<p>They definitely don’t have to be in working condition to donate. @swimcatsmom, I do think you will do better donating than if you took them to a junk yard.</p>
<p>We donated our old cars to Recycled Rides, a program a local technical school has where they fix up old cars and give them to someone who will benefit. It’s my understanding if it’s donated for educational purposes the deductible donation amount is higher. </p>
<p>We’ve donated a couple old cars. No problem.</p>
<p>We donated a junker to the local ARC. we got a receipt saying not worth more than 500, so that’s what we deducted.</p>
<p>I have heard that Kars for Kids is a little misleading in what they do, so I wouldn’t donate to them even without the horrific jingle.</p>
<p>Two cars, one years ago to Salvation Army. V easy. Another 2 yrs ago to KJAZZ-it went through Cars 4 causes. V simple it sold 4 more than expected. We did have to resubmit paperwork but that was a dmv error not the charity’s. Easier safer and good way to say bye to a beloved car that just would cost too much to keep up as extra car. </p>
<p>My husband thinks that we would have to tag them to be able to donate them (these are vehicles we haven’t tagged in a few years). Anyone know if that is true. If so, may be better off junking them.</p>
<p>“Except for the fact that the jingle for Kars for Kids is the most annoying piece of music ever written, we’ve had no problems”</p>
<p>Ahhh! We will never donate to that organization because of that song, @VeryHappy! Two notes into that stupid song, and I’m changing the station. We did, however, donate to a charity for the blind. My son didn’t think it was such a great idea having the blind drive those cars, but whatever…</p>
<p>Salvation Army in our neighborhood was happy to tow the cars and give paperwork for donation. Call and check. Don’t think they care if reg is current or not. </p>
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<p>My H does the same, either turns off the volume or changes channel. I doubt they will get any cars from us.</p>
<p>They dont need to be running & they dont need current registration.
Just the title.</p>
<p>We donated 2 to public radio. It is a painless experience, I get a letter and an official tax form telling me how much the car sold at auction and I deduct it from my taxes. A very painless experience and very much worth it for those cars that just aren’t worth the effort to put on Craig’s list and dealing with buyers. </p>
<p>We donated an 18ft. ski boat to Goodwill. They take cars too.</p>
<p>Cars definitely don’t need to be tagged. You need to take off the license and they tow it away. Did not need to pass inspection either if that is needed in your state. </p>
<p>We donated a car to public radio. It was running, but needed repairs that would have cost far more than would have been worth it considering the age and high mileage of the car. The car sold at auction for far more than we could have sold it for. All we needed was the title. The people public radio contract through took care of everything else, including the tow.</p>
<p>Claiming it on taxes was easy - we use TurboTax and it told us everything we needed to do to make sure the deduction went through cleanly.</p>
<p>Thank you @deb922. I don’t know where my husband got the thing about the tags - I had looked online after he said it and couldn’t find anything. Good to have it confirmed. I will have to check out our local charities. Even if we get $1 deduction, the fact that they will come tow it (them) is going to be better than messing with the junk yards.</p>
<p>We donated thru Car Talk (which then went to the local public radio station). Easy. </p>
<p>Donated a car to a vocational school’s auto repair program a few years ago. Just make sure you get any documentation that you may need for tax purposes.</p>
<p>Also, years ago a car salesman warned me to make sure that your transaction records are accurate. He said he once donated a vehicle, only to get dunning letters from the State DMV months later. Someone had been driving the donated vehicle around and collecting parking tickets willy nilly. Whether it was someone from the charity or a subsequent buyer, he didn’t know.</p>
<p>We have donated cars twice now, both to a local charity in our area. All went smoothly. We got the tax benefits, and the charity was able to use the parts from our cars to repair the cars of needy families (they do this for free). I’d happily do it again.</p>
<p>We donated to Purple Heart, and also got a bigger deduction than we expected, even though they had to tow it away.</p>
<p>We have a charity here called Good News Mountaineer Garage, which accepts donations of old but repairable cars to rehab and lease to former TANF recipients to drive to work. Donors can receive Neighborhood Investment Program state tax credits for donating. </p>