Sell your car in Minneapolis: running, rusty or with a blown engine
Selling your car in Minneapolis, MN often starts with where it's parked. When the City declares a Snow Emergency, street parking follows plowing rules for three days, and a car that won't start can't move out of the way. Ask for an instant cash offer online, and we'll pick the car up free anywhere in the metro.
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Three Minneapolis errands before pickup
- Keep an eye out for a Snow Emergency. The City's hotline, 612-348-SNOW (7669), gives that day's parking rules in English, Spanish, Somali and Hmong, and texting MPLSAlerts to 77295 signs you up for alerts. If one is declared near pickup day, tell us which side of the street the car is on.
- Find the title, or replace it through Hennepin County. Minnesota DVS, the Minnesota DMV by another name, handles title work through deputy registrar offices. Inside the city, Hennepin County runs two full-service ones: the Midtown Exchange service center at 2929 Chicago Ave. S. and the North Minneapolis service center at 1001 Plymouth Ave. N., both open Monday through Friday, 8 to 4. Bring a photo ID, or apply online and the county contacts you within a week. Appointments open up to four weeks ahead and cover one service each.
- Move the E-ZPass tag. If you drive the I-394 or I-35W express lanes, a switchable Minnesota E-ZPass tag can go into the next car you drive. MnDOT asks you to keep the vehicles on your account up to date, and a plate should be listed before the tag is used in that car, so change the plate on the account when this one goes.
Where we pick up around Minneapolis
Free pickup covers the whole metro. A driveway in Bloomington or Brooklyn Park gets the same free pickup as a Lake Street address, and so do the suburbs in between, from St. Louis Park to Richfield.
Is the car on a Snow Emergency route? Look at the signs on the block. Routes have a red Snow Emergency Route sign and blue street-name signs; other streets have green or brown ones. The City's street lookup map shows the same thing, and 311 can tell you which side of a street is odd or even when there are no house numbers to go by.
Cash for your car in Minneapolis
Day 1 starts at 9 p.m., when both sides of every Snow Emergency route have to be clear. Days 2 and 3 clear the even side and then the odd side of the other streets, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. A car with a dead battery or a blown engine can't make those moves, and the City can tag it and tow it to the Impound Lot.
Off the street, the City doesn't allow inoperable or junk vehicles to be parked outdoors on a property either. Its list includes missing wheels or engines, broken windows and out-of-date registration. Cars that fit get a yellow sticker and can bring administrative citations. If the City has already stickered your car, you can still get cash for junk cars in Minneapolis, and the pickup from your driveway is free.
When the engine has blown or seized, selling a car with a blown engine weighs the repair against selling it as is. If it's crash damage instead, selling a car with body damage from a crash covers what you have to tell a buyer.
What a stuck car can cost here
- •A standard tow to the Impound Lot is $222, storage adds $18 a day, and any parking tickets are written when the car is released, per the lot's fee table (updated January 2026) (source)
- •When snow piles up, the City can add winter parking restrictions: no parking on the even side of streets that aren't Snow Emergency routes. They end by April 1 at the latest (source)
- •Cars left at the Impound Lot can be sold at its public auctions, held the first Thursday of each month. The former owner gets money back only if the car sold for more than the City's costs and a claim was filed on time (source)
Asked by Minneapolis sellers
My car is at the Impound Lot. What does it take to get it released?
The lot at 50 Van White Memorial Blvd. releases a car to the registered owner, a relative with the same last name, or someone carrying the owner's notarized statement, once the fees are paid. Bring proof of insurance, the registration or title, and a photo ID. If the tabs expired more than 90 days ago, it can't be driven off without proof of current tabs, though it can be towed out instead. Five or more unpaid parking tickets hold the car until they're paid.
How long can a dead car sit on a Minneapolis street?
Once it has been parked on a public street or alley for more than 72 hours, anyone can report it to the City as abandoned, and a car that's missing important parts can be reported too. A traffic control agent chalks the car and comes back 72 hours later. If it hasn't moved, the owner can be fined up to $100 and the car towed, with the towing and impound fees on the owner.
I want to sell my junk car in Minneapolis. Can it wait in the yard until pickup?
Not on the grass. City rules say vehicles have to be parked in a garage or on a hard-surfaced driveway, never in a yard or on an unpaved surface. No more than two vehicles per dwelling unit can be parked outdoors, and the City may tow the extras.
How do I sell my car in Minneapolis if the catalytic converter was stolen?
A missing converter doesn't stop the sale. If you haven't reported the theft, the City takes theft reports online when it happened inside city limits, no one was hurt and no weapon was involved. The online form isn't for a stolen car or stolen plates.
For signing the title and filing the Notice of Sale, see our Minnesota selling guide.