How hard is it to get a title for an abandoned vehicle??? (1 Viewer)

[Chase77]

Out of nowhere today some guy followed me cause i was driving my 62 and then flagged me down in the parking lot to tell me about a 62 he just wants gone from his factory garage. His friend bought it new in MI and 3 yrs ago he passed it to another mutal friend of theirs here in cincy where the tranny went. BUT the guy that found me has no title and was going to have it crushed. So how hard is it gonna be to get a title for this 62 that he is just giving away? I'm going to call the bmv with the vin number tomorrow and see if his story matches up but if i cant get ahold of the owners, how would i get a title? Can I still take possession of it legally and "part" the bitch if needed?

 

[nuclearlemon]

legally, you can't do it without a title....not to say it hasn't been done with the frame going to the scrap yard instead of a junk yard. you have to post a bond against the vehicle (not too expensive, but not too cheap either) and they will contact the last registered owner of the vehicle to get them to sign the title over. there will be other fees involved besides the bond. if you're going to part it, the fees will be more than the rig is worth. if it's a nice vehicle and the p.o. won't sign over, you will have to give the vehicle up, so your purchase money is down the drain. you could easily be damned if you, damned if you don't.

 

[Cookiemonster]

Do a little more detective work & ask some more questions to the guy who flags you down. Find out as much as you can about the previous owner. Name, last known address/city/county, friends....
Heck try www.zabasearch.com anything to track this guy down before tossing money you could potentially loose as Ige pointed out.

 

[AATLAS1X]

Take vin number and plate number to your local DMV and they will give you the info you need. The will send a cert letter to last known owner, if no responce it can be yours with a little paperwork. It will take a little time but hey.......Pick it up and get a bill of sale and then start the paperwork.

Shane

 

[roscoFJ73]

Stiore it at your address for a few months and send the owner a big storage bill.
If he wont pay give him the option of signing the car into your name in lieu of storage charges.
Or just take it and part it out

 

[Chase77]

Going to see it today. Really hoping its something i can flip..... Actually hoping this is a cruiser christmas miracle and the rust has avoided all the body parts I need. Its the same color and that'd let me avoid painting the rig for a little while longer. But it has lived in MI and OH its whole life so I guess there is a really good chance it could be a rolling mound of iron oxide. Wish me luck.

 

[beaufort-fj60]

I'd just call the OHIO dmv and ask them. Just tell them the truth so you can get the right answer out of them.

 

[Bayou_Flyer]

Like Rosco said. You can file a mechanic's lien against it for storage fees, repairs, etc. If the original owner fails to show after a certain amount of time or fails to pay whatever charges are incurred, then you can legally obtain a title for it. Some DMVs won't just give out owner info. In OK, I had to pay a $5 fee to have the clerk print out a last name/address of a vehicle I was looking to purchase from a scrapyard.

 

[Chase77]

Holy POS. Not a single panel that wasn't either rotted or dented and rotted. The interior smells like piss and is stained from oil/grease. Cant open the hood. The frame is s***. The mud flaps are s***. The rims are s***. No wonder its free. Still am going to have them tow it to my apartment though.... I figure the new hitch, the rad, having some extra injectors to have rebuilt and the dash parts are worth it right???





edit: Do I need the title if I am just going to pass it on to a wrecker that will haul away junk cars?

 

[chitown40]

Yes, you can't scrap a car without the title. At least here in IL.

 

[jefferson-mo]

Call the cops before you do anything!!!

Not the DMV....it won't show as stolen until someone actually tries to re-register it

Have them run the plates

tell the truth.........


make sure nobody reported it stolen and has already been insurance paid 'cause it was 'never recovered'

 

[nuclearlemon]

wreckers require titles, scrap yards don't if it's in pieces. axles, trans/xfer, engine, driveshafts....lots of good parts

 

[jefferson-mo]

edit: Do I need the title if I am just going to pass it on to a wrecker that will haul away junk cars?

Not if you're gonna cut it into little itty-bitty pieces and take it in as scrap metal.....


But a body or frame with a VIN will need a title

 

[Yota95]

As long as an auto is NOT stolen,it's EASY to get papers.Google International Title Service.$120- and about 2 weeks and your good to go.I just used them on a junked car with no papers,all of my friends use them on old cars.Works every time so far.

 

[Chase77]

Talked to the guy (that found me) some more today. He called his buddy, the original owner, and he said it shouldnt be a problem for him to get a duplicate title. Im calling the BMV, the cops, and the scrap wreckers tomorrow to see whats the legit way to do this if the orig owner doesnt want to bother with the duplicate title. Still trying to figure out whats actually worth saving on this thing.

 

[jefferson-mo]

Startin' to sound like more trouble than it's worth..................

 

[84yota4x4]

Getting a title really isn't too bad. Everyone makes a huge deal about it but it took me two months to get mine. Thats how I got my 60, it didn't have a title either. At the time I lived in PA. If you know someone who works for a judge or within the court system it makes the process super easy. All I had to do was get some papers signed saying that the VIN was really what it was and then gave that to a freind and she had a judge sign it over to me saying that I was the sole owner of the vehicle and that no one else could claim ownership, even if they had a title too. Then I took that paperwork to a notory and they sent it into the state and a month later I had a clear title in my hands. I found all the information I needed at a AAA store, they gave me the paperwork to be filled out and the rules on what constitues as being an Abandoned vehicle. If you have any questions about the paperwork I do still have it all, just PM me. Oh, and the fees didn't cost me over a hundred bucks. ;p

 

[zebrabeefj40]

Chase,

Let me know if you decide not to get the truck. I can use the parts. If you do decide to pull stuff let me know when you're finished pulling what you need. I'll make the rest go away for you no problem and with no cost. I'll pull off any other parts I might need and scrap the rest. I scrap several cars a year after I pull what I want. Grab the title if you can...no problem if you can't.

Thanks,
Nick Jennings

 

[Chase77]

Nick,

You are exactly the person I had in mind for the left overs. Still not sure how far I want to take this pile of s*** apart though. The wife is begging me to keep it at a minimum.

 

[swampymarsh]

Chase-
I may be interested in a few of the parts as well...let me know.

Thanks
Dave