The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk title help

i may end up needing a title for my truck if this guy doesnt come thru any advice on how i can get one

If he doesn't have the title, I would be suspicious about the truck. For instance there is a happy go lucky fellow around here who uses truck titles as collateral for loans. Unfortunately, they aren't titles to his trucks.

If everything is on the up and up, you can use Broadwaytitle.com in Birmingham, Alabama. Vehicles built prior to 1974 don't have titles in Alabama. Broadway title is basically a car dealership that will give you a bill of sale based on your VIN. In most states, a Bill of sale from a liscensed dealer is all you need to register it. This bill of sale basically says you bought the truck from this dealer in Alabama, therefor being older than 1974, no title. Hope this helps.

I'd stay as far from Broadway Title as I can. They are under investigation in several states for fraud. It seems they issued people antique vehicle titles for modern kit cars so they could avoid state taxes that would have been due on custom built cars. The more I hear about BT the more they look shady. Run far, run fast.

Every state has a process to resolve your problem. With some it's a bill of sale, with some it's a DOT inspection, with some it's a combination. Bottom line is get the information from the people you'll be dealing with. Call your state licensing authorities (where you get your tag) and ask what your state's process is for getting a valid title.

Here in California you can lein sale the vehicle to yourself; this will give you a clear title.
ron

In AZ. I have gotten a 'Bonded Title' for such a deal. You go to your local insurance agent & pay a small fee to him & he fills out this paper that with a bunch of legal words basically says you didn't steal it & anyone has a year to contest it. Take that to your DMV & proceed as normal. Check your ins. agent &/or DMV office for the right /legal way to do it in your state.
Doug

I bought a truck off a farm, the guy had NO paperwork, said the truck was in the barn when he bought the place 20 years back.

My local Motor Vehicle Dept said "not to worry, we have a form for everything". Had to verify the vin number as not being stolen, then fill out a stack of forms. This was a pain but we got it registered.

Also, I found a service that does DMV leg work for auto dealers and that made all the differance, charged a small fee.

in PA as long as ya have a Bill of sale they will issue a new to PA state title ...they prefer the Bill of sale be notorized , but isnt necessary.

Good luck with this. Stay after the seller to come up with the title. Missing/lost titles and other title problems have been discussed often here and on lots of other boards. You could do a search of this site for other discussions. Give your local state's auto title agency/license bureau/DMV/Sec of State/ whoever a call and just ask them what to do. Be courteous and patient.
Aren't old trucks fun!

I've heard about the problems with Broadway Title, but I have used them twice now in Louisiana without any problems. Frankly, no one at our DMV has any idea how to title a vehicle that has no title. There are provisions on the books for this, but no one, not even the supervisor was aware of it, nor did they care to hear about it. There attitude was, get the seller to give you a title. Left with no alternative, I used Broadway Title and would do so again. They've given me good service.

i have used broadway title too. it is sooo much easier than going thru the alt ways here in MO. getting a judge to award it to you. it cost less than $200 and it is easy. if there is any question about it you can usually contact your DMV w/the vin # and they will tell you if it's stolen or if it's so old it's out of their system. if it's that old i say it's fair game and broadway is ok. but i would check first. good luck, hr

thanks for the help where would the vin be at on 1950 truck

There should be a plate on the drivers side door jam. It's about 3" wide and 4" tall. At the very bottom is a stamped number. That is your vin. Sometimes it's a little difficult to read. I've had to use paper and a pencil to make a rub before to figure it out.

Man we go through this a lot around here. Each state is different in some way. Most states used the engine number as the VIN through '55. The number on the data plate was the Serial Number. Again, check with your licensing authority to determine what you need to get your title. It's that simple. If they want the engine number you bring them the engine number. If they want the serial number you bring them that. Many will require an "inspection" to verify the number.

thanks for the help

I just went through this myself. I was fortunant in that here in Arkansas, anything over 25 years old can be titled with just a bill of sale. The old man I bought my truck off of had a title, but the number on it was from the long gone original engine. A signed bill of sale with the serial number off of the door jamb, and I now have a registered, titled truck. Good Luck with yours

Therein lies the reason, I believe, why the practice of using the engine number was dropped. Everyone who's planning on putting a different engine in their vehicle, if they live in an engine number state, needs to consider the ramifications of that change. Their vehicle will no longer bear the number shown on their title. While it'll most likely not become an issue until time to sell the vehicle, it's obvious from the amount of time spent here trying to advise those having that very problem that it WILL become an issue someone will have to deal with.