I am buying a vehicle today and I want to know are these fees and taxes mandatory? If not, which are not so I can inform them of this.
The California Department of Motor Vehicles has a Vehicle Registration Fee Calculator for new vehicles, and you could ask the dealer to explain why their estimates differ from DMV’s. Some of these differences may be legitimate; for example, the amount of a rebate (as opposed to a discount) is considered part of the purchase price for sales tax purposes. I believe the “Documentation Fee” and “Electronic Filing Fee” are the only added items on your list that aren’t paid to the government. The Documentation Fee is set and kept by the dealer, and in principle, you could ask them to remove it; the amount is limited by state law (Cal. Veh. Code § 4456.5). The Electronic Filing Fee goes to the company that processes the DMV registration for the dealer; I doubt the dealer would agree to absorb it.
Why are there estimates? Seems like they should be able to figure that to the penny. If they figure high, do you get a refund?
