Post-sale update: The winning bidder was lbjake63. Reach out to claim your free Montana LLC package!
With over 160,000 views before the auction even closes – and already bid higher than all but one example ever sold on competitor site Bring a Trailer – Doug DeMuro’s 1994 Audi RS2 Avant is poised to break records when it sells today on Cars and Bids.
It’s a rare opportunity to buy one of Doug's cars. It’s the car he took his son home from the hospital in, and a very special car all around even without the provenance of one of the most prolific automotive journalists and YouTubers of the modern era.
There’s just one problem: it can’t be registered in California as it sits.
Doug speaks to the problem at around 17 minutes into his video promoting the sale of the car on his auction site, Cars and Bids:
The only other potential flaw is that you can't register this car in California. You'll notice I have a Massachusetts license plate on it. I live some of the year in Massachusetts and I've registered this car there because California won't allow it unless you get it CARB certified – which is possible for the RS2, and the shop that does it quoted me about $10,000 to get it done and get it fully California legal. But since I could just register it in Massachusetts, I never really bothered. It’s possible but not ideal, and if you live in California and you want this car, you probably should register it somewhere else.
So you want to get your hands on this RS2 and you’ve got a hundred grand burning a hole in your pocket, but you live in California (or another state that follows CARB or CARB-like regulations). Unless you happen to have a vacation property in another state, it sure seems like you’re stuck at that point.
That’s where we come in.
Dirt Legal specializes in getting vehicles street legal and on the road. Sounds easy at first, but we’re talking about street legal UTVs and side-by-sides, military vehicles like Hummers and LMTVs, converted RVs and high-capacity vans, and imported cars that, while they can get into the U.S. under the 25-year import rule, they still won’t pass muster in California (and some other states) without an arm and a leg’s worth of time, effort, and money.
One move to make here would be to form a Montana LLC which would allow the RS2 to remain registered in Montana while driving anywhere you want. No inspections, no emissions tests, no CARB, and as it happens, no sales tax. Sounds like a dream, and it’s something we do every day for enthusiasts from all walks of the car world.
That’s why we’re offering to register Doug DeMuro’s Audi RS2 in Montana for free. We feel like you’ve earned a break once you’ve spent over a hundred grand on one of the most collectible Audis on the planet.
Using our Montana LLC Vehicle Registration Service, we will create a fresh LLC in Montana just for you, with you as the owner (or we can use your existing LLC). Then we’ll register the RS2 to the LLC and mail you your new Montana license plate, registration, and title as soon as they come in. We can even get you a custom Montana plate and a temp tag to hold you over right from the start. And for the lucky owner of the most famous RS2 in the world, we’ll waive the regular cost of our service, and you won’t pay any sales tax to register the RS2.
That last part applies to everyone – there’s no sales tax in Montana, so registering a vehicle there can be substantially cheaper than just about anywhere else. But moreso than that, your nearly-mint RS2 won’t have to spend time under the knife (or wrench) getting extensively converted to earn CARB certification.
So if you’re the winner of Doug DeMuro’s beloved RS2, reach out to us with proof and we’ll handle the rest.
About the Author
As an automotive journalist, motorcycle racer, SCCA member, and collector of anything with wheels, Justin Dake makes a living out of being a professional car nerd. As a former employee of the State of Missouri, he knows how complex and convoluted state processes can be, and that experience underlies his role as the Editor of Dirt Legal.