Re: Reproduction VIN tag
 

yeah im kinda in the same boat. i have a cab that is trash and one thats good but doesnt have a title.

Re: Reproduction VIN tag
 

You can get a title (in Texas) for the cab. I did the same thing on a Mopar I have. I just did a goggle search for vehicle title companies. It was like $150 for the title.

Re: Reproduction VIN tag
 

I understand that in WA State the VIN follows the cab. Now I have heard conflicting information in that regard. If you don't have a title (signed/released by the original owner) in this state...you are pretty much forked...your vehicle will go to a towing yard and owner of record will get notices, then it goes to the auction.

Rupdog, who is the owner of record? If it is the dead guy...or was the title transfered to your friend then you? Just curious.

Re: Reproduction VIN tag
 

I was glad to see the last post. Always do it right, then no one can take your ride away. The problem with getting a vin plate from a vehicle at a wrecking yard, is that the veh may be stolen, then when you try to get a title, bye bye there goes your ride. Altering a vin is a crime. Do it right and stay legal.

Re: Reproduction VIN tag
 

I don't know your "whole" story, but every old car and truck I've bought from dead and live guys never had to go to the DMV or CHP (some had Vin tags others didn't). I just took my bill of sale (which is usually just a piece of paper saying I #### sold the truck to ### for ### on this date ##/##/##) and the pink slip, paid the fees and walked out with tags. Everytime I've been pulled over they just want the registration paper and my license. Have I just been lucky up to this point?
Dano

Re: Reproduction VIN tag
 

watching and learnign here .
it wasnt a good idea to show the vin plate with the numbers in clear view , if someone is realy bleu collar he could give those numbers to the dmv telling them that they come of another truck and they just have to do a search on the number when you bring it in and it comes up with bells and redlights flashing .
i live in europe and from wat i read our way of registration matches california pretty close , we have an added thing here when a vehicle is 25 years or older we dont have to pay roadtax for it no more wish for a 1950 kilo truck on propane is about 1450 euro per year
so 1981 and earlier models are pretty sought after as a complete truck or only for there registration as one year driving sets you back 1500 dollar there bringing in lots of money over here
a clunker costs 6500 euro here a showroommodel more then new price .
where a bit lucky that our inspection guys arent realy intoo the american trucks as in preciese differences in modelyear and that sortah stuff so most of the time we get away with chainging the vinplate and turning in the "original " papers for a dutch licence

Re: Reproduction VIN tag
 

It's hard to talk alot about this subject as that the majority of the stuff that we (CHP) use to identify a vehicle is confidential. The newer cars of today have literally hundreds of ways to identify them. The older a vehicle gets though, the less options there are for identification. I can't (because of confidentiality issues) confirm or deny where the secondary/confidential identification numbers are on our trucks. I'm sure that some of you know where some of those secret numbering places are from working on them.

What concerns me is that some of you may become victims by buying a truck that has been stolen and VIN switched or sold just based upon the paperwork. It's sad to see how other states are very lackadaisical and are basically setting up people to purchase a vehicle that isn't legal.

Remember: If a deal is too good to be true, it usually is. Buying a $10,000 truck for $500 will make you $500 poorer. I've never seen a great deal like that work out for the purchaser. Here are some tips and questions you might ask yourself that might help you in the future when it comes to buying a truck (or any vehicle for that matter):

1. Never buy a vehicle based on the paperwork only. Always check to make sure that the paperwork matches the actual VIN on the dash or the door. There have been several occasions where a person has come to me with good paperwork that didn’t even come close to matching the real VIN in the dash---he just failed to look.
2. Always get GOOD identification from the person that you are buying the vehicle from (driver’s license etc). Some people like to do deals away from their home (which isn’t such a bad idea). If the car does come back stolen, you at least want to tell the police the person that you purchased the vehicle from.
3. Make sure that the paperwork shows that the seller is the owner of the vehicle. There are lots of cases where people “obtained” a vehicle via a crank deal or some other debt (some people even leave their pink slips in the glove box!), never put it in their name and when the original owner found out that the person they let “borrow” the car sold it, they report the vehicle stolen and you get the car taken from you. You then have to go through the hassle of trying to get your money back (good luck). It just takes a trip to the DMV and a couple of bucks to put it in their name. Make them do it.
4. There is nothing wrong with having a VIN officer look at the car before a purchase to make sure it is all legal. You’ll just have to make an appointment to do so. It’s kind of like getting a mechanical inspection prior to purchase.
5. Go to your local DMV and see if there are any leans, parking tickets or back registration fees due on the vehicle. Sometimes the back registration fees alone are more than the purchase price of the vehicle.

