Legality of rolling back an odometer

[Ricko1966]

I agree, wtf??
Apparently I thought I was responding to the thread where the guy got overspray on his wife’s car! Lol

Nope. This is the thread where the O.P. built his truck out if 30 other trucks and was concerned about rolling back the miles. I told him in Kansas they would check miles, body vin. Frame vin. Engine number and assign him a new title and VIN as an assembled 2021 vehicle. And things snow balled from there. To make it more fun I was at the DMV in mound city kansas today and found out all antique/ assembled anything out if the ordinary now have to be trailered to fort Scott kansas for inspection on certain days and hours. I don't remember what the hours and days I'll call before I go.

 

[75gmck25]

The key point in this thread is that it all depends on your state.

I was surprised to find that Virginia has really simple rules for antique plates. However, one of them is the requirement to prove you own another vehicle, since you can't use an antique registered vehicle for daily use. After I paid the fee, my registration is permanent (no yearly fee) and I don't need to have it inspected.

If I decide to have it inspected so I can get regular plates, as part of the process they make a visual inspection for emissions equipment. At the first inspection place I visited the guy immediately looked under the hood and said "that doesn't look like its all original." I don't think he had any idea of how to do a visual inspection of a 1975 vehicle, let alone a 3/4 ton truck with HD emissions (not much to inspect). I then decided its not worth it, so I'm just sticking with antique plates and no inspection.

 

[80BrownK10]

different states = different 'rules'.

i was VERY suprised at the relaxed standards to meet 'historic vehicle' plates here in missouri.

i'm NOT complaining of course.


i guess some states feel if they are going to give you a huge break on licensing fees and/or inspection requirements, they want proof that what you're claiming is true.

kinda like voter ID.


(in missouri, i'm 'done' with my 85 K20 for life. i don't have to go by the dmv or inspection station ever again.)

I looked it up once. I am not sure how much of a break Antique plates give you. It seemed very similar to regular plate cost. And legally you could only use said vehicle in and drive to and from events such as car clubs, parades sanctioned events, shows etc. It is illegal here to use an antiqued plate vehicle for everyday tasks, drive to work every now n then, even Sunday drives, unless to a car show or car club get together are illegal. Who checks this...I guess if your pulled over and officer wants to press the point. But why even do that to say $10-20 a year??

 

[Ricko1966]

I looked it up once. I am not sure how much of a break Antique plates give you. It seemed very similar to regular plate cost. And legally you could only use said vehicle in and drive to and from events such as car clubs, parades sanctioned events, shows etc. It is illegal here to use an antiqued plate vehicle for everyday tasks, drive to work every now n then, even Sunday drives, unless to a car show or car club get together are illegal. Who checks this...I guess if your pulled over and officer wants to press the point. But why even do that to say $10-20 a year??

I wasn't doing it for any reason other than antique was how I had to legally register this particular truck. Kansas has some weird laws governing buying, selling, licensing, cars trucks and trailers. There's even some pretty goofy laws about drivers licenses. Long and short I HAD to register it as an antique but couldn't with the aftermarket wheels that were on it when I bought.Every now and then it even makes the TV news when some guy gets pulled over in his old hotrod with the wrong engine, wheels etc. every now and then someone will get upset enough to cry to a reporter that thinks it's news worthy. This is funny too, the first time I did a Franken vehicle needs inspection blah, blah, . I asked in advance what all will you need from me, where do I go? Etc. I thought I had covered everything bills if sale etc. Never thought about Speedo Odometer . so on the trailer, inspection is starting the inspector says where is your speedometer. I say no one said I needed one. I thought I was dead in the water 50 miles from home with a beater on a trailer, and for whatever reason I had some Speedo for who knows what? In the truck. I threw it on the front floor board and all was good he just need to write some odometer reading on his form.

 

[WebMonkey]

I looked it up once. I am not sure how much of a break Antique plates give you. It seemed very similar to regular plate cost. And legally you could only use said vehicle in and drive to and from events such as car clubs, parades sanctioned events, shows etc. It is illegal here to use an antiqued plate vehicle for everyday tasks, drive to work every now n then, even Sunday drives, unless to a car show or car club get together are illegal. Who checks this...I guess if your pulled over and officer wants to press the point. But why even do that to say $10-20 a year??

yeah, every state is different.

here in missouri:
i plate the truck with historic plates for $35.00
i never pay anything to them again
i never have to get a safety inspection

i get 1000 miles a year for whatever i want
i get unlimited miles to shows, educational events, mechanic.

so, for my 2nd truck, it's a great deal.



certainly not the same for every state.

 

[dsteelejr]

Coming to the conversion late, but here's my two cents.

