341.266 Special interest vehicles; registration, plates, use.

(1) In this section:

(a) “Collector" means the owner of one or more special interest vehicles who collects, purchases, acquires, trades or disposes of special interest vehicles or parts thereof for the collector's own use in order to restore, preserve and maintain a special interest vehicle for historic interest.

(am) Notwithstanding s. 341.01 (2) (af), “former military vehicle" means any of the following vehicles if the vehicle is at least 25 years old:

1. A high-mobility, all-terrain, 4-wheel or 6-wheel drive vehicle originally manufactured for military use and commonly known by the trade name of “Pinzgauer."

2. A vehicle commonly known by the name of “Kaiser Jeep M715."

3. A high-mobility multipurpose wheeled vehicle originally manufactured for use by the U.S. military forces and commonly known by the name of “Humvee" that, notwithstanding par. (am) (intro.), is at least 22 years old.

4. A 6-wheel drive utility vehicle originally manufactured for use by the U.S. military forces during World War II, known by the acronym of “DUKW" and commonly referred to by the name of “Duck."

(b) “Parts car" means a motor vehicle generally in nonoperable condition which is owned by the collector to furnish parts which will enable the collector to restore, preserve and maintain a special interest vehicle or antique vehicle.

(c) “Special interest vehicle" means any of the following:

1. A former military vehicle.

2. A motor vehicle of any age, of which the body has not been altered from the original and, because of its historic interest, is being preserved by a collector.

(2)

(a) Any person who is the owner of a special interest vehicle that is a former military vehicle, or that is not a former military vehicle and is 20 or more years old at the time of making application for registration or transfer of title of the vehicle, and who, unless the owner is an historical society that is exempt from federal income taxes, owns, has registered in this state, and uses for regular transportation at least one vehicle that has regular registration plates may upon application register the vehicle as a special interest vehicle upon payment of a fee under par. (b).

(b) The fee to register a vehicle under par. (a) is twice the regular annual fee under s. 341.25 for the type of vehicle, except that the fee for a vehicle that has a gross weight of more than 8,000 pounds may be no more than twice the annual fee for a similar vehicle that has a gross weight of not more than 8,000 pounds.

(c) The department shall furnish the owner of the vehicle with registration plates of a distinctive design in lieu of the usual registration plates, and those plates shall show that the vehicle is a special interest vehicle owned by a Wisconsin collector. Upon application, the owner may reregister the vehicle without the payment of any additional fee.

(d) Each collector applying for special interest vehicle registration plates will be issued a collector's identification number which will appear on each plate. Second and all subsequent registrations under this section by the same collector will bear the same collector's identification number followed by a suffix letter for vehicle identification.

(dm)

1. Notwithstanding s. 341.15 (1), and subject to subd. 2., a person who registers under par. (a) a special interest vehicle manufactured before 1979 may furnish and display on the vehicle one or 2 historical plates from or representing the model year of the vehicle if all of the following apply:

a. The special interest vehicle is being operated to or from a car show or parade.

b. The registration, and any plate issued by the department for the vehicle under par. (c) that is not displayed on the vehicle, is simultaneously carried in or, with respect to a motorcycle, with the vehicle and is available for inspection.

2. If a person displays only one historical plate on a special interest vehicle under subd. 1., the historical plate shall be attached to the rear of the vehicle. Notwithstanding s. 341.15 (1), a special interest vehicle displaying a historical plate is not required to display 2 registration plates.

(e) The vehicle may be used as are other vehicles of the same type except that:

1. Motor vehicles may not transport passengers or property for hire.

2. Motor trucks and truck tractors, except those that are former military vehicles, may not carry material weighing more than 500 pounds, not including the weight of a camper, lid, or cap that is mounted on the motor truck or truck tractor, the weight of a trailer or load drawn by the motor truck or truck tractor, or the weight of any persons or pets riding within the driver's compartment.

3. Except as provided in s. 341.09 (7), no special interest vehicle may be operated upon any highway of this state during the month of January unless the owner of the vehicle reregisters the vehicle under s. 341.25 and replaces the distinctive registration plates issued under par. (c) with regular registration plates or transfers regular registration plates to the vehicle.

(f) Unless inconsistent with this section, the provisions applicable to other vehicles shall apply to special interest vehicles.

(3) In addition to the fee in sub. (2) (b), there shall be an original (first time only) processing fee of $50 to defray the cost of issuing the original collector's special interest vehicle registration plates and to ensure that each collector will be issued only one collector's identification number.

(4) A collector may store unlicensed, operable or inoperable, vehicles and parts cars on the collector's property provided the vehicles and parts cars and the outdoor storage area are maintained in such a manner that they do not constitute a health hazard and are screened from ordinary public view by means of a fence, rapidly growing trees, shrubbery or other appropriate means.

(5) Any person who violates sub. (2) (e) 3. may be required to forfeit not more than $200.

History: 1971 c. 299; 1985 a. 332 s. 251 (4); 1987 a. 349; 1989 a. 137; 1991 a. 81, 316; 1997 a. 126; 2003 a. 321; 2009 a. 225; 2013 a. 103, 221; 2015 a. 324.