Can I get a new VIN Plate??

[JJRJR]

Maybe a dumb question guys, but can I buy a VIN plate for an RM21 Post Car for a 69 RR? Turns out that my VIN plate and Title have RM23, but my car is a Post. Not sure if it was a clone as I have no history on the car. BUT, would love to at least have an RM21 plate/title.

Thanks,

John

 

[ACME A12]

I think the short answer is "no".

Also, you might want to further investigate this disparity...as this would constitute something other than a "clone" ...

 

[JJRJR]

Too late now, I'm DEEP into it now.

 

[sixgunrunner68]

:wedgie:
:loco:

 

[69hemibeep]

John you may have a can of worms on your hands. Have you checked the vin #s against the radiator support and trunk rail? If you come up with the same #s its a factory snafu but I doubt it. Has your car been licensed and on the street under your name? If not will Florida require a visual inspection? Where I'm going with this is in Az when you buy an out state vehicle or the vin doesn't check out they run all the #s on the car for theft. Have the shop check those #s before paint would be nice and for sure before the trunk gasket goes on. As far as the new Vin tag no, but the state may end up giving you a new on in the door jam and a salvage title. This could get interesting, but I hope not for your sake.

 

[JJRJR]

I spoke to the former owner. The history of this car is quite interesting. The car was bought in the late 70's by the brother of the guy I bought it from. The brother lived in TX and the guy I bought from in FL, where I live. He got the car because his brother was killed in a car accident. Apparently the brother back in the 80's was going to make a race car out of it, so tore out the whole interior, including the dash.

He says he does recall his brother saying that after how ever many years the thing sat torn apart, that he somehow lost the VIN tag so when he went to put the car back together, he went to a junk yard and found a busted up RR and got the VIN plate from that car, which was an RM23. Then when they sent the car to the guy in FL recently, they had to get a title so got one in TX with the RM23 VIN.

He "assures" me that the car was an original RR, but said his brother likely knew nothing about the RM21 vs RM23 issue, hence the disparity. I know that the car is FAR from original and the poor thing has gone through many versions of "rebuilds" for different purposes. In any event, I have what I have and it's going to be gorgeous. Not doing it for "resale" value, just so I have the car I've always wanted, a 69 Road Runner.

So, all that said, I can either be happy wiith it or dig deeper and concern myself with something that doesn't really matter at the end of the day; unless, of course, I was really looking for an OEM resoration, which I clearly was not. So, maybe I have the bastard child of Road Runners, LOL; but she's all mine.

Thanks guys for all your concern, I really appreciate it. Oh, I already did get a FL title with no problem, with the RM23 VIN.

John

 

[Basketcase]

I ran into this when I bought my '68 Charger R/T in '84. Long before anyone(especially me) knew about #s matching. Years later when I was redoing the car, and the numbers game had started, I found VIN was for a base '69 Charger. The title was for a '68, but had the '69 VIN. when we cut the old 1/4s off we found the original R/T stripe under 2" of mud. Never had any trouble getting it in my name when I bought it, and in Ohio when you bring a car from out of state you have to have it inspected.
As long as your keeping your car, I wouldn't sweat it. just enjoy it.

 

[ACME A12]

As far as the new Vin tag no, but the state may end up giving you a new on in the door jam and a salvage title.

Bob - In FL you can take the vehicle to the DMV for the VIN inspection or you can pay to have someone come out and inspect the vehicle and provide you with a notarized confirmation that the VIN is legit. In either case the process is far from rigorous (I've never seen them look at ANY body stampings) and I can surmise that there are only a handful of states in which it is equally easy or easier to obtain a title for a bogus car. :yesnod:

John - if you have title in hand and you're happy then I would call it a day. Doing anything else will probably ruin your day. Just remember that when the day comes that you sell this car you will need to disclose this chapter of the car's life to a prospective buyer...especially since you have shared it with the world wide web...otherwise you're opening yourself up to some fairly ugly proceedings... :cents:

 

[JJRJR]

I ran into this when I bought my '68 Charger R/T in '84. Long before anyone(especially me) knew about #s matching. Years later when I was redoing the car, and the numbers game had started, I found VIN was for a base '69 Charger. The title was for a '68, but had the '69 VIN. when we cut the old 1/4s off we found the original R/T stripe under 2" of mud. Never had any trouble getting it in my name when I bought it, and in Ohio when you bring a car from out of state you have to have it inspected.
As long as your keeping your car, I wouldn't sweat it. just enjoy it.

