Junk car towing in Portland, ME
A dead car towed to the recycler or scrapyard you choose, with Maine's 2026 title rules made plain.
Junk car towing in Portland, from driveway to scrapyard
Junk car towing means moving a car that will never run again from where it sits to the recycler or scrapyard you have picked, and that is the job we do. Give us the car's address and the yard's address, and we quote the tow as one total on the call, before a tow truck is sent.
We are a towing company, not a buyer. We do not make offers on cars or quote scrap car prices, and what a yard pays for your car, if it pays anything, is between you and the yard. That keeps it simple: shop the car to whichever recycler you like, and once you have a deal and a drop-off address, the junk car removal is ours. If you have not picked a yard yet, call a few first and ask what paperwork they need.
Most junk cars sit somewhere awkward: a driveway where the car has not moved in years, a backyard, a garage, a side street after a breakdown that turned out to be its last. Tell us where it is and how a truck can reach it, and we send the truck that suits the spot.
Check the title rules below before you book. From the start of 2026, any vehicle from model year 2001 on must have a Maine title, and the paperwork you hold decides what a yard can accept.
If the car still runs and simply needs to go somewhere, that is everyday work for our tow truck company in Portland, and the form here works for that too.
Free quote
Where is the car, and where is it going?
Do you need a title to scrap a car in Maine?
Yes for model year 2001 and newer. The BMV's rule since January 1, 2026 puts every vehicle of that model year or later under the title requirement, and on January 1, 2027 the line moves up a year, to model year 2002 and newer.
- Title needed in 2026
- Model year 2001 and newer
- Title needed from January 1, 2027
- Model year 2002 and newer
- No title needed (state law)
- Vehicles more than 25 years old
- Scrap sale without a title
- At least 20 model-years old, with photo ID and form MVT-54
Under 29-A M.R.S. section 652(13), a vehicle more than 25 years old is exempt from titling, and the salvage guide from the BMV draws the same line by age: under 26 years, a title is required; at 26 years and up, it is not. The year that counts is the car's model year, not the year you bought it. The BMV's title page carries the current model-year cutoff.
For a car outside the title rule, a bill of sale is all a recycler needs, so keep a copy of yours. There is more on how these rules play out in our guide to scrapping an old car in Maine.
Scrapping an older car without a title
Scrap buyers, meaning recyclers, salvage dealers and scrap processors, can take a vehicle at least 20 years old by model year with no title at all (29-A M.R.S. section 652(18)), provided they handle three things themselves.
- They write down your name and home address as shown on your government-issued photo ID.
- They hold on to those records, along with the car's VIN, for 5 years.
- They file form MVT-54 with the Secretary of State within 30 days to report that the car was destroyed.
That rule matters most for a car that is old but still inside the title cutoff. Such a car may need a title for an ordinary sale, yet a scrap buyer can take it without one once it reaches the 20-model-year mark and the buyer follows those steps. The MVT-54 is the yard's job, not yours; your part is having a government-issued photo ID ready when you deal with the yard. If the car is younger than 20 model-years and the title is lost, the no-title rule does not help, so talk to the BMV about the title before booking the tow.
When there is a title, the recycler that scraps or dismantles the car has to surrender it, or the salvage certificate, to the Secretary of State for cancellation. The paperwork is between you and the yard. We tow the car to the address you give us.
Getting a junk car ready for the tow truck
Empty the car, take the plates off and have the paperwork ready before the truck arrives, because anything left inside goes to the yard with the car.
- Personal items. Check the glove box, the console, the door pockets, under the seats, the trunk and the spare-tire well. Take garage remotes, parking permits, a toll transponder, and any mail or papers showing your name or address.
- Plates. Take the license plates off and keep them until you have checked with the BMV whether to turn them in or move them to another vehicle.
- Registration and insurance. Once the car is gone, sort out the registration with the BMV and call your insurer to cancel or change the policy. Do not cancel the registration while the car still sits on a public street: Maine's registration law (29-A M.R.S. section 351) makes it an offense to leave an unregistered vehicle on a public way.
- Paperwork. Depending on the car, its title or a bill of sale for a title-exempt car, plus a government-issued photo ID when the yard buys an older car without a title.
- Keys. Leave them in the car or hand them to the driver. No key is workable too, but say so on the call, because a locked car stuck in park changes how it is loaded.
- Access. Clear a path to the car and tell us what is in the way, such as a narrow driveway, a gate, a low garage door, soft ground or a snowbank.
