Guys,
Looking at a Countach replica. Current owner does not have a title, but no problem as I should be able to get a bonded title for it. Trying to do a title search just to make sure there are no liens or blems on the title first and have hit a wall. The funny thing is the VIN comes back as an '86 GT which should be/seems correct, but the car apparently has no title history. I ran a VIN Check report, had the NCDMV run the VIN, and had a LEO run the VIN and it all comes back clean with no registration records. LEO said it was possible that the car had never been registered but I think it seems unlikely for an almost 40-year-old car. I supposed the original owner could have not registered the car and went straight to the Lambo rebody but seems unlikely as the kit market was probably not very large for the Fieros back then and this is definitely not a show car build. The car's mechanical condition seems to be in a normal used car condition as opposed to a never driven custom. Trying to figure this out and got to wondering if this could maybe have been a Canadian car? The car's mechanicals and interior are still 100% Fiero so one of the things I looked at was the cluster which was in US imperial and not in metric as a Canadian car should of been.

Clusters can be changed though so is there anything else that may indicate this was an export car? A certain export bracket on the engine? A code on the SPID? Anything???

Can anyone run a VIN check in Canada to see if it was titled there?

Anybody else have any logical reason why it would have no VIN/title history?

TIA

There should be an RPO code (or two) on the sticker in the front compartment, that would indicate if it was made for Canadian consumption.
Unfortunately, I don't know what they are, and am a little pressed for time. Don't have time to dig it/them up.

quote Originally posted by Corsair231: Guys, Looking at a Countach replica. Current owner does not have a title, but no problem as I should be able to get a bonded title for it. Trying to do a title search just to make sure there are no liens or blems on the title first and have hit a wall. The funny thing is the VIN comes back as an '86 GT which should be/seems correct, but the car apparently has no title history. I ran a VIN Check report, had the NCDMV run the VIN, and had a LEO run the VIN and it all comes back clean with no registration records. LEO said it was possible that the car had never been registered but I think it seems unlikely for an almost 40-year-old car. I supposed the original owner could have not registered the car and went straight to the Lambo rebody but seems unlikely as the kit market was probably not very large for the Fieros back then and this is definitely not a show car build. The car's mechanical condition seems to be in a normal used car condition as opposed to a never driven custom. Trying to figure this out and got to wondering if this could maybe have been a Canadian car? The car's mechanicals and interior are still 100% Fiero so one of the things I looked at was the cluster which was in US imperial and not in metric as a Canadian car should of been. Clusters can be changed though so is there anything else that may indicate this was an export car? A certain export bracket on the engine? A code on the SPID? Anything??? Can anyone run a VIN check in Canada to see if it was titled there? Anybody else have any logical reason why it would have no VIN/title history?TIA

An easy way to tell (if the gauges themselves are still Fiero gauges) is to see if they are in KPH or MPH, or if things like oil pressure and water temperature look different. The Canadian cars got totally different gauge faces, along with metric motors to drive the odometer and speedometer.


Only other thing I'd say though, is make absolutely sure you don't spend ANY money on that car until you have it titled in your name. It's the biggest faux pas you can make when working on a car... happens all the time. Even if the original owner doesn't come back and say they want the car back (and still has the title and you don't). It's still also possible that you never end up being able to get a title, and the car is basically impossible to title and now the money / parts are mostly wasted. So make sure you get it titled first...

Here in California, if you don't keep your registration current for 4 years, the DMV deletes your vehicle from it's records. You have to start from scratch with an inspection and then they create a new record of the vehicle. That may be what happened in your case.

quote If your vehicle is titled in California, but it has not been registered for four years or more, DMV may no longer have a digital record of your vehicle. Even if you still have DMV-issued paper documentation for your vehicle, you must re-establish a digital record of your vehicle.

[This message has been edited by IMSA GT (edited 11-29-2024).]

As far as the title is concerned, if the car was titled in North Carolina all the current owner has to do is apply for a duplicate title, it only costs about $22.00 and takes 15 business days to get.

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Chuck
86 Fiero GT 3800SC
2000 Grand Prix GTP

The dash is still standard Fiero fare and is not metric, so I am pretty sure this is not a Canadian car. Current owner has never had a title and based on the title search it has never been titled anywhere. The only thing that makes sense to me then is that it may be like IMSA GT said and the title has been scrubbed from the database due to the registration not being kept current. I believe the car came from the Northeast or Mid-Atlantic area. Anybody know if any of the states in that area do this?

Post the VIN # and likely someone here can find some information for you. That's what we live for, .