So I bought this 53 plymouth off of a friend of mine. he said that the title was with his ex girlfriends mom, and that he could could get it to me. Well, turns out she has cancer , lives in another county , and just all around doesn't give a fuck. So my question is, what the hell do I do. The car is done and ready to drive, But no title. I am sure that some of you guys have done some tricky dmv shit in the past. The car is not stolen but the title is pretty much history. Any Help would be great. Thanks!
The first thing I don't do is build a car without one.... But have you gotten the ladies name and address, maybe swing by and explain the situation, offer her $50 for the title.... Don't let your friend do it as it seems there may be some issues with the ex- stuff.
breedersbar has used these guys and had good luck with 'em. www.broadwaytitle.com i'm in the same boat well kinda. i bought my car when i was 14, 14 years ago for a parts car. at the time i didnt give a shit (or know any better). years go by-my dad "got rid of" the 53. i gave up on it and started lookin for another. after lookin all over for a new project (like i need any more) somehow we found the damn thing again. some old farmer was gonna use it for ditch fill. long story longer, the old lady i got it from originally never gave me the title and she passed away years ago. so im hopin these guys can fix me up too
Title and/or registration re-issue varies widely from state to state. In NY, cars before '71(?) have no title just a transferable registration. The last two projects I did had no papers. I had to file for a new registratin and submit a "pencil rubbing" of the VIN chassis stamp to the DMV along with a bill of sale (for sales tax purposes) . I was issued a temporary-non transferable registration initially, and then after a while (@6 weeks) I received a full transferable registration. Presumably they do a VIN search to check for stolen/wrecked vehicles. I don't know if later "titled" registrations are the same but who cares after '71 anyway!. Powerband
I'm in Wisconsin and I don't know your DMV at all, but I've used Broadway Title twice, it was cheap and easy. Good folks to deal with.
Is the car in your friends name? If so have him go to the dmv and file a lost title slip and they will send him a new "copy" of it! Then every thing else is normal after that! .
The car is not in my friends name. His ex-girlfriend's parents gave him the car. He let it sit for about 6 years without touching it. The girlfriends mom has teh title buried ion the basement 2 hours away! I don't even know if they put it in their name! Broadway title is too expensive for me and could take too long. do rip off the vins and say I built it? or, maybe I should call dmv and see what they suggest?
How long have you owned this vehicle? Who did you pay the money to, the friend or the owner of the car? How much do you have invested in this vehicle? Is the car currently registered in her name in your state? Have you contacted the mom and explained the situation(this should have been done right away)? The answers to these questions will reveal a lot. First of all, your friend may have sold you a stolen car and she has right to possession and may legally take your vehicle without recourse from you. From here the legal problems and issues snowball. Just hope that mom still has a heart and will see it your way. However, if she has cancer she probably needs money for treatment. You may need to pay for it again. Man, I hope this works out for you, just be very careful and you may want to seek legal advise before you proceed. A few minutes with an attorney familiar with these problems would be money wisely spent.
She knows that I have it and is ok with it. She just won't get up off her ass and give me the damn title. She has told us three times she would mail it and never has. She is cool with the fact I have the car, but she is taking her sweet ass time with this shit and I want to cruise my rod. She has told me that she gave it to my friend as a gift and is not trying to take it back or anything.
I would agree with zman about the cash and if it's only two hours away, I think I could make time to go get it. You can take what ever transfer paperwork you need and have her sign it all while your there, problem solved. If I had cancer, I wouldn't get off my ass either.
Since you have been in contact with her I'd try again and offer up a bit of cash. Cheaper than a lawyer. I would call the DMV as a LAST resort. I also wouldn't give them my name.
I have played a lot with titles (legitimate not the underhanded variety). Yahoo Uniform Certificate of Title Act-Oregon and then scroll down to Section 22. It will give you an idea of what you probably have to do. I believe this was adopted in Oregon. You may have to refer back to section 9 and 10 but take it one part at a time and you can probably see what you have to go thru. Also go to Oregon.gov, go to Forms and Publications then to Vehicle related forms, scroll down to Replacement titles and look up Form #7140. I tried to pull it up on my computer but it sent my computer into brain freeze. If there is something you can't figure out PM me, I used to practice law in a prior life.-Jim
Thanks for all the info! I realize I may have been a bit insensitive with my comments about the lady with cancer, but I am pissed she was supposed to give me the title 3 weeks before she found out about it and now I feel pretty shit on. The only thing is , is that I don't want to drive out there and bother her now because of the whole cancer thing. I think the last thing she wants is to bothered with this shit.
Think about this man..........If yer mother had cancer do you think a title for an old car would be very high her "Things I'm concerned about" list? Cancer-title......Cancer-title...... I wish ya luck but some things are more important than others.
what do you want, a title to pop up out of thin air? the best and easiest options are on the table for you, either get the proper title from the lady, or go through Broadway. dealing with the DMV will make the two hour drive or couple of weeks and money to deal with Broadway seem real cheap and easy! if those options are too much for you, than consider it a lesson in buying cars, ALWAYS get the title when you take posession of the car. funny how you say the lady is too lazy to get off HER ass, but you don't seem too willing to "git-r-done" yourself. drive there on a day the DMV is open, give her some cash to dig it out, drive right to the DMV local to her, get the title transferred, done in a day.
your right, that's what I should do. I just wanted to come here and see what you guys thtought I should do. It's a touchy situation you know. Thanks for the info, really. the only reason I got the car is because the friend told me he could get it asap and it was only $100! I feel pretty stupid for doing it that way but I was just lookin' for some opinions on how I should handle it.
Thank God above that you do not live in California http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=92868&highlight=registration Even with a clean title from Colorado (yes I have the pink), and a serial number that matches the pink, it's no go in CA.
Go to the DMV, get all the paperwork she will need to sign. Go to her in person and BE NICE!!!! If not wait until the old bag keel over and get if from her Excecutor.
As Kropduster stated: Broadway Title Company is a fairly easy way to go. I used it on my 53 willys cj3b. About a month after I sent them the payment and form, I received a bill of sale and Alabama title on my jeep. All I had to do was transfer to a Texas title. As long as a vehicle is 25 years old and hasn't been registered in your state in the last year, you can do it on anything.
I am making a gigantic leap of assumption here. If the lady is elderly with cancer, she may be under the home care of a Hospice if she is terminal. Maybe you can visit her and with the nurse from the Hospice or family member as a witness to your honesy, ask if a family member could look for the title in her effects. If the cancer is advanced and if in fact she is terminal, try to set the stage with a family member and after she passes and after a reasonable period of time, approach the family again..... yup, a real shot in the dark here. Honesty and communication are of value.
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