....At what point does a vehicle lose it's year?

[Geno]

At what point does a vehicle lose it's year? What I mean by that is..Besides what the DMV paperwork says, if I replaced my 68' gmc pickup with a 2005 454 big block, custom front and rear lights, higher tech dash display, a racing tranmisson, and removed all original molding and replaced the frame..basically creating a new vehicle leaving nothing left on it original,what would constitute calling it a 68 ?

[raggedjim]

The title with the vin number and the matching vin on the door frame. Most states don't check the frame vin anyway (If they did alot of trucks would never get registered because of frame swaps over the past 30 years...)

Rg

[cochran63]

i thought the 2005 big blocks were 496? Here in oklahoma they dont even check teh vin plate on vehicles...

[kndall]

Generally they do not check them, but by law they have the right to do so. I guess it depends if you are acting suspicious about it. I know a couple of people that work for the tax commision that do title inspections on cars titled in other states and owners either moving into ok needing an Ok title or vehicles purchased in other states and titling in OK.

[1STtimePRo'71]

Why would you want to do all of that work, and then tell people that it's a 68? You dont like the truck the way it is?

[raggedjim]

It is easier to maintain the original vin. New "kit" and cars built from scratch (Boyd or Foose) have to pass a complete inspection and it is pretty tough. Also by maintaining the original vin the vehicle may be exempted from smog testing and such.

Every state varies, but most older vehicles can be modified with out getting into legal problems, whereas newer vehicles have smog, bumper, etc. regulations that come into play.

I had a 40 Plymouth in Virginia and the inspection consisted of making sure the blinkers worked and the windows rolled up! It didn't have to have seat belts or a horn or much of anything else...

Rg

[Longhorn Man]

if it was a 1940, then it wasn't required to have turn signals either.

[dwaite72lnghrn]

In PA it is the VIN tag on the cab. Once a year we go through state inspections and the inspection station is require to verify the VIN tag with the registration paper to verify they are the same. Here you must conform to all emisson and safety requirements as of the year manufactured. This is for standard registration not classic/collectable/antique. When you get into those tags special rules fall into place.
If you replace more than 50% of the original parts (sheet metal) with different years or fiber glass you may need to go through a complete frame up certification and it could be registered as a reconstructed.
Classic is original only minor changes.
Collectable basic frame/sheet metal major engine/trans changes.
Antique complete as shipped from the factory 21 years or older.

[longhorn71]

here even if you swap the body to a brand new truck frame.It year is what ever the cab vin number states it is.The vehicle needs to only match the safety standards for the year that the vin says it was made.

[Geno]

Whoe, I wasn't going to hack MY truck up like that. It's just one time at route 66 I saw a big ass phat Bonnie and Clyde mafia type car that was slammed to the ground and it turn out to be a combination of vehicles but it's starting base was a 1921 fire-truck so I wondered what he registered at the dmv as. I guess with the info above, if any remaining factory stamped parts (frame,cab etc.) are left on the vehicle then that is what it's based on.