A junk car that will not roll: which tow truck it needs
A car with no wheels, flat tires or seized brakes usually goes on a flatbed. As AAA explains, a flatbed lifts the whole vehicle off the road, using winches and a hydraulic bed, so no wheel has to turn.
A wheel-lift truck picks up just one end of the car, front or rear, with a hydraulic lift or a hook and chains, and the other axle rolls along behind. That can work for a junk car if the wheels left on the ground still turn and hold air. With a flat or a missing wheel on that axle, the car rides on dollies or on the bed instead, and our flatbed and long-distance towing also covers a yard well outside the Portland area.
When you call, tell us if the tires still take air, if any wheels are missing, if it shifts into neutral and how long it has sat. With 68.7 inches of snow in a normal Portland year (the Jetport's 1991-2020 normals), a car left outside all winter may be frozen down or buried in a plow bank, and freeing it is winch-out work before it is loaded.
What does it cost to have a junk car towed?
We price it as a single figure during the call, like all our towing in Portland, and it comes down to how far the yard is, whether the car rolls, how hard it is to reach and whether it has to be freed first.
A yard a few miles away and a yard in another county are different runs, so have the yard's address ready when you call. A car that rolls on tires that hold air loads quickly; one with flat tires, missing wheels or a steering wheel locked in place needs the flatbed and more time. Tight access, like a backyard behind a fence or a garage with a low door, adds time too, and so does digging or winching a car out of snow or soft ground.
The tow is priced on its own. What the yard pays, if anything, is a separate deal between you and the yard. Most junk car tows can be booked ahead, so choose a time when someone can meet the truck and hand over the keys. How any Portland, Maine towing job is priced, including the city's caps on tows made without the owner's consent, is on our towing cost page.
What if the junk car on your property is not yours?
Then Maine's abandoned-vehicle law applies, and it comes with written notices and a waiting period.
The law (Title 29-A, chapter 15, subchapter 3) covers a car left on property without permission and towed from it. The owner of the property where the car is held, or the owner's agent, must notify the Secretary of State in writing on the Secretary's form. The Secretary of State then mails the car's owner and any lienholder that the car is being claimed under the abandoned vehicle law, and the car counts as abandoned only if nobody collects it and pays reasonable charges within 14 days after those notices go out.
While that runs, storage must be reasonable and may not pass $1,500 for 30 days, and the owner's personal effects cannot be held back (sections 1857 and 1861).
The honest answer is that this is not a tow we do. We tow cars for the people who own them, or with the owner's go-ahead; we do not impound vehicles, and we do not hold cars through the abandoned-vehicle process. If a stranger's car is on your land, start with the Secretary of State's office. If the car is yours, or its owner asks us, we will tow it wherever it needs to go.
Frequently asked questions
Do you buy junk cars in Portland?
No. We tow junk cars to the recycler or scrapyard you choose, and any payment for the car is between you and the yard. We quote the tow itself as one total on the call.
Can I scrap a car without a title in Maine?
Sometimes. If the car is at least 20 years old by model year, a scrap buyer can take it without the title, but it must note your name and home address from your government-issued photo ID and file form MVT-54 with the Secretary of State within 30 days. A car more than 25 years old needs no title in the first place, and a bill of sale covers the sale.
Which cars need a title in Maine in 2026?
Model year 2001 and newer. That is the rule as of January 1, 2026, and from January 1, 2027 it becomes model year 2002 and newer.
Can you tow a junk car with flat tires or no wheels?
Yes. A car that cannot roll goes on a flatbed tow truck, which winches it onto the bed so no wheel has to turn. Tell us which wheels are flat or missing when you call so the right truck comes.
Should I take the plates off before my junk car is towed?
Yes. Take the plates and everything personal out of the car before the tow truck arrives. Then check with the BMV about the plates and registration, and call your insurer about the policy once the car is gone.
Can you remove an abandoned car from my property?
Not on a property owner's request alone. A car left on property without permission falls under Maine's abandoned-vehicle law, which requires written notice to the Secretary of State on the Secretary's form, and we do not impound or hold cars for that process. If the car is yours, or its owner asks us to move it, we can tow it.
Need a junk car towed in Portland?
Call with the car's address and the yard's address, and you get one total for the tow.
- Where the car sits - driveway, backyard, garage or street
- Where it goes - the recycler or scrapyard you picked
- What shape it is in - flat tires, missing wheels, no key
- The paperwork - title, bill of sale or photo ID, as the yard needs