How to Sell a Junk Car in Arkansas? + DFA Title Transfer

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Written by Tomas Gutauskas
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Tomas Gutauskas

Managing Editor

Expertise
  • Private Car Sales
  • Market Valuations
  • Online Car Buyers
  • DMV Paperwork & Titles
I want to take the guesswork out of selling your car. I analyze market data, decode DMV title laws, and test out online car buyers to give you a straight answer on whether it's worth holding out for a higher price or if you're better off taking the most convenient offer and moving on.
Published: Aug 13, 2026
Last Updated: Sep 18, 2026
✓ Fact Checked: Sep 17, 2026
How is this page verified?
Information on this article is compiled from publicly available data, customer feedback and our internal analysis. All our articles are being constantly updated and fact-checked annually to ensure accuracy, timeliness, and relevance.
Sell a junk car in Arkansas

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The bottom line: A junk car in Arkansas is one where the repair bill would be higher than any offer for the car. An old car that will not start, or one damaged in a crash or a flood, fits that description. One like that is offered $485, against $565 across the country, and 40% of the junk cars quoted here are offered under $400.

To sell a junk car in Arkansas, start with quotes. Enter the car details once in our comparison tool and a few online buyers quote it in minutes.

Accept the best quote, and that buyer sends a tow truck. Before it comes, have the title in your name and a photo ID ready. A lost title takes time to replace: at least 3 weeks by mail.

When the truck arrives, you sign the title over to the driver and are paid before the car is loaded. Notarization is not required. Plates stay with the seller.

Once the car has gone: File online through the Arkansas MyDMV portal, or submit the Notice of Transfer of Ownership at a DFA revenue office. Cancel the insurance last, once the paperwork is done.

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How Do You Sell a Junk Car in Arkansas?

Six steps in all, from the first quote to the day after the truck leaves.

Step 1: Get quotes from several buyers

A quote form takes the year, make and model, the mileage, your ZIP code, and whether the car starts and drives. It also asks what is wrong with the car.

Some forms want the VIN. You will find it on the plate at the base of the windshield, driver’s side, and printed on the title and the registration card.

The offer is built from your answers, so state every missing part and every fault. A car described as complete and then found stripped gets a lower figure at pickup.

Get three quotes or more, and start with these buyers.

Step 2: Check your paperwork

Have the paper title and a photo ID in the same name ready for the driver. A title in someone else’s name, or one with a lender still listed, has to be fixed before the pickup is booked.

Our guide to selling a car in Arkansas goes through the title one box at a time. Our bill of sale generator fills in a bill of sale for you if you would rather not print the state’s.

Every form you might need

With the title in hand, a junk sale in Arkansas uses two of these. The rest apply when a document is missing or the car was never put in your name.

Notice of transfer

Use: Notice of Transfer of Ownership of a Motor Vehicle

Takes your name off the car after the sale. When and how.

Replacement title

Use: Form 10-381

When the title cannot be found or is torn. Fee and wait.

Lien release

Comes from the lender, not from you.

What the lender has to provide.

Step 3: Accept an offer and book the pickup

You accept on the buyer’s site or on the phone. The buyer passes the job to a tow company near you, and that company calls to agree on a pickup window of a few hours.

Say at that call if the car sits on soft ground, up a narrow driveway, or anywhere a flatbed cannot back up to. The person on the title signs and takes the money, so plan for that person to be at the car.

Step 4: Get the car ready for the tow truck

Move whatever is parked in front of the car and leave the driver a straight line to it.

Go through the glove box, the console, the door pockets, the trunk and the space under the seats. A toll tag or a garage remote left in the car is gone once the truck leaves.

Put every key you still have with the title. Plates stay with the seller. Take them off before the truck arrives.

Step 5: Sign the title and take payment

The driver looks the car over against what you put on the form. Then you fill in the seller’s part of the title, sign it, and hand it to the driver.

You are paid before the car is winched on. Payment is usually cash or check. It depends on the tow company.

Keep the driver’s paperwork and look in your email afterwards, since a buyer may send the receipt that way. The notice you file asks who bought the car: give the company named in your offer confirmation and its address, not the tow driver.

Where the buyer records the transfer: any Arkansas state revenue office, or online through the MyDMV portal.

Step 6: Report the sale and deal with the plates

Cancel the insurance last, after the car has gone and the notice is filed. If you cancel earlier and the pickup is postponed, the car sits in your driveway uninsured.

Arkansas Junk Car Checklist

Progress0 of 15 complete

Before the Sale

At Pickup

After the Sale

What Is Your Junk Car Worth in Arkansas?

The offer on a typical Arkansas junk car is $485 (cars 10 years and older, 62 offers, ranked 34 of 44 states). Across the country, half of all offers on old cars fall between $380 and $1,080.

