Making Dirt Bikes Street Legal in New Jersey: Challenges and Solutions

Are Dirt Bikes Street Legal in New Jersey?

New Jersey is called The Garden State, which is a far cry from what most of us think of. To be honest, most of us think of what we saw in The Sopranos. But in fact, much of the state is rural and is made up of beautiful hills, winding roads, and lots of trees. There is also a surprising amount of state land available to ride off-road vehicles (ORVs per New Jersey regulations), so off-roaders can still tear it up legally. 

Standard New Jersey sunset.

But what if you have an ORV-categorized dirt bike that you want to drive on legal roadways, and not just be restricted to the trails? Can you do that?

Let’s examine this carefully and determine what you need to do to drive a dirt bike legally in New Jersey. 

Can I Register a Motorcycle Without a Title in NJ?

Okay, so let’s dispel this notion right here, right now: you can register a motorcycle in New Jersey without a title. Here is the verbatim verbiage about what you need for motorcycle registration, per the New Jersey DMV:

“To title or register your motorcycle, bring the following documentation to a motor vehicle agency:

• 6 Points of ID;

• Proof of insurance;

• Title, Manufacturer's Certificate of Origin (MSO or MCO) or Registration and a notarized bill-of-sale from previous owner with vehicle description and sale price (motorcycles from non-titled states only)*”

So, if you live in New Jersey and want to register your dirt bike as a street-legal machine, you can do it. Now, this does not include what may need to be taken into account to take a dedicated off-road machine and make it street-legal. 

In New Jersey, for a motorcycle to be registered with a New Jersey title and registration, the bike must meet a couple of specific criteria:

1. It must meet motorcycle safety standards set forth by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). 

2. Motorcycles that are tagged and registered in New Jersey must meet the EPA’s highway motorcycle emissions standards, which many (if not all) ORVs will never meet.  

That second one is a really big deal. If you own an ORV dirt bike that you want to make street legal in New Jersey, your best bet is probably going to be finding a factory street-legal dual sport or Enduro that will already pass the emissions and safety thresholds without issue. 

…or you could register your bike in Montana, using our LLC system to show proof of residence in Montana. See, as long as your bike is wearing Montana plates, then the rules of Montana apply to its registration.

Since you live in New Jersey, you are probably wondering how your backside is covered in all of this. It’s simple: you are covered by the LLC. The bike is owned in Montana through an LLC, and even though you own the LLC, the LLC owns the bike. 

Make sense?   

What Do I Need to Register My Dirt Bike? 

For a Montana LLC, we will just need the same thing that you would need to title and register it in New Jersey. The notable difference is that we can take just about anything in your driveway and make it street-legal. Got a sweet Yamaha YZ250 2-stroke dirt bike that you’d love to hit the pavement with, and cruise those winding hills? No problem. 

Just make sure that you have all of the following DOT items installed and functioning correctly, and we’ll handle the paperwork. 

Is Lane Splitting Legal in New Jersey? 

No. And we don’t need to even reference this one. California is the only state that legalized lane splitting, and that is primarily due to LA. Back in the day, air-cooled bikes were just dying left and right sitting in traffic for hours, so they legalized it for two reasons:

1. Improved traffic flow

2. For bikes to maintain temps. Dead bikes are a hazard, so it was better to keep them moving. 

So no, lane splitting is not legal in Jersey, or anywhere else besides California. If you try it, you will get pulled over. Oh, and it’s crazy dangerous if you try it in a state where people aren’t used to it happening legally. 

"Motorcycles Lane Splitting 2" by Chris Yarzab is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

How Do I Make My Dirt Bike Street Legal in New Jersey?

Again, if you are driving a dedicated ORV, you will not be able to title and register it in New Jersey.  End stop, period. The only way that you, as a resident of the Garden State, can drive an ORV dirt bike on your roads legally, is through an out-of-state registration process, namely ours. If you are wearing NJ plates on a clearly ORV dirt bike, it’s curtains. But if you are riding the same bike with Montana plates, you get top coverage. 

Caveat: we have seen many cases (i.e., literally hundreds of cases) where fully legalized UTVs have been pulled over and the owner’s had to get their day in court. Most are dismissed or the cases won, but there are some Ls. Beware of this, and be ready to defend yourself. Just because it will get you thrown out doesn’t get you out of the ticket. A lot of cops won’t even notice or care, but it only takes that one bored officer of the law to pull you over and make you challenge state law. Be prepared, be courteous, and ride on. 

Do You Need a Title for a Dirt Bike in New Jersey?

You do not need a title to get it titled, but in order to operate a dirt bike legally in New Jersey, yes, you will need a title. But that is ok. Again, you don’t need a title to place the order. The DMV will take the approved paperwork (listed above), and then they will issue you a new title. 

Or, you can do the sensible thing and get it through Montana. 

• No inspections EVER

• No DMV visits

• No waiting in line

• No emissions/smog checks

You send us the paperwork, we send you a packet to sign with a prepaid envelope, and we take care of the rest. Easy, fast, no trouble. Just wait a few weeks, open the packet, and put the tag on your bike. 

Also, make sure to check out our 50-state UTV guide. It is mostly specific to UTVs, but a lot of the lessons learned apply well to any ORV being converted to a street-legal vehicle. 

If you own an OHV of any kind, but especially a dirt bike, and want to drive it on the roadways legally, then Dirt Legal is your #1 choice. We have helped over 20,000 customers with all kinds of title and registration issues, and we will get your dirt bike street legal, too. 

You can get started on the process now, and also make sure to check out our other OHV programs as well!