The issues involves state and federal law. Your profile says you're in NM and I am not familiar with NM law whatsoever. However, I am familiar a little with California (where I used to live).and Wyoming (where I live now) laws. Neither state requires mileage on a title when applying for title or transferring / selling a vehicle if the vehicle is more than ten years old. Also, because square bodies are so old, the odometer on a square body is most likely not the true mileage because on a vehicle that old the actual mileage exceeds the odometer's mechanical limits and on California titles there is a check box for than option.

Changing out an odometer under federal, and probably most state laws, is not in itself a crime. What if an odometer was legitimately broken and needed to be replaced? You put a new odometer in that reads all zeros. If you wanted to be perfectly square with the law you would put a sticker in the door jamb that states the odometer was replaced what the mileage was when the odometer was replaced.

I'm guessing even in NM they probably don't care about mileages on vehicles this old like CA and WY, but like I said, I am unfamiliar with NM law and I don't even know if they require state inspections. If you are seriously concerned about staying on the right side of the law it may be worth a little bit of money to consult an attorney in your state who knows the in and outs of these laws.

Good luck.

 

[PrairieDrifter]

I'm never moving lol... I didn't really know the specifics of ND but man... this is pretty nice, we have a collectors plate which is basically like most of your guy's antique plates lolol.

One time payment of $10, and personalized antique is a one time $100

I feel bad for you guys.

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[ol-grouch]

Go with a rebuilt title. In most states, salvage is what is used for a car to be crushed. As for the odometer, just put it in. You'll be exempt in most states and just tell people that's what the odometer said when you built the truck. As for the VIN plate, go by your states rules. There are no reproduction VIN plates. Several years ago, there was a vendor at the Corvette meet in Illinois the Feds busted for selling the factory type rivets for vin plates. I bought a '93 pickup once and within 6 months the dash pad started buckling. The VIN plate was attached to it. When they replaced it, the dealership used regular pop rivets.

Your state should tell you what they need. There are so many different rules, go with your home state and other states will usually honor it once it's done. I'm in Indiana and except for Indianapolis and some counties by Louisville and Chicago, we don't have inspections. I've titled and driven some stuff that would send the transportation ****'s in other states heart attacks.

 

[DoubleDingo]

How does that work?? Who makes the decision that a vehicle IS stock, or appears stock? Is there a referee station or people who make these decisions? Who does the research??

I’m not arguing, I just find it difficult to believe the BMV would waste valuable resources on things like that. Of course, the BMV is a government operation.

I guess because one could put a 1946 2 ton truck body on a 1980's frame and try to call it vintage or classic. Saw a setup just like that at a car show. The truck looked like it was a 1946 truck, but he had to register it as the newer truck because of the frame and running gear. He did a great job of fabricating everything to fit, too. He entered the car show with it being a 1946, though. He used it to tow his other vehicle to she show, and entered both.

 

[Raider L]

@AyWaSchMotors,

In Louisiana the only thing that is needed is the vin number on the cab, and that it has everything that it came with in it's place. In other words you have to have a bed on it, and front and back bumpers, doors, etc., the stuff that was on it when it left the factory. They just ask that you put down the miles. Now, I don't know what they would ask if it was "0", you may have to show a receit of some licensed shop that rebuilds speedo's and then it would be okay, but that's a guess I've never heard of anyone doing that. If it was the ten K one they wouldn't ask about it. No numbers have to match up with anything. The only thing about "parts" is if you built the truck from non vehicle parts. And in that case you would have to have receits from every place you bought parts from to build it. Then you'd get a title to whatever you are calling it.

It's Louisiana and they know people have vehicles that are farm vehicles that are never driven on the roads or highways, and people have vehicles that never leave the swamp. In those cases as long as you don't drive them on roads or highways you can build or put together anything you want. Louisiana has probably the most easy inspection laws. I can't think of an inspection sticker that wasn't where the guy checked the lights and the horn and you got the sticker, in the last fifty years or more. The only state where it was tough was Colorado where they actually pulled a wheel and measured the brake thickness, measured the depth of the tire tread, and put a litmus paper in the tail pipe, but that was when my wife and I lived there in '72! Thank God my wife and I left there before we had to have the car inspected again.

 

[Raider L]

In Louisiana if you put together a truck like is being discussed, if you say anything about building it, you'd have to show receits from everyone and every place you bought the parts from. All they are concerned about is whether they are good parts and not hanging on by a nerve, and that the state got their fair share of the profits like from wreaking yards, and that on the receit the part is a real truck or car part. You could even mix and match them if you wanted, they don't care what year the parts came from so long as it's not a tractor part on a truck, didn't fit right and fell off and hurt someone. Like with tires, there can't be any steel cords showing, then you'd get a warning from the shop guy to get some decent tires if you come back to that shop. You can have mud tires on the back and street tires on the front, they don't care. The further South you go the stranger the cars and trucks.

