Looks like the tape is working. Maybe a heat gun used sparingly might help soften the red paint. I realize the tag/title topic always creates controversy, but the downside can be very real. I sold a model A to someone overseas and it had been titled with the engine number. The car had been titled in at least three states for over 40 years without problems. When shipped to Norway the officials would not approve it for a title there. Yes, they had him pull up the body to check the frame number and it was not the same. He ended up parting out a nice car. Times are different and enforcement is much more exacting than it was in the past. This is the victim - ‘31, hopped up banger, overdrive, all the good updates.
I bought my last old car in 2014 and took it to the local AAA for vin inspection. The car came from Oregon and from the original owner with all confirming paperwork. Two agents checked it out and determined that the vin tag was in the correct location and spot welded from the factory. The Auto Club in So Cal no longer verifies vin numbers because of the numerous fraudulent attempts to register questionable vehicles. Even licensed vehicle verifiers have become hesitant to confirm vins because of the possibility of fraud.
I quit being a licensed verifier (which is how I manage to know and understand these laws). The CA DMV tightened the rules, expressly to prevent fraud. It was already hectic. I was asked on far too many occasions to do something illegal. I refused, but others did not. I get that some live where GTA is less common, and where law enforcement is lax. It is not that way everywhere. California has over 40-million active vehicle registrations right now. That number is larger than the population of the bottom 23 states, combined! We don't have higher crime rates here that most other places, but we do have more crime, because we have more of everything. Many here want to be able to engage in, but get a pass on, the exact same behaviors engaged in, in grand theft auto and felony VIN tampering. Bold, and dangerous, but what makes this worse is that every time that someone from our community gets caught, legislators are emboldened to "do something about this". This has already resulted in most private verifiers being put out of business in California. It only gets worse from here. If you are a fan of having things banned, this is how you do it. We are NOT a lobby group. The insurance companies ARE. They are the ones driving the tightening of laws, and they have the ear of legislators. We do not.
I used one of these red fiber abrasives wheels on my Buick. It cleaned it up very nicely. This was done before paint and it still looks good. https://www.amazon.com/Abrasive-Whe...+nylon+bristle+abrasive+wheels,aps,171&sr=8-5
Not sure what if any of the suggested methods I'll try if the Gorilla tape doesn't remove enough of the red paint. Only thing I know for sure is that the vin/serial number plate isn't going to be removed. Period. Thanks for all the replies/suggestions.
The Jalopy Journal
