Free Republic

DMV probe keeps bikers off road Orange County kit bike owners aren't sure when they'll be able to ride or sell hand-built vehicles. Friday, June 22, 2007 BRIAN JOSEPH SACRAMENTO -- Dain Gingerelli says he locked up a sure sale of his motorcycle in April – about $10,000 for a kit bike he built himself. But two months later, the bike is gathering dust in his garage and the cash is in someone else's pocket. What happened? The state Department of Motor Vehicles, Gingerelli said, blocked the sale. It turns out Gingerelli used a kit made by Custom Chrome Inc....

The California Air Resources Board announced last month that it had fined Jesse James of West Coast Choppers and the former host of the television show “Monster Garage” for selling motorcycles between 1998 and 2005 that did not meet the state’s emissions laws. The agency said it reached a settlement with Mr. James for $271,250 for selling more than 50 new or custom-built motorcycles that did not meet the standards. Jerry Martin, communications director of the board, said in a telephone interview that the agency did not consider the fine excessive. “It’s an average fine for a motor vehicles certification...