Daniel,

Most of the talk in this tribe is about operating a vehicle at Black Rock City.

For the state of Nevada try:

leg.state.nv.us/NRS/NRS-484.html

Two guidelines stand out to me: (1) To get Department of Transportation approval for your particular vehicle, it's either through being an automobile manufacturer already or through a nearly impossible process that nobody quite understands, and (2) it's easier to ask for forgiveness than for permission.

In New York [up]State (i.e. not NYC), my own theory is that you can find a fair and reliable shop that gives out inspection stickers then gradually morph your existing street-legal vehicle into something else. The idea is to start with a perfectly bland vehicle, get it on the road, and start modifying it. As long as you can continue to pass your state's requirements for what constitutes "safe", then you should be home free.

That said, all this is still theory. I understand that applying $$$$ to a project that isn't a certainty is a big problem, but, like I said: it's easier to ask for forgiveness than for permission. If you can show that you have safety in mind and have generally made modifications that keep a vehicle about as "safe" as it was to start with, then I don't know why a LEO would bother you.

---Jason Olshefsky

Hey Daniel - the rules are a little different in all of those states - I think Cali is the most strict so you might want to sart there. I would check out each states vehicle code starting with the strictest and make a list of everything plus each new thing you find. Most likely you will need to keep the factory/structural stuff as is and add onto it without impeeding visibility and clearance. There are other Art Car tribes and e-mail lists that are more likely to have "Daily Drivers" and folks that can help you with that info. I think it IS possible to have a fully qualified "Mutant" that is street legal but it will take a lot of research and dilligence. Once you have it together (or durring the process) it would be good to check in with the Highway Patrol to make sure you've got everything - but as I said - each state is a little different.