How to register an engine without documents

Engine replacement - do you need to register it with the traffic police?

Replacing the engine at the traffic police

On July 10, 2017, changes were made to Order No. 1001, according to which the engine became a registered unit among many motorists. And after October 7, 2018, this document completely lost force, and was replaced by updated Order No. 399, which once again changed the procedure for changing the engine. And, if earlier the replacement of an engine required registration with the traffic police with documents about the released unit, then today, in 2019, after replacing - for example, a contract unit - such changes in the design generally need to be officially registered. But everything is not as difficult as you thought! If the model and technical characteristics of the motor are the same, then the matter is small.

What are the changes?

We are talking about a list of conditions on the basis of which a car cannot be registered with the traffic police. If previously the main requirements were the coincidence of the VIN numbers on the body and units, where such a number was stamped during registration of the car, and those indicated in the documents, today they are checked with the numbers of the engine, body, frame and cabin included in the documents.

3. Vehicles are not subject to registration with the State Traffic Inspectorate and registration actions are not carried out with vehicles on the following grounds:
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signs of concealment, falsification, alteration , destruction of vehicle identification numbers, numbers of components and assemblies (body, frame, cabin, engine) identifying the vehicle were discovered , or forgery of submitted documents, discrepancies between vehicles and numbered units with the information specified in the submitted documents , or registration data, as well as if there is information about the location of vehicles, numbered units on the wanted list or submitted documents among the lost (stolen), with the exception of vehicles with changed markings of vehicles and numbered units as a result of natural wear, corrosion, repair or returned owners or possessors after theft, subject to their identification;

Thus, the engine for 2019 is not a numbered unit, but when registering a car, the engine number must be checked against those indicated in the documents.

Do you need documents for a changing motor?

Everything is very simple! Any engine, including a contract one, imported from abroad, in addition to its identification number, has a model that is indicated on the engine. As of 2019, engines are not released during disposal - that is, you cannot obtain a certificate for a released engine, even if it is completely intact, when disposing of a car. It is also logical that when replacing an engine with the same one, no documents are needed.

At the same time, documents for the engine are not required if the following conditions are met:

• the new engine matches the model and all characteristics (you install the same engine that is installed on your new car of your modification);
• the engine number is readable (not erased, not rusted);
• the engine is not wanted by the traffic police.

This state of affairs became possible starting on October 7, 2018, when the new Order No. 399 came into force, where legislators explicitly stated:

In the case of replacing a vehicle engine with a similar one in type and model , entering information into data banks about vehicle owners about its number is carried out by the registration division of the State Traffic Inspectorate during registration actions based on the results of the inspection without submitting documents certifying ownership of it.

That is, there is no need to formally register an engine replacement with the traffic police. And, since the PTS contains the number of the old engine, it is required to be replaced during any registration action in the future: re-registration of the car when it is sold and others.

Moreover, the new legal act clearly prohibits requiring documents for a new unit.

The procedure for registering an engine replacement at the traffic police

Thus, the instructions for registering with the traffic police for replacing a contract or any other engine look very simple and consist of only 2 points:

1. You change the engine itself at a service center.

2. After installing a new engine, you do not need to go anywhere and make changes to the documents in the MREO of the State Traffic Safety Inspectorate, as well as make changes to the PTS. Such changes will be made to the vehicle passport, as well as in the traffic police database itself, during any subsequent registry, when the engine replacement mark is put in the passport. The cost of making changes to the PTS for 2019 is only 350 rubles (245 rubles through State Services), which will be required to pay the state duty. It will need to be paid before going to the traffic police.

But the vehicle registration certificate will not have to be changed, because the engine number has recently not been entered into this registration document.

But if we are talking about a contract motor imported from abroad, then the traffic police may require a customs declaration confirming the legality of importing such a motor into the territory of the Russian Federation. Such a requirement is illegal, but is often practiced in traffic police registration offices.

If one is required of you, then your goal is to receive a written refusal (after writing a written statement, of course), and then go to court to solve this problem.

But there is practically no judicial practice on such decisions. That is why the MREO of the State Traffic Safety Inspectorate today can put forward a variety of demands on the issue of engine replacement - from illegal to absurd, and not only regarding contract engines.

We also suggest that you read our special article on replacing the engine with a more powerful one or with other technical characteristics. In such cases, you will need to go through the entire formal process of officially making changes to the design of the car.