Middle junk car offer in Arkansas
$485
cars 10 years and older, 62 offers, ranked 34 of 44 states
Sell Car Advisor quote dataOffers through Sep 7, 2026
Middle junk car offer
$565
cars 10 years and older, 12,827 offers
Sell Car Advisor quote dataOffers through Sep 7, 2026
Share of junk car offers of $1,000 or more in Arkansas
27%
cars 10 years and older, 62 Arkansas offers
Sell Car Advisor quote dataOffers through Sep 7, 2026

Cars 15 years and older in Arkansas are offered $315, and 9% of Arkansas requests get no offer at all, from our own quote data.

Whether the engine starts is the next thing. When the car does not start, the offer moves by about -47% compared with a similar car that drives, age and mileage matched. Tell the buyer whether it rolls as well, because a car with locked brakes takes longer to load.

Nothing moves the offer more than the catalytic converter. The offer moves by about -68% for a car whose converter is gone, set against a matching car that still has it, age and mileage matched. If it is missing, say so on the form.

A car that will not start needs a few extra details on the form, and our guide to selling a non-running car lists them.

Companies That Buy Junk Cars in Arkansas

Under each card is a real offer screen from that buyer, so you know what its quote page looks like before you start.

Peddle

Anywhere in Arkansas

Peddle buys junk, salvage, and non-running cars

Free Pickup Instant Offer No Fees
  • Buys junk cars anywhere in Arkansas
  • Instant offer on screen once you describe the car
  • Takes damaged cars and cars past repair
4.8
Get an Offer in Under 2 Minutes Get Peddle Offer
Prefer to call? (833) 391-2352
Read Review

Peddle takes cars with a blown engine, a failed transmission or crash damage.

Peddle instant offer screen showing a quote for a damaged 2008 Subaru Outback

Wheelzy

16 Arkansas cities

Wheelzy is best for older, junk or damaged cars

Title Help Missing Parts OK Cash or Check
  • Branches in 16 Arkansas cities, Benton to Texarkana
  • Free pickup from any Arkansas address
  • No dealer, title-transfer or removal fees in Arkansas
  • Cashier's check at pickup, cashable the same day
4.7
Talk to a Real Person Fast Get Wheelzy Offer
Prefer to call? (833) 985-1374
Read Review

Get the quote from Wheelzy first if your title is missing, because it helps with replacement titles. It also takes cars that have not moved in years.

Wheelzy quote screen for a salvage title 2003 Honda Accord with 199,827 miles

CashForCars

Two Arkansas yards

CashForCars runs on Copart's nationwide auction yards

Copart Owned Physical Yards Drop-Off Option
  • Yards in Fayetteville and Little Rock
  • Offer in 60 seconds, from the form or one phone call
  • Free towing when it comes for the car
  • Takes cars, trucks, SUVs, motorcycles, RVs and boats
4.1
Backed by Copart Auctions Get CashForCars Offer
Prefer to call? (877) 748-6945
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CashForCars belongs to Copart, and the cars it buys go to Copart’s auction yards.

CashForCars instant quote for a 2007 Chevrolet Trailblazer that does not drive

Collect all three numbers even if the first one looks fine. When two or more buyers quote the same car on the same day through our own quote form, the highest and lowest offers are typically $328 apart. The top offer is at least double the bottom one in 44% of those pairs.

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Can You Sell a Junk Car Without a Title in Arkansas?

Arkansas allows a sale without the title in one case: the vehicle must be at least 25 model years old with no title available and sold for scrap or dismantling; otherwise apply for a replacement title, or a bonded title if the title was never in your name.

That leaves three ways forward.

Option 1: Use the state’s scrap route. It only works for a car that meets the conditions, and not every buyer takes a car this way. Ask before you accept an offer.

Option 2: Get the title first. Apply for a replacement title and sell with it. Every buyer can then quote the car.

Option 3: Sell the car as parts. No title changes hands, because the car itself is not transferred. Count on a slower sale.

Learn more: How to Sell a Car Without a Title

Getting a Replacement Title in Arkansas

What a replacement title takes in Arkansas:

Send the application in and get your quotes the same week, since one does not hold up the other.

If a lender still holds the title

A car with a lien on the title cannot be sold to a junk buyer until the lender clears it. How that is done in Arkansas: the lienholder completes Form 10-315 (Official Release of Lien) or provides an official release letter on company letterhead.

Get the payoff amount before you collect quotes. If the loan is larger than the offer, the difference comes out of your pocket.

Learn more: How to Sell a Financed Car

If your title is electronic

Electronic titles: Arkansas does not offer electronic titles to private owners.

Replacement available online: no.

If the car is titled in another state

A car kept in Arkansas on another state’s title can be junked here without retitling it. It must be in your name, and the signing instructions come from the state that issued it.

If that title is lost, the state that printed it is the one that replaces it, on its own form and at its own fee. Arkansas has no record of the car and cannot issue one.

Selling a Junk Car That Isn’t in Your Name

The buyer pays whoever is named on the title, so the car has to be moved into your name before you ask for quotes.

