As a fellow Wisconsonite, I discovered an alternative registration option-- "Hobbyist". At first it sounded like this new classification was tailor-made for my car, and would be a good alternative to "Collector". My car is a Pantera "sleeper", in that the exterior is little changed but sporting a Ford Racing BigBlock engine and a stock-appearing interior, recreated in leather. Hobbyist is for vehicles that are 20 years or older and have been modified from the manufacturer's specifications. Then I read the fine print:
"If the vehicle qualifies as a reconstructed...vehicle, you will receive a notice from WisDOT to have the vehicle inspected. Take the notice with the vehicle for inspection by a Wisconsin State Patrol officer."
I have a strong sense that bringing my car in to the State Patrol will be like diving down the rabbit hole. A painfull past experience registering a "Hardly-Davidson" I built tells me that these rules tend to be arbitrary and capricious. Since there are no rules as to what passes and what does not, it is open to the interpretation of the officer that happens to be evaluating your car.
And to top it all off, since the last Collector car I registered less than a year ago, they have now added the requirement that you send in pictures of the car's exterior, interior and engine bay to document that your car has not been modified in any way
As if those bureaucrats in Madison don't have enough to concern themselves with! Collector and Hobbyist cars are such a small percentage of the vehicles on the road, and an even smaller percentage of cars causing accidents and other problems for the public. Do these politicians feel they have to control everything? Now I'm ranting.Matt