Need Help/information about buying a truck

[cincytrucktp]

Finally found a truck (i think) and it's just about 1 hour away in Indiana. Going to look and probably buy on Monday. Just have a couple of questions. The truck was on ebay and the ad has one of those "auto check vehicle history report", is this trusted info? Can I assume I'm not buying a stolen vehicle? I talked to the guy for about 45 mins on the phone and he seemed real up and up, so I don't think or suspect anything but just wondering if there is any homework I should do on the vin before I go up and hand him a roll of cash? Also I haven't bought many cars/trucks, but the seller told me that in Indiana all he has to do is sign over the title to me by just sign the title and put the odometer reading and how much it sold for and then I give him the money and it's all mine. My question is does anyone know if this is correct in Indiana? Do I not have to get the title notarized as I'm giving him the cash? Also will my state OHIO give me a hard time if it's not notarized?

[msgross]

depending on what year his title is then he is correct, i'm from Indiana and the newer titles (from the 90's and up) don't require a notary, read the title though because it will say so. Older titles (my 85 S-10) did require a notary. I think that the truck is to old for carfax but you can always meet him at the state police post and ask them to run the VIN.

I would have him sign a bill of sale also, just make one on your computer that has his name and address (verify with ID) and the VIN, date, sales price and mileage,

You will have to pay Ohio taxes on the sales price,

[brn agn]

If Indiana titles do not require a notary, you should be OK...but call your local DMV to determine if there is anything special you need to do since the vehicle is coming from out of state.

I agree with msgross on the bill of sale. PM me your e-mail address and I will send you a blank bill of sale (it is in Excel format).

In terms of the mechanical, structural and cosmetic condition of the truck, there are hundreds of things to check once you get there. Do you need advice on that kind of stuff? Don't forget that pictures can make rough trucks look relatively good.

[71meangreenc10]

Best thing to do is have the VIN checked by the DMV to see if its fishy, Make sure when you see it to check the VIN on the cab against the SPID in the glovebox to see if they match, it should also match the frame VIN on the top frame rail by the left side of the engine (driver side), you may have to scratch it down to get the stamping in the frame. The VIN should also have the Rose Bud Rivets if its original. Check the SPID to make sure the wheel base is correct for the truck, alot of people trying to sell shortbeds when they were longbeds and forget that the SPID is showing 127 when it should be 115.....Ran into that in Tucson one day,,,guy was playing stupid until I pointed that out, then he started having miracle memories on what was done to the truck.

Every states DMV's rules are different, best advice is to contact them and explain your situation and ask for advice.

Ive bought and sold cars around the US and its amazing how different each state is.

Car fax and other sites are like extended warranties, to me they are useless. They are only as honest as the person behind the keyboard. Most dont want to put anything against the VIN because it lowers the value and most people dont want to by something that has had issues.

If your going out of state, take someone with you, dont go alone, some people will chime in and tell you some horror stories about how they got in a bad situation.

Best advice, DONT GET INTO A RUSH, nothings permanent until cash changes hands,

Trust me, the Army has sent me all around the US and I have met some of the worst people in this land through craigslist......

Smitty

[cincytrucktp]

All good advise. I think he told me that he had to get a dup title for the truck said he was doing work on it and the guy that owned it rang up a large bill and never paid so he put a mechanics lean on the truck and eventually had a new title issued in his name, said he had to have someone come out and inspect it etc and it was alot of work to get the title in his name but it's free and clean and in his name. Kind of made me feel weird how he bacame to own it but I was told by a friend of mine that's kind of common and as long as his name is on the title and no lein's then it's ok. I'll complete the bill of sale and I think I'm also going to have him go to a bank with me to have the title notirized because on the OHIO BMV site says it should be notirized by both the buyer and seller. I pulled up the vin info on google and it says pretty much the same thing as what I found on the ebay page, so I think everything is cool with it, just wanted to get others advise. I always hate this part of the process "the legal paperwork stuff".

Oh, and someone asked about the car stuff, mechanical, etc. I know what to look for on the physical car stuff. Just a little unsure on the transfer stuff.

[1968SWBBigBlock]

Cincy - I have bought 2 trucks from Indy - that last one just a month ago.
Yes go to a bank and have the signatures notarized - you also must have a bill of sale from the owner to get your title in the state of Ohio
When you bring the truck to Ohio you need to take it to the BMV for an inspection - quick and easy normally 5 minutes - they walk out and verify the color and VIN number on the door jamb.
The toughest question is how to get it home - you really do not want to take the title to an Indiana BMV and get it transferred into your name just to get temp tags - its a pain and expensive.
On one I drove home on the prior owners tags and returned them to him when I got home.
The other I ended up paying the owner 150.00 to trailer the truck to my house (a bargain really)
You can also call an Indy BMV and ask them if they show any discrepancies on the vin number - try a smaller town BMV they are more likely to help, I had to do this on a third truck I was looking at, good thing I did -- on that truck the VIN was wrong on the title - I was told it was most likely a typo and the current owner would need to get it fixed and apply for a new title which would take 90 days to issue.
Just ask real nice and explain the story you where told and tell them you just want to make sure a clean title exists - give them the current owners name =- they may or may not verbally confirm ownership - more likely it will simply be a tip of the hat that the information you have is correct, or they will hint that it has issues like they did for me.