year, depending on weight
∙ 1/2 and 3/4 ton pickup trucks are $100 per year
∙ vehicle emission testing is $14 every two years

For Historic vehicles (minimum age: 20 yrs.) to be driven "not for daily use", only the first item applies, plus $51 for tags good for two years.

The state gasoline tax is $0.235 per gallon. Ironically, the same amount is taxed upon LPG, CNG and other clean-burning alternative fuels.

[mdrburchette]

For North Carolina:
One time highway use tax of 3% of vehicle value
license plates $28 yearly
emission/safety inspection (1996 and newer) $30 yearly
safety (1995 until car is 35 years old) $9.10

There is no such thing as a historic vehicle in NC but an antique (35 years old) gets an extra fee when registering.
County taxes on my Fiats are $3 a year and valued at $700.
Not as bad as Maryland!

[So Cal Mark]

out here in Calif the streets are paved with gold and water fountains dispense champagne and the taxes reflect that

[Spiddy]

out here in Calif the streets are paved with gold and water fountains dispense champagne and the taxes reflect that

Ahhhh, that accounts for it!! When I was last in LA, all the pavements were dug up and the pedestrians (yes, I saw one or two) were all drunk. Now I know why. Thanks.

[stefhahn]

I pay 550,--€ car tax for my 2l '79 spider. That doesn't include licensing cost, bi-yearly technical inspection (around 100€) or anything round the gas. Just to keep it licensed on the road. Next year as it gets 30 it can become an official "classic car" if it passes the (tougher to get through) tech inspection for classical cars (there is a law for that) which then means a set of new licence plates plus the cost for the tech inspection (around 150€) plus the cost for the official paperwork - but then the car tax will drop to ~190€ per year.

ciao,
Stefan

[Tappy]

must be one of the lucky ones on this subject

Here in Belgium you pay the same tax for all oldtimer vehicles (older then 25 jears) togheter with the insurance (also the same for any oldtimer vehicle it is about 160€ a jear (+-200$)

you never have to go and get your car controlled only once when you "make" it an oldtimer , and the only things they check are your brakes , steering and if you have a hazard triangele

After that you can modifie you car like you wich

but there are restrictions on driving , for instance you can only drive during daylight , no further then 30 km out of your house or on meetings ( those may be several hundereds of km away , during the night , np)

[baltobernie]

Japan is the toughest country I know of to own a car. I'm not sure of the registration fees, but to even buy one you have to show proof that you have an off-street parking spot available!

Plus, every couple of years you need a "safety inspection" that basically involves disassembly of the car, costing thousands of dollars. It's a ruse to force people to trade in their cars and buy new ones. There's also (of course) a huge business in exporting these nearly-new cars to other RHD countries.

I've seen maybe 3 older cars on roads there.

PS - Fuel prices are no worse than ROW, and like NJ and Oregon, no self-serve. And when you pull in, an army of white coverall attendants descend on your car, checking, cleaning and filling everything, just like the US in the '50s.

[Spiddy]

I pay 550,--€ car tax for my 2l '79 spider. That doesn't include licensing cost, bi-yearly technical inspection (around 100€) or anything round the gas. Just to keep it licensed on the road. Next year as it gets 30 it can become an official "classic car" if it passes the (tougher to get through) tech inspection for classical cars (there is a law for that) which then means a set of new licence plates plus the cost for the tech inspection (around 150€) plus the cost for the official paperwork - but then the car tax will drop to ~190€ per year.

ciao,
Stefan