I need your help please!!!

Advertise with us
Shop deals on ebay
shop deals on amazon
Ford SportTrac Forum

Help Support Ford SportTrac Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
W

Wes Davis

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jul 24, 2005
Messages
1,579
Reaction score
0
Location
Deerfield Beach, FL
I am purchasing a condo. The condo rules say no pick up trucks. The condo rules were written to eliminate junk or work type pick ups from the parking lots 20 years ago. They have examined my Sport Trac and realize it is far from a work pick up truck or junk truck. They are considering changing the documents to reflect that newer pick ups are just like or better than some luxury cars. They will let me in immediately if I can provide some sort of official document that lists my vehicle as an SUV or passenger vehicle and makes no mention of 'pick up truck'. I am posting below my correspondence with the board. Please guys provide me with some official looking websites or other documentation that will help my case.





Hi Wes,

Here's the response I got. So.....if you can provide something that shows this is not classified or registered as a pickup truck looks like we can move ahead.

Tami



Hi Rudy,

Part of the problem with our docs is they a very outdated. What is the definition of a pickup truck ? Like case Dave stated really needs to be looked at. 30 years ago a pickup truck had a far different definition than it does today.Maybe the attorney should give an opinion. There might even be one in the legal book in the office.

I don't want to make an issue about this but I knew before long it was going to come up. It's been hanging out there. I am actually surprised no one has challenged our rule yet. Many complexes are now relaxing their rules about pickup trucks. They are defining their rule to keep out the "construction trucks" .Which was really the purpose of the rule anyway. That would of course change the appearance of the neighborhood.

Sorry for the annoyance of this but maybe it's a chance to define things in a peaceful,unpressured way verses someone challenging and forcing us to. Thanks for your trouble



 
Have them go to the FORD Website, under the drop boxes it doesn't list the Sport Trac under the TRUCK drop box, the Sport Trac is listed under the SUV drop box and second the window sticker, my window sticker lists the ST as Sport Utility Vehicle / Explorer.



 
I checked Florida DMV and didn't find any good information, but that is where you want to go. It seems from what I read that you can probably (re) register the vehicle as an automobile (other states call them "passenger vehicles"), instead of as a light truck. There may be special considerations for re-registering in this way, and the DMV may not allow it, but I suspect you have to ask.



As Chris P said, what does the registration sticker say? Does it say "Truck" on it?



Many states "trucks" are registered as "Commercial" vehicles, and autos as simple "Passenger" vehicles. These are simply registration classification and have no real baring on what you do with the truck (personal or commercial).



Check the website (see link below), look into re-registering there, and if you can't find anything useful call or stop by your local DMV branch...



TJR
 
My registration says '2005 Ford'. Not very descriptive. LOL How can I find out what the actual government classification is. I am currently Googling but nothing yet.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
I second OFF TRAC's suggestion--ask them if a printout from the Ford website, where it is listed as an SUV, would be acceptable.



Or--



Ask them if a letter from a local Ford dealership, stating that FoMoCo classifies the Sport Trac as an SUV, would suffice. If so, go to your dealership (or any dealership), and ask them for such a letter. If they decline because they don't sense an impending sale, remind them of how customer loyalty drives future sales.



--Bill
 
Wow. If any place banned pickup trucks here in Texas they would not have a single customer. :D
 
Here's something that might help--It's the National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration's vehicle roll-over ratings for 2005. It shows the Sport Trac at the very bottom of the ratings for SUVs--not pick-ups.



I would certainly think that if a branch of the federal government calls it an SUV (even if they call it an easy-to-roll SUV), that should be good enough for your condo association...



--Bill
 
What does your insurance list your trac as? Some states specify that Sport Tracs are SUV's and others say its a truck. This difference also pertains to how much insurance you pay. If you are lucky the documentation they are looking for may be in your insurance documentation.
 
Part of the problem with our docs is they a very outdated. What is the definition of a pickup truck ? Like case Dave stated really needs to be looked at. 30 years ago a pickup truck had a far different definition than it does today.
Click to expand...



Persuade the condo. folks to get busy and make the changes they know they have needed to for years. It takes one meeting, and that can be impromptu.



A second thought - since you are going to be living there, are you sure you want to get involved wuth an association that is reactive and not proactive? I've been there, and it's not fun.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
In California you can choose to register a vehicle with a bed as either a truck/commercial vehicle in which case you pay a higher vehicle license fee or as a passenger vehicle and you pay a lower fee. The type of plates on your vehicle tell the FUZZ which type you've paid for. Number, Letter, 5 Numbers in California is a Commercial plate. Your extra fees allow you to carry cargo in the bed of the truck. If you have Number, 3 letters, 3 numbers, the MAN knows you've registered as a passenger vehcile and can ticket you if you have anything in the bed!!!! No bull.



Ask the motor vehicles DEPT if you can register as only a passenger vehicle, then don;t get caught by the cops or you condo board with suff in the back.



In California (the OC) there are areas where you Can Not park your vehicle anywhere but inside your garage, you have to keep the garage door closed at all times, and you can not have anything but a vehicle and your water heater in the garage. No storage, nada. Your sprinkers have to come on between 6 and 630 am or you get a fine.



 
Jeep had this sort of issue for many years. Then... the license borough decided that if it has a rear seat it is a station wagon, not a jeep or a truck.



The state of Ohio still looks at this type of reasoning.
 
... Just thought of something... isn't this a discriminatory practice? You could always go the angry route.



I mean it's one thing if they say no commercial vehicles, but no pickups? I'm not sure I would even care to live there, considering they may have other "stupid" policies.
 
You have to remember that it's an EXPLORER which is an SUV not a pick up truck. Here in NY it is registered as a "suburban" which is the classification for all SUV's There is a seperate class for actual "pick up trucks". I had a cop write me a ticket every night for parking too close to a fire hydrant and he marked the ticket "pick up ttruck" I didn't have to pay any of them because they were wrong.
 
I had the same problem with my F-350 when we purchased our house. No pick-ups or work trucks. But they only enforce the rule if the truck has lettering for the business or has a bunch of stuff sticking out of the bed. If the people know the rule is outdated why not ask nicely to ammend the by law. It can't be that hard if my worthless home owners assoc. can do it on other issues. Well Good Luck,,,, you may need it! By the way my 350 was loaded and was new, less than 2k miles on it when we moved.
 
I have a condo in Miami Beach with the same rule, but it does not apply if there is a cover or tonneau on the truck bed. :wacko:
 
So far I am getting no where. My insurance classifies it as a '4 door wagon'. State of Florida classifies it as a 'utility' vehicle. Ford says its an 'SUV' but have no official records they can send me, only sales brochures. Of course the same sales brochures go on to say its a nice 'pickup' truck. Window sticker says 'Explorer'. Insurance card says 'Sport Trac'. Florida registration says '2005 Ford'. All this condo association wants is an official document that says this vehicle is classified or registered as an 'SUV' by some form of government or legitimate organization. They are reviewing my insurance info '4 door wagon' at this time. Hopefully that will be good enough. Lasik1 they did mention the tonneau may be a compromise but I haven't heard any more about it.
 

Latest posts

Top