The owner has died. The Arkansas paperwork for an inherited car: Form 10-306 (Affidavit of Inheritance of a Motor Vehicle), or Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration if probated.

Someone gave you the car. The rule for a gift in Arkansas: Both the donor and the recipient sign the affidavit. The donor must have paid sales or use tax when they bought the vehicle and have registered it in their own name.

A stranger’s car was abandoned on your property. You cannot sign over a car you never owned, so it goes through Arkansas’s abandoned vehicle process first, and that takes time.

Local Dismantlers vs Online Buyers in Arkansas

Selling to a local yard

A yard in Arkansas prices the car by its weight in scrap steel, and that price changes with the metal market. You call each yard yourself and describe the car each time.

Some yards expect you to bring the car in, and some take the tow out of the offer. Get that settled on the first call, not when the truck is in the driveway.

Selling to an online buyer

An online buyer gives its number before anyone has seen the car, and the tow is included in it. It also prices the parts it can sell on, not only the scrap weight.

Three online quotes take minutes on a phone. A yard quote takes a call each, and the yard can revise it once the car is on the scale.

Our guide to how online buyers work out an offer goes through what moves the number.

When selling it yourself makes sense

A car with a working engine can bring more from a mechanic or a hobbyist than from any scrap buyer. That sale takes weeks rather than days, and the buyer has to bring a trailer.

Meet in a public place, and take no payment you cannot check on the spot.

Storing a Junk Car in Arkansas

A car waiting on a replacement title has to sit somewhere for a few weeks. Cities and counties set their own rules on a car that does not run, and a homeowners association can add its own.

Keep the car on your own property and out of the street. A cover or a spot behind the home keeps the neighbors from reporting it, and keeps the rain out of a car with a broken window.

Our guide on how to store a junk car covers the ground rules.

Arkansas Motor Vehicle Resources

Every Arkansas rule on this page can be checked against the state’s own pages.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does it take to sell a junk car in Arkansas?

With the title in hand, a few days from the first quote to the truck, and the tow company names the day once you accept. Without it, the replacement wait comes first.

Does anything have to be notarized to junk a car in Arkansas?

Does a junk car need an emissions test in Arkansas?

Emissions test to sell: no testing required.

Do the plates release me from liability in Arkansas?

Can I junk a car with expired registration in Arkansas?

Yes. The registration only matters for driving, and a junk car leaves on a flatbed. The buyer checks the title, and that is what shows the car is yours.

What happens to a junk car after it is sold in Arkansas?

The truck takes it to a salvage yard or an auction lot. Parts that can be sold again come off, and the shell is crushed and sold as scrap steel.

What if the junk car offer changes when the driver arrives in Arkansas?

Nothing obliges you to accept the lower number. Until you sign the title the car is still yours, so you can send the truck away and use one of your other quotes.

What if I lost the keys to my junk car in Arkansas?

Lost keys do not stop the pickup, because the driver winches the car on. Say so on the quote form.

Should I repair the car or junk it in Arkansas?

Compare three numbers: the repair estimate, the best junk offer, and what the car would be offered once repaired. If the repair costs more than it adds, junk the car.

A car with a sound engine or wheels somebody wants may bring more when sold for parts.

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Article Update History

Updated

Added Arkansas junk car statistics from our own quote data: the typical offer on cars 10 years and older, the share of offers under $400 and of $1,000 or more, the share of requests that get no offer, and the offer on cars 15 years and older.

Published

Originally posted and shared with our readers.

Replacement Title Processing Time

"at least 3 weeks by mail" Accessed Sep. 10, 2026

How to File Release of Liability

"File online through the Arkansas MyDMV portal, or submit the Notice of Transfer of Ownership at a DFA revenue office." Accessed Sep. 10, 2026

Title Notarization Required?

"not required" Accessed Sep. 10, 2026

Bill of Sale Required?

"required" Accessed Sep. 10, 2026

Bill of Sale Form Name

"Form 10-313" Accessed Sep. 10, 2026

Odometer Disclosure Rule

"required for model year 2011 and newer vehicles, with model year 2010 and older, trailers, and vehicles over 16,000 lbs GVWR exempt" Accessed Sep. 10, 2026

Form to Sell Without Title

"A bill of sale verified and signed by a law enforcement officer for 25+ year scrap vehicles, or Form 10-345 Statement of Facts for a bonded title" Accessed Sep. 10, 2026

Inherited Vehicle Title Transfer Form

"Form 10-306 (Affidavit of Inheritance of a Motor Vehicle), or Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration if probated" Accessed Sep. 10, 2026

How to Complete a Gift Transfer

"Both the donor and the recipient sign the affidavit. The donor must have paid sales or use tax when they bought the vehicle and have registered it in their own name" Accessed Sep. 10, 2026

Junk Car Value Statistics, Sell Car Advisor

"On this page: 7 figures from 18,326 instant cash offers, and 4 figures from same-day quotes by several buyers" Accessed Sep. 17, 2026

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