so after quite a bit of research on this, I'm still confused... for a 50's chevy, should the id # on the ***le necessarily match the # on the body tag? The spot where the # is on the ***le says "motor or vehicle identification number", and the # displayed there is not even in the same format as the one on the car. I'm trying to get the car ***led in my name, but the dmv has to send an inspector out to verify the numbers match, which they don't. Where do I go from here with this?
I'm not sure about NC rules and regs but If they allow you to walk in and put the ***le in your name I would do that and then go in and apply for a motor change ***le when I had it running and driving. Pretty normal stuff as far as most states are concerned. Check your states ***le application form. http://www.ncdot.gov/dmv/vehicle/***le/transfer/default.html You can go ***le only and not register it. That gets the ***le in your name and implies that the car isn't running. Then after you have it put together and running you can do the motor change thing when you register it. If the engine is different than the stock engine like a 61 235 it is pretty obvious that you changed engines. If it does have the original but very dead block in it, keep it until after you get the ***le adjusted. But if it doesn't so be it. I was lucky as the p/o of my 48 had gone to the trouble of having the motor change ***le done and noted when he swapped motors in the truck. That helped when I had it inspected when I moved back here from Texas.
What year exactly? Where is the tag you mention? P***. car or pick up? It all makes a difference. Early 50's pick ups had a tag on the door pillarwith a 'body number' that a lot of states used as a VIN. No vin on the ch***is in some cases. California used the engine no., not the body no. as a vin. Don't know about where you're at.
What ever you do, make sure the numbers on the ***le match what is on the car. Insurance companies won't pay off if there's no match.
Like I said the dmv has to send an inspector out to verify the numbers match as part of the process, so its far from a matter of just walking in there and putting the ***le in my name its a 54 belair with a tx ***le from '68. The body id tag is on the driver windshield pillar. Since the formats of the two #s aren't even the same, I'm ***uming tx was one of those states that used the engine serial #?
I believe you are correct in that ***umption. No engine or engine block ? If the inspector knows his/her stuff they will know that what is on the ***le is an engine number.
In calif prior to 1955 in calif ***les used engine # the old cars did not have vin number, they had body id numbers
@ 48chev - correct, no engine/driveline other than rear still in the car. I got the car basically as a shell on a frame and suspension (its the car in my profile pic) so is it possible to get it re***led with the body id #? all you other late 40s-early 50s chevy guys what # are yours ***led as? Are tri 5s the same deal?
people here didnt know that the engine number was the vin number. they told me all that mattered was the vin number on the door post. i said i have no way of getting a ***le for that missouri highway patrol told me i was out of luck then and the car couldnt be ***led. so naturally i bought a blank vin tag for the door HERE... http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/CHEV...r_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item3f0a786aa9 then stamped the numbers from my ***le on to the tag, and riveted it on the door post where the original vin went. p***ed inspection with flying colors. might be a shady way to go, but its hard trying to convince people that the cars vin number was on the motor. especially when the motor no longer exists. good luck with whatever you decide.
yeah I thought of that also, unfortunately I spoke with one of the chief inspectors at the dmv and he made it a point to say that it has to be an original vin tag attached to the body with original fasteners. He brought this up even before I mentioned anything about that. Apparently they've had people doing similar stuff and switching vins on newer cars so pop rivets do not fly
You can get it ***led, they may issue a state ID tag. You may have to do a bonded ***le. Not in NC these days... Yep. You can put it on a trailer and take it by their offices and have them inspect it or wait for them to come by. They're pretty up on the stuff these days so do NOT try and fool them. Ask about ***ling it by the body number, bonded ***le, and state ***igned number.
that was what the inspector I spoke with advised that I should probably do a bonded ***le which is understandable and fine w me, it absolves the state of the liability and insures my ownership interest anyways. I actually went by the tag office and grabbed the bond package yesterday. I think the only hangups I'm worried about now is there is no guarantee that the ***le I have is actually for the car I have which is just one less thing proving chain of ownership, and apparently doing it by way of a bond ***le there is nothing guaranteeing the state will actually grant a ***le for it
If you have AAA see if they can help you out.They have that service here now. Here the state doesn"t send out their own inspector they give you a form and any law inforcement officer can verify the vin. Sounds like the N.C. DMV is getting tight for the dollar.
