Non-matching Dash VIN Experience

[shade]

Around 8PM last night, a friend and I got pulled over by a police officer for supposedly streetracing(heard my friends super loud exhaust at 6500rpm). He followed us for about a mile from this highschool and finally decided to pull us over once we got to our houses(our houses are next to each other). Then comes the usual questions and trying to self-incriminate ourselves, he was just going to give us a warning anyway.

Everything went all gravy until he started checking for VINs. He asked me to take my school parking permit off my dash so he can look at my VIN, I told him my dash VIN wasn't going to match the rest of the car since I replaced the dash for another one that I bought from the junkyard. The officer then asks a dispatcher to run my dash VIN and it comes out to be in fact a junked car. He was sorta confused how I replaced the whole dash and proceeded telling me that he can impound my car for the non matching dash VIN. He asked me to pop my hood and I do so so he can see my VINs. The officer was pretty cool about the whole situation and since I was being a good cooperative little boy, he tried helping me out by refering me to a detective that handles such cases. The officer gives me the detectives number so I can talk to him and see to it that I get taken care of and hopefully get myself another identification number the legal way. My friend and I get a warning and the cop goes merrily away.

This morning, I called the referred detective and left a message. He then calls me back and we talk about my problem. He was another cool cop going out his way to help me out by handling my case instead of me trying to figure everything out through DMV with their six months process. The detective is going to call me again so they can look at my car again. He also asked me to email and fax some information such as copies of registration, dash purchase receipt, pictures of the VINs and my car. And so here I am on the computer trying to scan everything so I can send him all my information. The detective told me that he won't take away my dash but will take away the dash VIN and get me another identification number.

Please do not respond with "you should've replaced the dash VIN from your old one" because the nice cop answered me with "you cannot alter or mess with any of the VINs at all because that is illegal." Yes, swapping them out counts. I lost my old one and I was planning to the DMV route until last night happened.

Hope this helps some of you guys out. I will update later and see what happens from here.

[drftwerks]

has happened to me before, got put in back of cruiser, and held for 30 min, before i was listened to, after telling cop to look at all the other vins.

[Bobafreak]

hmm intresting i need to take care of mine as well. i dont have a vin plate period.

[exitspeed]

Sounds like a nice cop. I'm going to just keep the VIN from my old dash in the glove box. That way I can say "here it is. I swapped dashes".

I'm sure different, states, cities, municipalities have different laws about this. I'm honestly not worried about it.

[shade]

^^^Did you get a new VIN?

[dori_sil8t]

isnt there some body shops that are legally allowed to do so. if all the papers and what not are in order?

[racepar1]

You need to go through the CHP (if you're in cali) to straighten it out. I had the same situation except they did impound my car! I have since replaced the dash AGAIN as I changed the interior color from blue to charcoal and the dash I got has no vin plate on it so I need to get that straight before it gets impounded again.

[Bobafreak]

Sounds like a nice cop. I'm going to just keep the VIN from my old dash in the glove box. That way I can say "here it is. I swapped dashes".

I'm sure different, states, cities, municipalities have different laws about this. I'm honestly not worried about it.
Thats what im currently doing right now i have it in my coin stash. I still thought they would hassle me about it.

[Suk02Si]

This happened to me a couple months ago. They will stamp a new VIN plate on you door jamb and they will keep the one on the dash. CHP impounded my car for a week because of this.

I asked the detective what the correct method was, he said to bring the car with its original dash in place and bring the new dash, so they can stamp the new dash or the car itself before it can be changed.

[Bobafreak]

well so much for that i junked it 3 months ago...sigh

[vvtisupra]

you're suppose to take that vin plate off and get a replacement vin plate put on your door. It has been done on my car.

[shade]

Wait, they just stamped your door jamb but didn't give you a dash VIN plate?

This happened to me a couple months ago. They will stamp a new VIN plate on you door jamb and they will keep the one on the dash. CHP impounded my car for a week because of this.

I asked the detective what the correct method was, he said to bring the car with its original dash in place and bring the new dash, so they can stamp the new dash or the car itself before it can be changed.