Thanks, I agree. I'm over it. Do I wish it weren't the case? Of course, but it is what it is. This thing is 43 years old and has had a hard life. Time to bring her back from the dead and enjoy the nostalgia.

John

 

[JJRJR]

As far as the new Vin tag no, but the state may end up giving you a new on in the door jam and a salvage title.

Bob - In FL you can take the vehicle to the DMV for the VIN inspection or you can pay to have someone come out and inspect the vehicle and provide you with a notarized confirmation that the VIN is legit. In either case the process is far from rigorous (I've never seen them look at ANY body stampings) and I can surmise that there are only a handful of states in which it is equally easy or easier to obtain a title for a bogus car. :yesnod:

John - if you have title in hand and you're happy then I would call it a day. Doing anything else will probably ruin your day. Just remember that when the day comes that you sell this car you will need to disclose this chapter of the car's life to a prospective buyer...especially since you have shared it with the world wide web...otherwise you're opening yourself up to some fairly ugly proceedings... :cents:

For sure. I doubt that I would sell it, but someday you never know. I just want to get her into my garage and start to enjoy her. As you have seen from the many, many posts, questions, and pics I've posted; it's been a LONG road but we are almost there and she looks like a runway model; well, not quite. LOL. Thanks again.

 

[Basketcase]

[John - if you have title in hand and you're happy then I would call it a day. Doing anything else will probably ruin your day. Just remember that when the day comes that you sell this car you will need to disclose this chapter of the car's life to a prospective buyer...especially since you have shared it with the world wide web...otherwise you're opening yourself up to some fairly ugly proceedings... :cents:

that's what I did when I sold the Charger. The fender tag read for an R/T, and matched the rad support and trunk lip. Told the guy that bought it all about it and he was OK with it.

 

[69hemibeep]

That is why one of my first questions was if it was titled in your state, all is good its going to be a cool car. Worst case would be that it was recreated with stolen parts and the state would take it away and the burden of proof is on you. At least over here it would be, they are pretty tough.

 

[A31PKG]

What did they do with the original title? Even though the VIN tag was "lost", I would think (hope) that the original title would still go with the car. As long as the body numbers are still on the car, it would not be difficult to match up the original title to a car with a missing VIN plate. At that point, your local gov't entity (DMV or whomever) could issue a new serial number for it. I'll go out on a limb here, but I'm thinking that "legally" it's possible that you don't actually own your car, but rather the car depicted by the RM23 VIN number currently on your dash.......

 

[challengergary]

As John said, this car was ridden hard and put away wet, repeatedly. All 3 numbers were different - core support, trunk lip, and VIN tag. There was no fender tag. The fenders were replacements as was at least one door. The color under the front inner fender under coating was Q5 but the color on the post pillar was B5. Ironically, the engine VIN matched the VIN tag. When we started tearing into it, I told John about these but we figured since he had a good title and VIN that it would be fine. Never even thinking about the Coupe/Hardtop VIN issue. Now, the entire rear of the car has been replaced, so the drip rail numbers are gone.

 

[JJRJR]

As John said, this car was ridden hard and put away wet, repeatedly. All 3 numbers were different - core support, trunk lip, and VIN tag. There was no fender tag. The fenders were replacements as was at least one door. The color under the front inner fender under coating was Q5 but the color on the post pillar was B5. Ironically, the engine VIN matched the VIN tag. When we started tearing into it, I told John about these but we figured since he had a good title and VIN that it would be fine. Never even thinking about the Coupe/Hardtop VIN issue. Now, the entire rear of the car has been replaced, so the drip rail numbers are gone.

Gary, let's see if you can find me a VIN tag that makes it a Hemi convertible. LOL. Whatever it is, I'm happy with it. 50 years from now it won't matter a damn anyhow. Live life and enjoy everyday the best you can.

J