On Thu, 22 Sep 2011 11:26:00 -0400, "Ed Huntress"
wrote:


"Ignoramus10693" wrote in message
...
On 2011-09-22, Steve B wrote:
I would just investigate for this case, and for future ones. I went to
DMV
over a trailer that had no title. They had me fill out some papers that
had
the VIN and explained how I got the trailer, etc. They issued me a new
title when the numbers came back clear. I don't know how sticky they are
on
m/c vins, but I would think an old one would probably not be traced or
even
recorded with as much diligence as a car or truck. The files and numbers
are probably buried by time and inattention. You may be pleasantly
surprised to find you can initiate a new paper trail. And if it is hot,
you
just release it to the police, and after a time, you may have a chance to
buy it back. Again.

Steve, I took a pass on it. It was a messy situation, a dealer selling
through another auctioneer's auction, looks like too much marketing,
too much hassle, and too little paper trail.

i

That's a shame, Iggy. Did you check with the DMV to see whether it would be
simple or not?

I've read through some of the posts here and wondered at how much trouble
some people seem to have had. I've recovered two motor vehicles that had no
title -- both in Michigan, and both in the early '70s. One was a car; they
identified the last registered owner and I gave him $10 to sign a note
saying he'd abandoned it. The other was a motorcycle. It had been written
off for insurance. All the DMV had to do was find the record that it had
been claimed as a loss, and they issued me a new title the same day.

It might be a lot simpler than you think. The VIN or whatever serial number
might be on it should give you enough to check with DMV to see what it's
status is. Then it might, or might not, take only ten minutes of paperwork.
At least you'd know.
Recently, Junior bought a write off bike from his wife's uncle (out of
province) and spent the winter getting it ready for the road only to
discover that this is not possible in Ontario. I guess there have
been too many cars coming in from the east with circumferential welds,
indicating that the front and rear suspension left the factory on
different vehicles, so no vehicle that has been written off can be
re-licence in Ontario. Fortunately, Junior made a profit by selling
the refurbished bike back to the uncle from whom he bought it.
Gerry :-)}
London, Canada