[BoostedCoupe]

this happened to me not to long ago to. Mine didnt get inpounded or anything the cop was really cool since all the vins matched but the one from the dash. i told him while he was looking at it that it was the wrong one. What would they do if i was away from the car like say in a store and they check the vin for a parking violation. Would they tow it away if the vin came back as a junked car? or would they just run the plates and get the vin and leave me a nice ticket.

[rhs13]

that's crazy. i wonder what they'll say when they see that my car has no dash.

[shade]

^^Cop told me that they would tow it to the impound if it was missing or wrong VIN.

[fromxtor]

I just drilled out the rivets and rivted on my old plate to my new dash.

[exitspeed]

^^^Did you get a new VIN?

No. I crashed my hatch. Took out the nice dash and put the nice dash in my coupe. So I'll just take the VIN plate off the shitty dash and put it in my glovebox JIC.

[yudalicious]

I replaced my dash awhile back. I just keep a document of the work did in my glove box, along with the old dash VIN plate. So far, no troubles with the law, except an emissions place did refuse to do it.

[jackjack]

No. I crashed my hatch. Took out the nice dash and put the nice dash in my coupe. So I'll just take the VIN plate off the shitty dash and put it in my glovebox JIC.


thats what i did as well. never had any problems. sold the car to a friend and let him know what the deal was. most cops are fine as long as you explain everything.

[Suk02Si]

Wait, they just stamped your door jamb but didn't give you a dash VIN plate?

No dash VIN anymore, they kept it. It was my original VIN plate from my old dash that I put onto the new dash. They took it off and stamped a new plate on the door jamb.

[drift freaq]

I have been there as well previous owner of my car replaced the dash but did not swap vins. I was handcuffed and told to stand on the side of the road till they figured shit out. They basically let me go when they realized the car was not stolen and that the dash came back to a junkyard. They did not say they would impound it and they did tell me how to correct it.
This was Rampart ( yup the storied) Division of LAPD. This happened about three weeks ago and they were just actually trying to find anything they could write me up for due to my loud exhaust.

[trsilvias13]

Just carry paper works that trace back to the orgin of the dash. If you have a receipt for it from the junkyard, most officer would easily understand. If you want , keep a binder of paper works in your car to show anything that might be suspicious.

I did that with one of my old car - even include pictures and the cop said I was very professional and knew from just a page or two that I wasnt out there to cause any trouble, over looked my speeding and just told me to slow down. I keep my reg and insurance in the same booklet. Less than 5 minutes of running plates to verify car was not stolen, I was gone.

[drift freaq]

Just carry paper works that trace back to the orgin of the dash. If you have a receipt for it from the junkyard, most officer would easily understand. If you want , keep a binder of paper works in your car to show anything that might be suspicious.

I did that with one of my old car - even include pictures and the cop said I was very professional and knew from just a page or two that I wasnt out there to cause any trouble, over looked my speeding and just told me to slow down. I keep my reg and insurance in the same booklet. Less than 5 minutes of running plates to verify car was not stolen, I was gone.

This would be fine if the previous owner provided me with that stuff. lol

[Jadeskyline]

buying a coverlay would avoid all of the aggrivation.....plus it wont crack like a junkyard one eventually will....

[Sad s13]

im in the middle of swapping dashes and i ask my aunt (she worked for the dmv for 20 yrs)and she said that if you go to the dmv theyll make a note of it on your registation. but i also talked to a guy at nissan and he said to just replace it and thats what they do all the time since its just the standard rivit and nothing special.

[SinisterSntra91]

I just drilled out the rivets and rivted on my old plate to my new dash.

I dunno about you but that seems like the logical thing to do. Like the cops or anyone else for that matter are going to know.

[240love^_^]

No dash VIN anymore, they kept it. It was my original VIN plate from my old dash that I put onto the new dash. They took it off and stamped a new plate on the door jamb.

Interesting.
When did they start doing this?
Ugh. I need to fix mine.
So CHP would be the place to go?

[shade]

One question for you people who have fixed this problem. In the process of taking the VIN off of your dash, did the cops damage your dash in any way? How did they take it off? My dash is super clean, I'd hate to have a scratch on it.:-/

[JRas]

I just drilled out the rivets and rivted on my old plate to my new dash.

exactly, talking to a detective and what not is a waste of time IMO

it may be illegal but they aren't gonna be able to tell it wasn't your original dash

than in the event someone checks it... it will match up and you'll be on your way :2f2f:

[xpl2007]

You touch the Vin in any way you can go to Jail quick! You can call the CHP and find out what they say. The right way is CHP stamps some place on your car.

