Ken Sungela

Hi,
I'm considering buying a '63 convertible which has been stored for many years. The frame is mint (sandblasted, painted, suspension fully redone, no pitting on anything). It has a '65 corvette motor in it so not a matching number car. Body is all original and stripped of paint. My intention is to sell the chassis and use the body on an aftermarket frame for a resto-mod. Now here's where it gets interesting. The vin is currently a state issued number because of a history of theft/recovery of the vehicle. I can purchase a new VIN tag matching the orginal VIn number that's on the frame for $550. The dealer will then give me all the paperwork to match so i can then get a title in my state with the original VIN #.

1. Is it worth getting the original VIN # for $550 if the car will be turned into a restomod? Do restomod buyers really care about the VIN?

2. I thought the frame/chassis would be well suited for someone restoring their car to top flight status, but needed an all original mint chassis to do so. However, if the VIN on the chassis is not the same as theirs, is it still suitable for a top flight car. So, trying to judge the market price for such a chassis. Any thoughts?

Thanks in advance,
Ken

C2Driver

MiguelsC2

Hitch

There is a ton of illegal in that post..

Velox

oh boy this could get ugly

Ken Sungela

LTMS...you guys are funny. For arguments sake, let's assume everything is legal and fully documented (state police included). Any opinions?

project63

What you are suggesting is not legal nor will the "new" vin tag fool anybody....

Ken Sungela

The state police and DMV are Ok with it. Not every state has the same rules. Some states don't even title old cars. They just go by a bill of sale from a dealer. Can we get beyond that?

62Jeff

I do not think it is worth it, but further - a repro VIN tag will raise a lot of red flags with most buyers, where a state-issued VIN does not. A state-issued VIN devalues the car in the eyes of many buyers, but less so than a reproduction VIN tag that simply raises lots of questions.

I do not believe the VIN on the chassis is a judged item. Market prices for nice rolling chassis are just a few thousand $$.

Jeff

Pop Chevy

I am building my restomod car with a state issued tag. But I really don't care cause I am building it for ME. Are you building for resale or yourself ?

JohnZ

If the car was indeed stolen and was a theft recovery that was issued a state-issued VIN, if you try to register it with the original VIN, it will pop up as "stolen" when they run the VIN. Any reproduction VIN tag is illegal, period.

Nowhere Man

here is the best thing to do. if you buy the car get a clear tittle for the state issued tag and leave it on the car. if you want to sell the frame take a grinder and remove the vin stamping then sell it

Powderboy

My car has a state vin tag with the exact numbers from the frame they said was stolen and created a nightmare for me. The state killed the under dash vin tag and used the frame.

Ken Sungela

First for me, then when I get bored with it, probably sell after its done, so I want to do it right from the beginning to maximize resale value later.