Registering motorcycle - Illinois - no title.

[cstreit]

Hey gang,

THere's always a wealth of good ideas here so, whatcha got.

I inherited my deceased stepfathers old 1971 Norton motorcycle. He was in possession of it since he bought it in 1973. After he died it passed to my mom who gave it to me. I have since restored it.

There is ZERO paperwork for it.

We tried sending NY the marriage and death certificate along with fees to the state of NY to get some proof of ownership, but its just been sent back a few times without any real helpful info.

Mom lives in Indiana, the bike is with me in Illinois. The only official Illinois method for lost titles is a 10 year bond for 1.5x the assessed value of a vehicle which would amount to them holding $21k for 10 years. Not doing that.

Vermont has closed their registration loophole. Looking for ideas so I can title this thing.

[Shaun @ Tru6]

Do you know anyone who lives in Maine?

[Otter74]

Have you tried having your mom get a replacement title from NY?

My dad had formally given me my Fiat years before he died, but had also lost the title. When he died, I was the executor and I used proof of that plus the death certificate to get a duplicate title in Georgia in my name.

[3rd_gear_Ted]

I just brought a 14 yr abandoned truck back from Mexico. I used the state of AZ abandoned vehicle form that ask a couple questions and you sign an indemnity statement. $10 check and 60 days later you get a salvage title. CBP ran the VIN @ the border, not stolen.
Gotta be something similar for your state too.

[fastfredracing]

I just heard of a company that helps with motorcycle titles . I believe it is called "dirt legal "
I swear, that I also recently read , that there is still one state that has the loophole like Vermont once had . I believe it was Georgia , but not 100%.
I do believe there is a legal path in a few states, but I cannot remember how the process works .
Vermont title was the best . I probably titled 10 or more vehicles with them, all legally obtained .

[porsche930dude]

NY doesnt keep the old info after 10 years if its unregistered. Its easy to get papers if you start with nothing. But since you are not registering it here I dont think that would work.

[unclebilly]

According to the interwebs…

Alabama No titles issued for vehicles 35 model years old or older
Connecticut No titles issued for vehicles 20 model years old or older
Georgia No titles issued for cars model year 1962 or older
Louisiana No titles issued for cars 25 model years old or older
Maine No title required for cars model year 1995 or older
Massachusetts No title required for cars model year 1980 or older
Mississippi No title required for cars model year 1969 or older
New Hampshire No titles issued for cars model year 1999 or older
New York No titles issued for cars model year 1972 or older
Vermont No title required for cars 15 model years old or older

[cstreit]

Originally Posted by Otter74

Have you tried having your mom get a replacement title from NY?

My dad had formally given me my Fiat years before he died, but had also lost the title. When he died, I was the executor and I used proof of that plus the death certificate to get a duplicate title in Georgia in my name.

Thats exactly what we did. I filled it out for her. Death and Marriage certificate. Denied. No reason.

Next step is probably to see if we can get a court-ordered title in Indiana.