47-55.1 VIN for 1949 truck?

[e015475]

Originally Posted by dsraven

I have restored a few insurance write off cars, trucks, motorhomes and motocycles. the inspection facility needs to see the vehicle before it is worked on (detailed pics and video worked here, on a disc or thumb drive).
my project truck is built from a couple of old trucks and one newer truck (frame donor) and when the vin was issued for the new unit the inspector needed to see the pics and bill of sale for all the vehicles. then the old vin tags were taken and a new vin tag was rivetted on the truck cab door jamb. he was also very interested to see the reciepts for parts used. there are quite a few vehicles built with stolen parts apparently.
anyway, it is good to see that due diligence is done for making sure stolen parts are not re-tagged as a legal vehicle. sometimes it gets ridiculous but it makes it harder to sell stolen parts so I am good with that.

I must admit I'm a little spooked to show up at the DMV with this truck asking for a state-issued VIN. My past experience is that they think you're trying to pull something over on them from the get-go and you have to dig yourself out of that hole and convince them otherwise

The guy I bought the truck from has a restaurant in Sedona, about 100 miles from here and I wouldn't think it'd be a problem to get him to give me a bill of sale. The interior shop, AC shop and paint guy wouldn't be any problem to get receipts from either. My build-log on this site has a a pretty good photo documentation and I'll bring that with me to the DMV

Absent of any other ideas from this site's brain trust, it looks like a state VIN is the way to go

I am going to take Mr48 advice and look on the frame rail though - kinda hoping I don't find anything that would muddy the water further

[Rickysnickers]

Originally Posted by e015475

You'd think so.

In Arizona where I'm at, Barrett-Jackson lobbied the legislature a couple of years ago to change the Arizona Revised Statutes (ARS) to allow vehicles older than 1985 to have the ID/VIN plate removed/restored in the course of a restoration. I imagine they had so many problems at their auctions in Scottsdale that it was worth working to get the law changed (the auctions pump a lot of money into the Arizona economy)

I printed the ARS and took it to the DMV in my podunk little town in northern Arizona, and they were ok with a 'restored' ID plate (of course, these were the same folks that I should just stamp the number on the title somewhere on the frame and call it a day)

Even if I did this, it would likely blow-up an auction when a bidder ran the VIN through a decoder and nothing lined up and a simple google search showed it was the engine's casting number

Quite a few years ago, I drug a car out of somebody's back yard in Apache Junction and restored it. Had a good title. In the process of restoration I took an aluminum VIN tag off the firewall and had it reproduced at an engraving shop and riveted back on - big mistake. When the DMV inspector saw that he went back in the building and returned with a claw-hammer and an old screwdriver and informed me that I'd committed a felony and he was confiscating my VIN tag, and if I gave him any crap he'd have my car confiscated as evidence. After some lengthy conversation, the DMV said if they could verify the VIN on the firewall matched the number stamped in the frame and were convinced I wasn't committing fraud, they'd issue a new state VIN. Surprisingly, they let me keep my homemade engraved VIN tag on the firewall, saying the VIN was now state issued and supersedes anything else on the car.

Yes, I know so. Your input here just proved that point. Having the truck inspected by the DMV, state police, or highway patrol is required prior to removing a VIN plate. They could have impounded your truck with the aftermarket VIN plate on it. That said, I'm glad it didn't happen.

[mr48chev]

Originally Posted by RootBeer 6117

This should be were the ID tag is this is the one on my 49 on the drivers door jam. There is a number stamped in it. I was able to decode mine on the LMC web site.

That does him no good as he has a GMC with a different tag on it.

His door post tag should read like this one.

Still the states are getting very strict about altered vin tags. even if they are old GM truck door post tags that it was the norm to remove to paint the truck back in the day. The inspectors here who are closer to Nvrdone than me by about ten miles go over vehicles they inspect on a hoist in a closed room and from experience can tell you things about your vehicle that you never knew.


It was snowing sloppy wet snow today so I didn't get out to check my frame for a stamped serial number.

[Rickysnickers]

After discussions with other mods and admin, this thread is now being closed.