The bonded ***le is probably the way to go, I haven't heard of anyone not getting their ***le that way yet. AAA has absolutely no way to help in NC. And they're really not tight on the dollar, they're tight on people pulling one over on them.
cool I guess that's the way I'm going to have to end up going then. I'm gonna make one last call to that inspector I spoke with last week just to run the facts by him one last time and make sure I have all ducks in a row before I throw myself to the wolves. But he was a really knowledgeable and reasonable guy, if everyone else in the chain was as cool and understanding I definitely wouldn't see it being a problem And the inspectors come out to verify the vehicle at no cost, it's part of their job.
Most of them are pretty cool as long as you shoot straight with them. It's when you don't that they aren't. Yes it's free, but it's on their schedule. I prefer to load it up and take it down to them, it's a lot quicker for me.
I probably would take it down to them but recently moved here from out of state, sold my pos truck before we moved and don't have access to a truck, trailer or winch atm... plus the car is still at my parents place up in NY so it gives me some time to get it down here before the inspecion and I have a year to get thru the process before the application expires so I should be fine
The body tag numbers just tells you when and where your car was made and body style for the car in question. A VIN tag is totally different and should not be confused with a body number. They will be different numbers and used for vehicle identification only.
In Ft worth Tx you take it to the auto pound--thats where the county sherrifs auto theft task force does the inspections supposedly,, I dont have a good feelin about appathy for peoples possessions from agents of the Govt.
I didn't mean the body production id tag (which on my car is on the p*** side cowl in front of the windshield), I meant the body serial # tag which on my car is on the backside of the driver windshield pillar
In Texas they used the engine number till '56. The body number tag on my '55 looked nothing like that tag being sold on E-Bay. It was a very plain stainless tag. Did that one online match up with earlier Chevies?
Any chance of your Dad getting it ***led in NY in his name? (might be fewer hoops to jump through in that state) then you have a legit ***le in your Dads name that you can now transfer into your name (after "buying" the car from your Dad). As far as I can tell (based on your story) you have a car with no ownership and an ownership with no car. I wonder if it is easier to ***le a car that does not have an ownership, in NY.
Here is the VIN tag on a 56 Chevy, it's on the left (driver's) door pillar. I understand that this was the location for Chevy VIN tags from late 40s up to that..... Maybe a photo of what you say is your VIN tag would help us....
You are most likely correct that the old ***le has the original engine serial number on it as the VIN. A 1954 p***enger engine serial should be something like 0001001 F 54 Z http://chevy.oldcarmanualproject.com/chevyresto/5409.htm A 1954 BelAir body serial number should be C54 F 001001 http://chevy.oldcarmanualproject.com/models/series4.htm What are the numbers you have on the body and on the ***le? Don't post actual numbers but the number and letter sequence. Maybe it will help.
50chevyfrank is on the right track....I have a 51 Fleetline that has a vehicle ID # that is a JAA### which is the old long gone 216 engine number...will try to get Oregon to change that to the body serial number (6JK###)as it would be a problem to sell only if it left the state...they don't have to verify serial #s on in state ***le transfers....
In my state the VIN on the driver's A-pillar MUST match the VIN on the ***le. If not, it's possible to get a builder's ***le or a bonded ***le but it's a big h***le and with the builder's ***le the car must meet 2011 manufacturers safety specs..hard to do with an old chevy. A bobnded ***le takes 3 years to finally get in our name.
Hes right just went through the same thing here in TX last year, but I had the original engine block (was still a BIG h***le). Chevys through 1954 (and maybe 55) were ***led by the Engine SN in TX.
Granted, it's been 13yrs but I had at 54 chevy truck that had no ***le in NC (I also lived in NC). All I had to do is obtain a bill of sale from prior owner and have a copy of the bill of sale for my transaction (all was based on body vin). NC issued a ***le no questions asked, no inspection. Again, this was the late 90's so much could of changed. I've also done this with a few motorcycles.
That absolutely will not fly here anymore. A lot has changed. Bonded ***le takes a little over a year here... Regardless of ***le in his name or not, in NC to transfer it to NC he's going to need an inspection to verify the numbers.
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