When I drive a vehicle off the lot after signing papers, is that vehicle mine right then, or only after the paperwork has gone through the DMV?
It’s yours when you drive off the lot. You should have a bill of sale, and depending on your state a temporary tag showing that the DMV fees have been paid and the paperwork is in process. These documents establish your ownership. I suspect that that is so even in the case of a so-many-days/miles-satisfactio n-guarantee. If you exercise that option, another round of paperwork would be done to transfer the ownership back to the dealer. They might be holding the DMV paperwork to be submitted after that return period has ended, because there is some legally specified timeframe for that, like 30 or 45 days.
