CA ID Number

[benzyne]

I'm about to look at another 911. The one I'm interested in has a CA ID number, and no VIN.

I haven't been able to find any information at CA ID's, so I thought I'd pull from the collective wisdom of fellow Pelican's.

Please school me on this topic. Should I avoid this car?

Ben

[baldman]

I built a chopper in my garage many moons ago and had to get a Cal ID because it was considered a "special construction" and the frame # and engine # didn't match. (Frame actually didn't have a stamped #)
I would be wary and ask specifically if it is titled as a Porsche or as a Special Construction.

[benzyne]

Thanks Andy. I'm super wary too. It's beautifully built up, and worth the parts alone.

[Cal44]

California ID and no Vin? No......go to your room! Just like the L.A punk band "X" song, "I will not think bad thoughts "
Go out ten steps and now it is you that is trying to sell a car with an I.D number and no Vin. You tell me who is going to buy it.
Do not be so needy that you are willing foresake common sense.
What are you looking for?

[benzyne]

I'd like to purchase some common sense. Thanks for everyone's input.

[techweenie]

Good for a track car. Iffy for anything else.

California assigned IDs happen when a stolen car is recovered and the CHP can't find any trace of the original VIN. Basically, it can be titled and used, but if you were to find the original VIN, you'd likely soon after find the original owner or his insurance company.

[benzyne]

Hmmm, I wouldn't like to look too hard for the original VIN then I suppose.

[benzyne]

Anyone else wondering why I might have such difficulty overlooking this one?

[Cal44]

I would like to see a picture of the 58 Bus with P engine.

[914agogo]

the presence of one of those stickers, means the car has been on a lift at the CHP and scrutinized for the cars other numbers....

California Highway Patrol will NOT issue a VIN sticker if they do not find a real secondary VIN on the car and you are out of luck if they give up easy....

I had a 55 Bel air without a VIN tag so I was directed to the CHP and had to make an appointment with officer Zubik to see if this car can be re-assigned a Calif replacement VIN. Even though his master book said where to find the hidden secondary VIN #, 2 hours later, he still could not find it and was about to give up when I pleaded with him to try again ( he finally used a chemical on the north side of the frame and found it) whew!

So when one of those little blue and silver official sticker is riveted and on a car...it means that it has been verified (if they indeed found the correlating secondary factory VIN numbers) and subsequently cleared as not being "stolen" or missing.

I would not have a problem with a car bearing a CA VIN tag only that I would want to be sure the CHP actually did it

[ossiblue]

Just a point of clarification: Is the California ID mentioned by Techweenie and the poster, and the California replacement VIN mentioned by 914agogo, the same thing?

There was a car offered on this board a few months ago that had mismatching VINs which caused a bit of discussion. Later, it turned out the car had been issued a riveted-on California VIN, as described by 914agogo, which verified which VIN was correct--problem solved. So, is this the same thing as the California ID? If it is, I would agree with the assessment by 914agogo. If not, if it is as Techweenie describes, then there is a minefield ahead of any owner.

[914agogo]

yes, I believe we are talking about the same Calif issued VIN replacement tag or assigned tag. It is usually installed in the driver door jam or near the striker plate on a Porsche.

A car need not have been stolen to have one of those... just missing the VIN plate either the A-pillar or the doorjam plate.
The CHP have a Master catalogue of car manufacturer's details of the secondaries, their locations, type sizes, and strike types.

Early Porsches have many secondary numbers however other makes often
only have 2 main ones.
If a car was stolen and no traces of its original VIN were not found, well guess what,
no way in the world would you be able to get it re-assigned or back on the road again. and thanks to their efforts to combat fraud, there are NO loopholes! NO VIN #....NO RE-ASSIGNEMENT. PERIOD.

So if one were to confirm the re-assignement of a particular car thru DMV or CHP,
you can then sleep soundly on your decision to acquire such a car.

It is not as damaging to its pedigree or value as a SALVAGED title, only that a plate was lost/missing/stolen and the vehicle was re-assigned a replacement.