New 650 rider and already a problem

So on june 12th i purchased a 1977 Kawasaki kz650c for the amount of $225. which is 275 less than the asking price. It was in decent shape, wasnt running, and the only piece that i found broken was a spark plug cap had fallen off somewhere over its 36 year life.
The day after the purchase. i spent 7 hours after work and replaced all spark plug caps, installed new spark plugs, cleaned all four carbs well, and gave it a oil change.. "borrowed" a battery from a dirt bike and installed it also even thought it was no where close to the correct size.

after all my hard work, it took 20 minutes of being pulled by a 4 wheeler in second gear for the engine to take its first breath of life in 7 years. the bike ran rough and wouldnt idle. after 15 minutes the bike ran smooth. after these 7 hours it was dark and i decided to renew my project in the morning.

I started it up after a few minutes of trying and the help for a battery charger.
Ran smooth. rev'd smooth also.. i played with the idle adjuster and found the correct balance.

I departed on the bikes maiden voyage. I marveled at the power of the vintage bike. The comfort of the seat. the smooth acceleration and pinpoint power.

Within 48 hours, my kz650c was back in shape like in its glory days. I am in love already.
I cannot wait to ride it everyday...

now here comes the problem.

This bike was registered for the last time in 2006. And i currently live in california.
I overlooked the old registration when i first saw it because i saw potential. And in my mind the fees couldnt be more than $300 or so...
Messing around on my phone today i found a calculator for the dmv..
i will have to pay to the tune of $717.00 to get the registration up to date.

my question is this. is there any way i can work with the dmv to get these fees lessened. because i bought this bike BECAUSE of the low price. now it is going to cost the same as a much newer bike.
My hard work, $225 purchase price, and $63 in parts that went into this are all for nothing if i cannot get this sorted out.

Background on me:
Been around dirtbikes since 2005. Worked on my own, and took good care of them. My crown jewel is my 1987 yamaha yz 490. Also own a VW sand rail and 2 quads.
Then in 2011 i joined the US army as an unmanned aircraft systems technician working on the shadow drone. And in march of 2013 the army chaptered me out because of my body fat percentage. I could do everything that any soldier could do. I was one of the best technicians we had, and i taught all of the new soldiers personally.

From march to present, i have been unemployed. looking for work. and trying to find ways to cut down my spending. I bought this bike because my car was getting to expensive to drive. 2003 lincoln ls sport with the 3.9L v8. I owe to much on this vehicle to sell it.

Welcome to the forum. Nice score. I suggest heading down to the DMV to sort it out. Since you have more time than money it would be worthwhile waiting in line to see what it would cost. In my state they don't charge you if the vehicle wasn't previously registered when transferring the title. I believe some states allow you to prove why the vehicle wasn't previously registered.

Alan

thats what i was thinking. and i also found this www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/d03/vc9562.htm

basically what i got from it is that if i didnt know about the fees, then there is a possibility of the dmv manager to waive them... i didnt know about the fees. at least not in the amount of $717. think i could get them waived? or translate it if i misunderstood.

In California they will not wave any late fees period, even if the bike sells. The late fees stays with the bike and is transferred to the new owner. I have passed on some really good deals because of this. I do not understand why people just don't pay the $15.00 "planned not operation" fee then there are no late fees and the registration is put on hold for however long you want. The only other solution I have found is after 10 years the registration falls off the DMV books and the late fees are dumped. I don't know about you but waiting another 3 years is hard. Now another problem with that is once you go to the DMV and start the process even if your at the 9 year and 11 month mark they will hit you with the late fees and even if you wait the 1 month the fee will still be there because you brought it to their attention before the 10 year lapse. Gotta love California, they want their money and that is that.