Maybe the DMV doesn't know either? If I was doing it, I'd just keep the car registered as a car. So what if it has a bit of custom bodywork, at what point does it become fundamentally different from the kid who jacks up the suspension on his pickup? You'd be keeping the same engine & drivetrain, no? Keep the part of the body that has the VIN on it too, and logically you should be set.
I don't live in California, but here you just take the car to a smog check place every year, they plug in the OBDII connector & check the VIN, and the rest of a registration renewal can be done on-line. One year I even had my neighbor take the car for the check, and did the rest while I was at work - in Switzerland.
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