Technical Vehicle registration question?

I am in a bit of a dilemma I started buying parts for my 1946 Chevrolet truck I want to build. I bought the frame, then the fenders, then a cab then various smaller parts. I'm at the point to were I want to start putting it together. But how is registration going to work out with bits and pieces?

 

Time to call whatever passes for the DMV in your state.

Do you have receipts for all of the major parts?

 

Yes I have a bill of sale for the cab but I bought the cab years ago. So I don't know if that will affect anything?

 

Does that bill-of-sale have a serial number on it?

Does the cab have a serial number on it?

http://chevy.oldcarmanualproject.com/models/

 

Smart to be thinking about it now before you get going. Anything that has numbers on it needs to clear with the powers that be.

 

go here , then click on Alabama:

ww.semasan.com/page.asp?content=tag_title_toolbox&g=SEMAGA

 

Yes both of them have the vin numbers on them.

 

The tag that was on it when I got was from 1975? So I don't know if that was the last tag for it.

 

Call (if you can) your local DMV, and ask them to make sure that the serial number is clear.

A local cop might be able to do that for you. Can't say for sure, as it is not my state.

As long as you have a bill-of-sale, and a serial number that is clear (not reported stolen), you will likely be fine.

I would avoid the vintage vehicle plates.

From the Alabama vehicle code:

"(2) Effective January 1, 2012, no certificate of****le shall be issued for any motor vehicle more than thirty-five (35) model years old. This exemption is applicable on January 1 of each year and applies to all motor vehicles with a model year, as designated by the manufacturer, older than thirty-five (35) years from the current calendar year. Example: As of January 1, 2012, all 1976 and prior year model motor vehicles are exempt from the****ling provisions of Chapter 8,****le 32, Code of Alabama 1975."

 

There is one caveat.

You might be liable for back registration from the date-of-sale, to the day you register it.

In my state, they would try this.

 

bolt the cab to the frame then take it to the tag office.[ they have to see the truck] with the bill of sale.[ make sure the bill of sale is from ala] they will check the numbers and if they are good you can get it reg. just did this in foley ala about 4 mo ago

 

Do not spend any money on it until you have a****le with your name on it. There are cases where someone spent a lot of time and money and had their dream car ready for the road and when they went to the DMV to get a****le they were told it was reported stolen and it was confiscated. Or, a guy shows up with a Cop,****le and a court order for you to surrender the vehicle.

 

I have no idea about Alabama, but I can tell you about Montana. I got a****le for my '35 Ford. I had a frame with a clean number and a notarized bill of sale. I printed a VIN inspection sheet and had a city police officer come by and look at my bare frame and its number. He signed the paper and wrote that the car was "brown"(rust). I sent the VIN inspection sheet, the bill of sale and a lost****le form along with $12 to Deerlodge (the town where the state's prison and DMV headquarters are located) and in about 2 weeks I got a****le back for a brown 1935 2dr Model 48 Ford. The****le is free and clear because the frame was purchased for under $500. If it was over $500, I would have had to post a bond. When it comes time to put plates on it, I should be able to get permanent tags for about $150 and never worry about it again.

 

Excellent advice here. Anyone who puts a lot of time and money in an untitled vehicle is risking losing it all.

 

This is excellent advice but there is another reason to get the paperwork cleaned up as early as possible. Many of the fees are based on the value of the vehicle and you want it to be as low as possible.

Charlie Stephens

 

I only paid $200 dollars for it and that's what is on the bill of sale.

 

When I registered my Pontiac Chieftain. A sheriff had to come out and verify the vin was on the vehicle and it was good.

 

Also, I am sure you are probably aware of this, but not all DMV offices are equal. When I tried to get a duplicate****le on my "T", the office in the next town over (about 10 miles away) was of no help whatsoever. I went to one in the county seat (about 25 miles), and there was a gal there who went out of her way to help me out.

 

I didn't know about this site. Thanks for posting.

 

Ok so I called the local Sheriff Department today and see if they could send a officer out to verify the vin was on the vehicle and that it wasn't stolen. And as I figured the truck didn't show up in the system. But since I am taking two trucks and building one I an going need a new vin made for the vehicle at the DMV office? Has anyone ever had to have this done?

 

I believe that the serial number is only on the cab.

Register the cab you are planning to use.

 

You're in Jefferson county, so they may be more strict than where I live in Fayette county. I've always just carried a bill of sale and got my tag, nobody ever looked at the vehicle for anything. I would use the frame if it has numbers on it to register it with. Sheet metal is considered replaceable. I know they do the state issued vin for kit cars and completely home built, but you are using factory parts with factory numbers, so I don't think you would have to have a state issue vin as long as the frame numbers are readable. It's doubtful anybody in Al would ever check the numbers anyway, but I would want them to match the tag receipt. I run Vintage tags on my 47 Lincoln, buy them once and never pay again.

EDIT: Use the numbers on the cab, not the frame. I misspoke earlier, I was thinking about using a factory frame under a replica {fiberglass} car. As long as the VIN tag on the door frame is readable, you will be fine. Like I said above, I've never had anybody even look at the VIN when I bought tags, they just used the bill of sale.

 

Go back and look at the link I posted earlier on where the serial numbers are.

 

Depends on your state. The SEMA has a PDF that they keep up to date in their site with registration requirements by state. it would not hurt to check it out as well as your state DMV site and maybe even a call to the state capitol.

Tell you a story, here in Missouri the DMV offices are run by whomever gets the concession. The are not very knowledgeable as a rule about the laws governing registration without the proper paper work. More often than not the concession changes with the election.

Anyway I was trying to get a motorcycle registered once that I built from a set of cases. My state used to have what they called a builders****le which was along the same lines as a salvage****le. I did what they told me at the DMV and my application got rejected. It seems that my particular engine number (serial number) had never been registered or****led ( long story on that). So I called the state DMV office in the capitol, the lady on the other end said, " Well you need to apply for an original****le and you will need a notarized affidavit explaining why this vehicle has never been****led." No one at the local office knew that and when I submitted my application along with the affidavit I was issued an original****le. I owned a one owner bike that was manufactured 6 years before I was born. LOL

 

The vin is on a plate on the passenger side of the vehicle.

 

OK, you found out it isn't in the system, so that's good. You won't have to worry about it now until you get it road ready. I wouldn't buy a tag for it until then, if you buy the tag now, you will have to keep liability insurance on it even if it's not driveable or turn the tag back in. I ran into that with one of mine, my insurance lapsed for two days because I missed the payment date, they tried to make me turn my tag in and pay for it again. I had to send them something that said it wasn't driven without insurance, which it wasn't.

 

I don't know if they have****les in Bama. Here if you can you need to****le as soon as possible, if someone else uses your number even if you have the original vin tag in hand you are screwed. you don't have to tag one to own it.

 

No****les there, at that age.

 

now in south ala you have to have the vehicle inspected by the dmv a police officer. to get it reg. i would just put it on a trailer and take it to the dmv .

 

Depends on the county. My county has never questioned or asked to inspect a VIN or vehicle.