Buying car with title but no vin?

L

lostj

Junior Member
Hi,

I found a car that I want to buy & I asked the owner for the vin so that I can get an insurance binder.
He told me that the car doesn't have a vin but that he has a title.
He bought the car with no title & got a title after applying for it at the dmv.
I was under the assumption that they assign a vin plate to the car in these situations?
Anyone have any advice?
 
If the owner has a title, there is a Vehicle Identification Number on the title. Most of the time the engine number stamped on the side of the engine block is the V.I.N. for a model T.
 
I would think that it would just transfer to you just like buying any car. If they want to see numbers buy some stamps and put them where they go. If he got it titled it schould be ok. I remember my grandfather buying a title for one of his t's at a estate sale on the weekend and then going down town and getting it put in his name for a roadster he has.
 
Check the vin number on the engine. It's probably the vin number that's on the title. If it's not it's no big deal because there are no other vin numbers on the car unless it's a '26 or '27. Then the vin number would also be on the frame rail and you should be able to lift the floorboards on the passengers side and find it. It'll be just inside the door on the rail. And if it's got the original motor in it then the number stamped into the frame rail should match the number stamped into the engine. And even if none of these numbers match what is on the title it should still be no big deal because these cars are 80 to 90 years old and since new they may have had 2 or 3 engine changes and some of these cars are made from parts from other cars. And the only numbers on the title would be the ones that apply. So if he's got a title and he says it's for that car than accept it, insure it, transfer it, and you're home free. Drive it like ya stole it.
 
First make sure the title is real/legal. The VIN number could be any thing from the actual engine number as it exists in the car to the number of a former engine that was in the car to some thing that was assigned by the DMV. I had a '27 Tudor that had a legit title that had numbers and letters in it. Looked weird but was OK/legit. Also had a '23 Touring with a '26 eng./trans. in it and that eng. # was the VIN on the title. Like I said check it out. Make sure it's legal.
 
You know Mike you're right. When you receive a title from the state they don't notarize it because you recieve it from the state in the mail. I really don't know why I wrote that post. I guess because I thought they were or maybe they were at some earlier time or Geez I don't know. I just had a brain fart at the time. I apologize lostj for the bad info. However all that being said, if I bought that car here in Minnesota I'd still check the serial (VIN) number on the engine and see if it matched, Then if it's newer than a '25 I'd check the frame to see if the number is stamped in the frame. And if they weren't there I'd check to see if they had a plate on the car somewhere that matched the number on the title. Because here in Minnesota if you apply for a title on a non-titled car you have to apply and then wait for the second coming of Christ and watch the mail and if the stars suddenly become properly aligned, And Saturn is in the 7th level of heaven above the rest of the planets you might get a title in the mail. Now before you can apply for the replacement title the car needs to be inspected and assigned a model year and the paperwork gets sent into the state. When the title comes back you recieve a little blue metal tag that can be fastened to the body with a number on it and that becomes your vin number.
 
Thanks for all of the advice, I ended up passing on it b/c of the title thing and a few other reasons.
 
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