 

[SirRobyn0]

Hello there,
I have an odd dilemma relating a peiced together Frankenstein truck (or a Johnny Cash Cadillac if you know the song lol).
The truck is a K10 long bed.
The frame is from a 76 K10 Cheyenne, the axles are out of a 83 K20, springs from a 85 K30, cab from a 85 C10, bed from a 78 C10, engine from a 74 blazer, trans and transfer from a 78 jimmy, ect, ect. So many different trucks worth of parts it's hard to keep track of.
Anyway.... my question results from me rebuilding and restoring a gauge cluster. The odometer I have says 10,311, but its out of a blazer that was at the junk yard. I dont know the mileage for any other part I have.
I do have a title for the 76 Cheyenne that is the frame, and the title said 98,500 in 1989 when the title was last transferred.
Now, should I match the last known milage on the title, or because I'm restoring, do I have the right to roll it back to 0?
I'm going end up having to get a rebuild or salvage title, and get a new VIN issued for it, but what are the rules as far as milage goes?
Or should I just get it registered as a 76 Cheyenne and tell them that its rolled over from 98,500 to 10,000, and not go into detail about its mutt like genetics?
Any help you all can provide will be greatly appreciated.

I'm going to preface this by saying I did not read all of the pages, and I haven't been keeping up properly on this thread at all. But the answer will vary state to state. In Washington for example anything over 10 years old is exempt from odometer disclosure. So it wouldn't matter here. But like @Raider L said about Louisiana is true here as well.

 

[Matt69olds]

I have had historic plates on my Olds for years. If I remember correctly, the only requirements is I had to have another vehicle registered in my name. The historic car can’t be used as a daily driver.

I have a collector car insurance policy on my car as well. Once again, I have to have another car insured with my insurance company, I think I’m limited to 3500 miles a year, nothing to restrictive. I think the insurance company sent a guy to look the car over, record the mileage, take some pictures, I assume they did all that to make sure what I was trying to insure was actually what was being reported.

I hesitate to say this, but I almost wish Indiana would do a better job of vehicle inspection. I don’t want the emission headaches some of you guys deal with, but I really wish they would get some of the neglected and clearly unsafe junk off the road. I suppose once the DMV gets just a little power and authority, they will never stop. Just get the junk off the road, cars/trucks with bald tires, half the lights inoperable, lousy brakes, barely running, you know, the kind of cars people won’t fix unless they have to.

 

[PrairieDrifter]

I have had historic plates on my Olds for years. If I remember correctly, the only requirements is I had to have another vehicle registered in my name. The historic car can’t be used as a daily driver.

I have a collector car insurance policy on my car as well. Once again, I have to have another car insured with my insurance company, I think I’m limited to 3500 miles a year, nothing to restrictive. I think the insurance company sent a guy to look the car over, record the mileage, take some pictures, I assume they did all that to make sure what I was trying to insure was actually what was being reported.

I hesitate to say this, but I almost wish Indiana would do a better job of vehicle inspection. I don’t want the emission headaches some of you guys deal with, but I really wish they would get some of the neglected and clearly unsafe junk off the road. I suppose once the DMV gets just a little power and authority, they will never stop. Just get the junk off the road, cars/trucks with bald tires, half the lights inoperable, lousy brakes, barely running, you know, the kind of cars people won’t fix unless they have to.

That's a slippery slippery slope.

 

[SirRobyn0]

I have had historic plates on my Olds for years. If I remember correctly, the only requirements is I had to have another vehicle registered in my name. The historic car can’t be used as a daily driver.

I have a collector car insurance policy on my car as well. Once again, I have to have another car insured with my insurance company, I think I’m limited to 3500 miles a year, nothing to restrictive. I think the insurance company sent a guy to look the car over, record the mileage, take some pictures, I assume they did all that to make sure what I was trying to insure was actually what was being reported.

I hesitate to say this, but I almost wish Indiana would do a better job of vehicle inspection. I don’t want the emission headaches some of you guys deal with, but I really wish they would get some of the neglected and clearly unsafe junk off the road. I suppose once the DMV gets just a little power and authority, they will never stop. Just get the junk off the road, cars/trucks with bald tires, half the lights inoperable, lousy brakes, barely running, you know, the kind of cars people won’t fix unless they have to.

As a mechanic in Washington State I understand what you are saying. I once worked with a guy from NC? I think that was where he was from, anyhow in his state there was an annual vehicle safety inspection, that had to be passed in order to get registered. Here there is nothing we can do when someone decided to leave the shop in a vehicle that is clearly unsafe to drive, bad brakes, front end, tires whatever. Nothing we can do. But yea I can see how it's a slippery slope. And since WA has ended it's emissions testing for all vehicles I don't see them cracking down on safety.