Another good source of information on Dune Buggy topics far and wide is www.Dune-Buggy.com

Registration of Dune Buggies for Street Use in Virginia

Dune buggies are manufactured as off-road vehicles and cannot be registered with the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV); nor can they be issued license plates. The applicable Federal statute, 49 U.S.C section 30102, defines a motor vehicle as a "vehicle driven or drawn by mechanical power and manufactured primarily for use on public streets, roads, and highways." An individual could modify a dune buggy for street use (and become the street vehicle manufacturer.) After the modifications were complete, the owner would need to pass an inspection by a DMV Investigator and the modified vehicle would have to pass a Virginia highway safety inspection. Then the vehicle could be titled and registered.

Selling Your Virginia Street Titled Dune Buggy

(should you decide to do a crazy thing like that)

Any person who modifies off-road vehicles for highway use must certify compliance with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards prior to selling the vehicle. Should the owner sell the vehicle for "dirt use," sales documents should indicate the change in status.

Required Equipment:

Included but not limited to.

• DOT Tires
• Windshield - Must be DOT marked glass
• Turn signals
• Hazard lights
• DOT head lights and tail lights
• Brake lights and supplemental high mount brake light
• High and low beam with high beam indicator
• Front and rear brakes
• Emergency Brake or holding brake - no indicator light required
  
• Safety Harness(s) - DOT approved safety belts - must remove existing non marked harness
  
• Starter Interrupt - So buggy doesn't start without clutch depressed
• Marker Lights - If tires extend more than 4 inches outside of the body:
• Amber marker lights visible from the front to indicate the extreme width of dune buggy
  
• Red marker lights visible from the rear to indicate the extreme width of the dune buggy
• Floor holes can be considered "Factory Drain Holes."
  

Fenders not required

Fenders are not required but a marker light must identify the extreme width of the vehicle which is generally the rear wheel. Placing a marker light on a post that projects over the rear tires extending within an inch of the extreme width of the buggy is adequate. Often times, the nerf bars on the sides of some buggies will fill the requirement of placing the body within four inches of the tire edge.

Spot Lights are legal

Virginia Code 46.3-1019 allows for up to two spot lights of an approved type "so that no portion of the beam will be directed to the left of the center of the highway at any time or more than 100 feet ahead of the vehicle."

Stud Your Tires For Winter In Virginia

Between October 15th and April 15th, studs may be used. They must "project no more than one-sixteenth of an inch beyond the tread of the traction surface of the tire when compressed if the studs cover no more than three percent of the traction surface of the tire."

Registering process for street buggies Virginia:

• You must carry insurance on your buggy to drive it on the street in Virginia.
• For starters, you must have a Manufacturer's Source of Origin (MSO) or Title for you dune buggy
• Modify your kart to include the required hardware listed above.
• Send to DMV at the address below:
  • Form VSA22 - Application For Assigned Vehicle Identification Number 
  • Reconstructed Vehicle...materially altered from its original construction by the removal, addition, or substitution of new or used essential parts (46.2-100). The definition also states that the vehicle shall retain its original vin, line-make, and model year.
  • VSA17A - Application for Title
  • Notarized letter to DMV detailing the modifications you have done to make the vehicle street legal
  • Original MSO or title
  • Lots of picture of your buggy
  • Check for $135 to cover the inspection

Send this paperwork to:
Department of Motor Vehicles
Attention: Salvage
P.O. Box 27412
Richmond, Va 23269

For more info, contact your local DMV Dealer Services Inspector

Dune Buggy Insurance

Contact your insurance auto insurance provider for a quote because they may cover you. Some other insurance companies we have personally called for insurance quotes for Dune Buggies are:

• Stratum Insurance Agency - 949-270-0609 - Specializes in dune buggy insurance. Was able to write a very low cost policy (<$250/year) for a Joyner 650 Sand Spider.
• Progressive - A dune buggy may be added to a progressive policy only if it has been titled and inspected as "Dune Buggy."
  
• Farmers Insurance
• State Farm Insurance - Will not insure as a Dune Buggy
• Geico - Could not offer any policy for a dune buggy for street use.

Disclaimer: This page is for information purposes only. We make no claim to be a lawyer so we suggest you retain a lawyer to help guide you through this process. You are responsibility for losses due to the use of this information or any other responsibilities not specifically expressed here within.