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HomeVehicle CodeDiv. 2Ch. 1Art. 2§ 1671 Business Location Requirements

§ 1671 Business Location Requirements

Vehicle Code·California
AI Summary·Official Text·Key Terms·Related Statutes·References
AI SummaryVerified

§ 1671 Business Location Requirements

This law says where car dealers, driving schools, and other car businesses must set up their offices and work areas. It also says what kind of buildings they can use and how the space should be arranged.

Key Takeaways

  • •Car dealers, driving schools, and similar businesses must have an office where they do their work.
  • •If the office is in a building where people live (like an apartment), it must be on the ground floor and have its own outside door.
  • •Some car dealers (like wholesalers) don’t need a display area, but they still need an office.
  • •Car dismantlers (junkyards) must have an office and a work area in a place where the city or county allows it.

Example

A person wants to open a used car dealership in a small office inside an apartment building.

The law says the office must be on the ground floor with its own entrance from outside. The person can't use a room upstairs or share the space with something else, like a home.

AI-generated — May contain errors. Not legal advice. Always verify source.

Official Source
View on CA.gov

§ 1671 Business Location Requirements

(a) The established place of business of a dealer, remanufacturer, remanufacturer branch, manufacturer, manufacturer branch, distributor, distributor branch, automobile driving school, or traffic violator school shall have an office and a dealer, manufacturer, or remanufacturer shall also have a display or manufacturing area situated on the same property where the business peculiar to the type of license issued by the department is or may be transacted. When a room or rooms in a hotel, roominghouse, apartment house building, or a part of any single- or multiple-unit dwelling house is used as an office or offices of an established place of business, the room or rooms shall be devoted exclusively to and occupied for the office or offices of the dealer, manufacturer, manufacturer branch, remanufacturer, remanufacturer branch, distributor, distributor branch, automobile driving school, or traffic violator school, shall be located on the ground floor, and shall be so constructed as to provide a direct entrance into the room or rooms from the exterior of the building. A dealer who does not offer new or used vehicles for sale at retail, a dealer who has been issued an autobroker’s endorsement to his or her dealer’s license and who does not also sell motor vehicles at retail, or a dealer who is a wholesaler involved for profit only in the sale of vehicles between licensed dealers, shall have an office, but a display area is not required. (b) The established place of business of an automobile dismantler shall have an office and a dismantling area located in a zone properly zoned for that purpose by the city or county. (Amended by Stats. 2006, Ch. 538, Sec. 653. Effective January 1, 2007.)

Last verified: January 9, 2026

Key Terms

schoolvehicletrafficlicensepropertyofferentranceendorsement

Related Statutes

  • § 12818 Driver License Reexamination Rules
  • § 1685 Private Vehicle Registration Services
  • § 11202.5 Traffic School Operator Licensing
  • § 21719 Emergency Tow Truck Shoulder Use
  • § 11105 Driving School License Renewal

References

  • Official text at leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
  • California Legislature. Vehicle Code. Section 1671.
View Official Source