[da1ndonly]

this had happen to me but mine was stolen and didnt notice untill an undercover pulled up in front of my house when my car was parked outside and i noticed he was trying to figure out whose it was b/cuz my car had paper plates since i hadnt gotten my plates or registration from the dmv then when i came out he was saying that it seemed that i had stolen the car and that he was gonna impound it but he saw the vin on the door and on the engine compartment ran them and he didnt know what to say so he just got over it then i just went to the dmv and reported the vin stolen then they gave me a paper that explained what had happened and to go to the chp but i havnt been able to and i just posted up a for sale sign w/my phone # over the vin and ive been driving around w/that for a couple of months till im able to schedule an appt. w/ the chp.
yeah sorry long post just thought it would atleast help you guys a little

[calico]

this had happen to me but mine was stolen and didnt notice untill an undercover pulled up in front of my house when my car was parked outside and i noticed he was trying to figure out whose it was b/cuz my car had paper plates since i hadnt gotten my plates or registration from the dmv then when i came out he was saying that it seemed that i had stolen the car and that he was gonna impound it but he saw the vin on the door and on the engine compartment ran them and he didnt know what to say so he just got over it then i just went to the dmv and reported the vin stolen then they gave me a paper that explained what had happened and to go to the chp but i havnt been able to and i just posted up a for sale sign w/my phone # over the vin and ive been driving around w/that for a couple of months till im able to schedule an appt. w/ the chp.
yeah sorry long post just thought it would atleast help you guys a little

periods pwn you

[CKAMC]

try calling around to some body shops, when I used to work at the dealer and we had a dash issue and had to order a new one.... we would call around and see if any of the local shops had any of the rivets that hold the vin in place in stock.

basically body shops would pop out these rivets, especially when the car has been totaled by the insurance company, to be used by them selves.

it worked with at least 4 cars that we had to replace dash's for, but the shops would charge a high price for these perfect rivets. I think one even found out the source that made them and had a nice 100 pack of them to resale to other shops.

[landins13]

if you want to contest it, it is illegal for a cop to follow you for more than a mile, its legally entrapment. i had a cop get behind me and i clicked the trip odometer, after about a mile he pulled me over for my exhaust saying do you know how loud this thing is, i said yes sir i do, but do you know that youve followed me for over a mile and this is entrapment, his response was you have a nice night and do yourself a favor get that muffler checked

[Kn1ves]

if you want to contest it, it is illegal for a cop to follow you for more than a mile, its legally entrapment. i had a cop get behind me and i clicked the trip odometer, after about a mile he pulled me over for my exhaust saying do you know how loud this thing is, i said yes sir i do, but do you know that youve followed me for over a mile and this is entrapment, his response was you have a nice night and do yourself a favor get that muffler checked

did you even read what happened?

[Blown240sx]

I dont know how you all deal with it. If a cop said something to me about my vin plate in Kentucky Id laugh at him. Seems to me they really ram it hard with no lube out on the west coast.

[Suk02Si]

wtf, this isn't diffuclt to understand, lol.

The right way:

Before you change your dash, call your local CHP office and ask to speak to the VIN inspector. Tell him that you would like to change your dash. He will ask you to stop by the office with the car, untouched, and he will ask you to bring your new dash with you so he can inspect it.

He will verify that everything is okay with your vehicle and with the new dash, then stamp a new VIN plate on your door jamb. After that plate is on your door jamb, you can then remove your old dash in install the new one. You do not need to remove the VIN off the old dash.

Tampering with any VIN on the vehicle is illegal. This information comes from the VIN inspector I personally spoke with. After he impounded my vehicle, I asked him what the "proper" procedure was when buying a new dash.

If you have any other questions about it, your local CHP office is a phone call away and they are more than happy to point you in the right direction.

