chēguǎnsuǒ zài nàbiān.

车管所 is short for 车辆管理所, literally vehicle management office. In real life, it usually refers to the government office that handles things like:

• vehicle registration
• license plates
• driver/vehicle paperwork

A natural English equivalent is often the DMV or the vehicle administration office, depending on the country.

Because in Chinese, 在 is the normal verb used to say where something is located.

So:

• A 在 B = A is at/in/on B

Here:

• 车管所 = the vehicle administration office
• 在 = is located at
• 那边 = over there / that side

So 车管所在那边 means The vehicle administration office is over there.

Using 是 here would sound wrong, because 是 usually links nouns, not location phrases.

For example:

• 他是老师。 = He is a teacher.
• 车管所在那边。 = The DMV is over there.

那边 literally means that side or over there.

It is commonly used when pointing out a general area, not necessarily a precise spot. It often feels a little more directional than 那里.

So:

• 那边 = over there / on that side
• 那里 = there
• 那儿 = there (more colloquial, especially in northern speech)

In this sentence, 那边 suggests something like over that way.

All three can often be translated as there, but they feel slightly different:

• 那边: over there / that side; often directional
• 那里: there; neutral and standard
• 那儿: there; colloquial spoken form of 那里

So these are all possible:

• 车管所在那边。
• 车管所在那里。
• 车管所在那儿。

They are all natural, but 那边 can sound especially suitable if someone is indicating a direction with a gesture.

It is pronounced:

• 车 = chē (1st tone)
• 管 = guǎn (3rd tone)
• 所 = suǒ (3rd tone)

So the written pinyin is chēguǎnsuǒ.

A pronunciation detail: because 管 and 所 are two third tones in a row, the first one often changes in actual speech. So guǎn suǒ is commonly pronounced more like:

• chē গুán suǒ
  or in standard pinyin tone-sandhi terms,
• chē guán suǒ

But it is still written guǎn suǒ.

Chinese does not use articles like a, an, and the the way English does.

So 车管所 can mean:

• the vehicle administration office
• a vehicle administration office

The exact meaning depends on context.

In this sentence, the context usually makes it mean the one being asked about: The DMV is over there.

Yes. In a basic grammar explanation, 车管所 is the subject/topic, and 在那边 tells its location.

Structure:

• 车管所 = the place being talked about
• 在那边 = is over there

So the sentence pattern is:

• Place + 在 + location

Examples:

• 学校在那边。 = The school is over there.
• 银行在前面。 = The bank is in front.

Yes, in a rough sense. 在 often corresponds to English location words like:

• at
• in
• on

But in Chinese grammar, 在 is doing the job of the main verb to be located.

So instead of thinking word-for-word, it is better to think of:

• 在 = to be located at/in/on

That is why 车管所在那边 is not literally just DMV at over there, but naturally means: The DMV is over there.

Yes, if you are using an -儿 style pronunciation common in some varieties of Mandarin, especially northern speech.

You may hear:

• 那边
• 那边儿

Both can occur in speech, though standard written form is usually 那边.

Similarly:

• 那里
• 那儿

Not as a complete sentence with the same meaning.

To say The DMV is over there, you normally need 在:

• 车管所在那边。

Without 在, 车管所那边 sounds incomplete or like part of a larger phrase, such as:

• 车管所那边很忙。 = The area around the DMV is very busy.
• 车管所那边的人很多。 = There are a lot of people over by the DMV.

So for simple location statements, keep 在.

Yes. It is a very common and useful pattern:

• A 在 + location

Examples:

• 厕所在哪边？ = Where is the restroom?
• 厕所在那边。 = The restroom is over there.
• 地铁站在前面。 = The subway station is up ahead.
• 我的车在外面。 = My car is outside.

This is one of the most basic patterns for talking about location in Mandarin.

The spaces are just there to help learners see the word boundaries:

• 车管所
• 在
• 那边

Normal Chinese writing does not usually put spaces between words. It would normally be written as:

• 车管所在那边。

So the spaces are for study purposes, not standard punctuation.

People really do say 车管所 in everyday life. It is not just a textbook word.

It is an established abbreviation of 车辆管理所, and in conversation people often prefer the shorter form. So if someone is talking about registering a car, getting plates, or dealing with vehicle paperwork, 车管所 is very natural.