Some of this stuff may seem overkill but in the end you won’t be giving some crook your hard earned money.

BigBaldy

Re: Reproduction VIN tag
 

kinda on the same note if you paint you vehicle how can you update that information on the regisration and title?

Re: Reproduction VIN tag
 

The more work/time/effort you all put into investigating the title and registration history is well spent. Also, its a great idea to verify the tags are really current when getting just a pink slip for a car.

I have stopped many people over the years who thought their tags were good for another 10-11 months because of stickers (and just have the pink slip), they later find out there are tons of back fees, and stolen tags on the back of the vehicle..

Re: Reproduction VIN tag
 

The more work/time/effort you all put into investigating the title and registration history is well spent. Also, its a great idea to verify the tags are really current when getting just a pink slip for a car.

I have stopped many people over the years who thought their tags were good for another 10-11 months because of stickers (and just have the pink slip), they later find out there are tons of back fees, and stolen tags on the back of the vehicle..

Research is your key to a total lack of financial frustrations.. and if its going to be parked in the garage for a couple of years while you do stuff, non-op is your friend..

Re: Reproduction VIN tag
 

owner of record was the dead guy. i had to complete paperwork (2 bills of sale). one showed transfer from dead guy to PO, then from PO to me. i had to send the first one to dead guy's mother out-of-state (power of attorney), to sign everything off.

because the truck has been off the road for 10 years (or more), DMV requires a new inspection. all the other paperwork was submitted, and accepted without too much issue. SO... pending a CHP inspection, and brake/lamp certification, the truck will officially be in my name, and i'll get new plates/stickers. only red flag will be the missing VIN at time of inspection, which is what all this is about...

wew! i'm pooped.

Re: Reproduction VIN tag
 

Just to toss my two cents in for Nevada... I just took my 62 C10 down to the DMV for what I thought I would need. Which is a VIN inspection, since I had to do a VIN inspection with my 63 C10. After I got there, I discovered that no VIN inspection required on my 62 since it already has a Nevada title that has been signed over to me. My 63 had a California title. So it required a VIN inspection. The frame VIN is stamped into the frame right above the front crossmember on the drivers side. Just lateral of where the motor mount would be or where the motor mount perch sits.

The reason I was concerned about my 62 is because the cab VIN tag is gone. The PO claimed that it had "fallen off"..... Now we all know that is BULL****.. they don't just fall off.... the rivets have to be drilled out. In my case, I think the previous previous owner... wanted a keepsake.. Didn't matter, since the frame matches the title. When I took it to the DMV today, they looked at the title.... told me that as long as the frame matches the title, I am good to go...

Here is my 62 http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...=1#post8069672

and my 63 http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=605207

Re: Reproduction VIN tag
 

I realize this is a really old thread but just to your point, IIRC, my '62 and possibly my '63 had VIN tags that were poorly spot welded to the windshield post.

Re: Reproduction VIN tag
 

The taskforce trucks for sure are welded on.

Re: Reproduction VIN tag
 

I talked to DPS in Texas and it is like BigDaddy said for California, they go by the VIN on the frame not the one on the CAB. I am putting a 68 Cab on a 67 frame. and have both titles.

Re: Reproduction VIN tag
 

If you have an intact metal vin tag (intact as in correct rosette rivets), you should be fine even in CA (I lived there for about 13 years and they never, ever checked for more than the metal tag) (EDIT: and I've never had them check the frame in TX either, ever - only the metal VIN tag on the cab, if anything at all). Matching SPID is just icing on the cake. Frame is more like a sparkle on the icing... If you are somewhere where they do check for two VINs and are missing the SPID, then the frame can become a bit more of a needed thing. The unaltered metal VIN tag is normally the deciding factor as to how much DMV can ruin your day.

I know this is an old thread, but as I read back through it, am kinda surprised it wasn't locked or deleted. I'm flabbergasted by some of the blatant disregard for legal stuff - but, the comments by our police/highway patrol members are a good reason to keep the thread alive - good reference for folks considering "buying" a VIN tag. It's just dumb. Unfortunately for some, with the most honest of intentions, they find themselves with a truck that needs a non-original VIN assigned because of some discrepancy, which does stink and I feel for them, but it's the only right way to do it. I've bought a truck from a less-than-honest douchebag before, and I can't begin to tell you how it felt when I found out about the truth behind the truck. Fortunately, this happened to be the ONE time I bought through a middleman with a good reputation - and he had to eat the round trip shipping back to the guy that sold it to me in the first place. I got lucky, I found out the problem when the truck was enroute and refused shipment. It was touch and go for a little bit though... Makes me a very cautious buyer nowadays.