From Miller Beach on the lakefront to Black Oak out by the Borman’s Burr Street exit, Gary covers a lot of ground, and it’s laid out in a rough T shape. Lake Michigan forms the top edge. Hammond and East Chicago sit at the northwest corner, while Griffith, Hobart and Merrillville line the south. Junk My Car Inc buys junk cars in every part of it, and the 2020 census counted 69,093 people living there.
What Sec. 18-195 says about junked cars
Gary’s rule reaches private property too. Sec. 18-195 makes it unlawful to abandon a vehicle on public or private property, or to leave one so that it looks abandoned. The same section bars any partially dismantled, nonoperating, wrecked or junked vehicle on any premises, public or private. Your own driveway isn’t an exception.
Sec. 18-194 borrows its definitions from Indiana law (IC 9-13-2), and Sec. 18-196 puts the department of development and planning in charge of removal, storage and disposal under IC 9-22-1. If the city ends up towing it, Sec. 18-197 has an unclaimed car sold after 20 days or sent to a scrap yard.
Snow emergencies and alternate sides
Gary doesn’t wait for a blizzard. Under Sec. 40-383 the mayor can declare a snow emergency with as little as an inch on the ground, announced by press release. Sec. 40-384 then clears the designated snow routes completely and puts every other street on alternate sides from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.: on even-numbered days nobody parks on the east and south sides, on odd days the north and west sides. Sec. 40-385 lets the city tow any car parked, stalled or unable to move against those rules.
Street sweeping adds its own posted bans under Sec. 40-293. On the 3500 and 3600 blocks of Washington, Adams and Jefferson Streets, parking is limited to residents and their visitors (Sec. 40-361), so mention it if the car is there and our driver will plan around it.
Indiana title rules, up front
Indiana sets its own paperwork rules. A recycler has to obtain the title, a BMV duplicate, or a BMV certificate of authority for every vehicle, whatever its age. A car can be bought without a title only if it’s at least 15 model years old and the seller has that certificate of authority. A newer car with neither document can’t be bought at all, and buying it would be a Level 6 felony. Tell us what you hold and we’ll tell you on the phone which route applies. Our no-title guide goes through it in more detail.
Gary streets and the towns next door
About 72% of Gary’s homes are detached houses and 13% are in buildings of five or more units (ACS 2020 to 2024), so we collect from driveways and apartment lots alike. The main roads are Broadway (State Road 53), 4th and 5th Avenues, Ridge Road, Chicago Avenue, Cline Avenue and Melton Road, with I-90, I-94, I-80 and I-65 all passing through. Give us the nearest cross street or neighbourhood name.
The tow is free, nothing is held back for it, and you’re paid as the car goes on the truck: cash, Zelle, Cash App or another app. Send the details and we’ll call back within 15 minutes; same-day pickup is often possible.
As junk car buyers in Gary, we also cover the towns around it. To the southeast we buy junk cars in Hobart, and west along the Borman in Munster. Over the state line we pick up in Calumet City and Lansing. Everywhere else we go is on the service areas page.