[Noah930]

When was the last time the car was registered in California? If within the last 5 years, you can do a $5 search through the DMV for registration info. However, if the car has not been active within the California DMV system for five years, that info gets expunged.

edit: If you want to try that California DMV search, do a search (here on Pelican) for "DMV" and "Grady Clay." There is a thread from a couple years ago entitled "California Vehicle Search" or something like that. Read down to Grady's post about 7 or 8 posts into the thread. He'll explain how to do it.