[doctorbombeii]

If your car has SULEV eligibility, you can utilize the applicable warranty in any state. Yes, there are a handful of hoops and hurdles to clear, but it may be worth it depending on your situation. It costed me $264 to become eligible, it could cost you less.

Shout out to tyronelatour@latouresquir for the lead

[marvinstockman]

I think that before 2011, a SULEV only had to be sold, when new, in one of the covered states to be covered now, no matter where it is registered.

My 2011 SULEV, which resides in Maryland is covered, but I believe if I moved to North Dakota, it would not be covered.

[Boston4]

If your local dealer is giving you a hard time and you can't visit another, it's also possible to register a car in Vermont with no address there - you can do the whole thing by mail. Get VT title/plates/reg, bring it back to the dealer, and then it's registered in a covered state.

[lookalikehuuh]

Originally Posted by doctorbombeii

If your car has SULEV eligibility, you can utilize the applicable warranty in any state. Yes, there are a handful of hoops and hurdles to clear, but it may be worth it depending on your situation. It costed me $264 to become eligible, it could cost you less.

Shout out to tyronelatour@latouresquir for the lead

Might be useful to post information like what process you actually had to go thru and what hoops you had to jump thru. I personally don't care about this because none of my cars are SULEV cars but others in the community could find the information useful.

[jarsdad1]

The warranty has always been good in all ststes. Some dealers may try to tell you otherwise. Untrue!!!

[krhodes1]

Originally Posted by jarsdad1

The warranty has always been good in all ststes. Some dealers may try to tell you otherwise. Untrue!!!

If you actually read the warranties, you will see that the terms changed in 2011 (model year, not calendar year). Before 2011, the car only had to have been sold new in a CA Emissions state. Starting in 2011, it must be currently registered in a CA Emissions state. The verbiage of the warranty is quite clear.

This is how it is written (emphasis mine):

Emission Coverage - 2011 Model Year and Newer BMW Vehicles

The statement in the Service and Warranty Booklet is:
The California Emission Control System Limited Warranty applies to all [applicable model year] U.S.- specification BMW [models] registered in [specific states - list].

Emission Coverage - BMW Vehicles up to and including 2010 Model Year

The statement in the Service and Warranty Booklet is:
The California Emission Control System Limited Warranty applies to all [applicable model year] U.S.-
specification BMW vehicles sold, leased, and/or registered in [specific states - list].

I can confirm personally that the first statement is exactly how it is written in the warranty documentation for my 2011 SULEV 128i. REGISTERED in, not just sold in.

And that is why may car will be registered to my home in Maine for the next four years. It is only "visiting" Florida and may head back to Maine at any moment. The sucky part is it costs quite a lot more to do this, but I figure enough expensive things are covered by the warranty that it is about worth it.

I would *strongly* advise against trying to get away with registering a car in VT to get around this if you don't actually own property there. Pretty much every state has laws against that sort of thing, and especially in states that collect substantial annual property taxes on cars take it very seriously. Not registering a car in Maine that lives in Maine carries a $10,000 fine, as an example -Maine wants their annual pound of flesh. Technically, FL also has such a law, but as I own a house in Maine I have plausible deniability, and since FL has no annual tax on cars they don't care much to start with. But if my car was registered in VT, and I only have a FL address, that could be an awkward conversation with a FL cop.

There are also lots of potential issues around insurance with that route too. I have no idea how hard it would be to get insurance in VT if you don't actually live there and have a real address there. Not an issue for me, I own a house in Maine, and keep three other cars registered and insured there. Again, my 128i is "just visiting" Florida. Temporarily. Going back to Maine "real soon now". And that lets me keep my most excellent Agreed Value insurance policy on it too.