[JRas]

You touch the Vin in any way you can go to Jail quick! You can call the CHP and find out what they say. The right way is CHP stamps some place on your car.

how is it any different than when a body shop does it themselves do you honestly think they get it checked?

just don't admit to swapping it out to a cop and you're good :angel:

this is a ridiculous argument, it's so easy to do it yourself and virtually impossible to prove you swapped it urself

stop being vags

[ALEXTHESUS*PECT]

my dash has no vin plate, but they checked the other vins door/engine bay and then gave me a ticket for something unrelated.

[Blown240sx]

how is it any different than when a body shop does it themselves do you honestly think they get it checked?

just don't admit to swapping it out to a cop and you're good :angel:

this is a ridiculous argument, it's so easy to do it yourself and virtually impossible to prove you swapped it urself

stop being vags

Couldn't say it better myself. Hell its two damn rivets.... :goyou:

[HyperTek]

how many of us with modded vehicles wanna take a trip down to CHP so they can do the legal correct vin check ordeal?

[charlie321]

i also drilled mine, and just slapped it on the new dash, but usually when i get dashes at the junkyard, they tell me to take it off before i can buy it.

[Gnnr]

I wonder how this is supposed to work in FL. I know someone who had their Kouki impounded because of this, don't know if he got it back.

[rhs13]

how many of us with modded vehicles wanna take a trip down to CHP so they can do the legal correct vin check ordeal?

my thoughts exactly. i go out of my way to not drive anywhere near the chp station.

[IRN]

i bought a dash that came up stolen. i explained to the cop i bought it off craigslist so no receipt. checked my door jam then checked my under hood. saw my setup and i got a ref ticket. worst case scenario lol. i have to find my old vin!

[0wn3r]

He will verify that everything is okay with your vehicle and with the new dash, then stamp a new VIN plate on your door jamb. After that plate is on your door jamb, you can then remove your old dash in install the new one. You do not need to remove the VIN off the old dash.


that's still hard to understand.. he'll give you a new VIN number not related to your current one or the other dash you bought? If he stamps it only on the door jamb, the dash one will either be missing or still not match up unless that is changed too. IMO, the VIN should be staying with what the VIN # should be with the car so that VIN checks like CarFax can still be used on the car...unless the vehicle history is somehow transferred in the process?

that's a headache, just swap the old one over and do it clean.

oh, and don't buy stolen products.

[vvtisupra]

that's still hard to understand.. he'll give you a new VIN number not related to your current one or the other dash you bought? If he stamps it only on the door jamb, the dash one will either be missing or still not match up unless that is changed too. IMO, the VIN should be staying with what the VIN # should be with the car so that VIN checks like CarFax can still be used on the car...unless the vehicle history is somehow transferred in the process?

that's a headache, just swap the old one over and do it clean.

oh, and don't buy stolen products.


Its the troof. They rivette on a new plate on your door jam with the same vin number as your current vehicle. My dash doesn;t even have a vin plate on it. Plate says "Replacement VIN" and then there is a "control number" below the vin

Looks like this but its for california

http://img58.imageshack.us/img58/9585/vindg9.jpg

[Suk02Si]

that's still hard to understand.. he'll give you a new VIN number not related to your current one or the other dash you bought? If he stamps it only on the door jamb, the dash one will either be missing or still not match up unless that is changed too. IMO, the VIN should be staying with what the VIN # should be with the car so that VIN checks like CarFax can still be used on the car...unless the vehicle history is somehow transferred in the process?

that's a headache, just swap the old one over and do it clean.

oh, and don't buy stolen products.

The VIN# doesn't change. He stamps a new VIN plate that has your current VIN# on it.

[SlideWell]

this subject is NO JOKE. i got my car impounded for 20 days on a police investigation hold after an incident. do it the right way when it comes to this guys.

[KiLLeR2001]

wtf? take VIN plate off completely and if I cop questions you say you bought the car like that... show him your registration and proof of insurance.

don't see how you can lose an arguement if you say you purchased the car as is.

[Suk02Si]

wtf? take VIN plate off completely and if I cop questions you say you bought the car like that... show him your registration and proof of insurance.

don't see how you can lose an arguement if you say you purchased the car as is.

Its probably different in FL. In CA, it doesn't matter if you have proof of insurance, your old VIN in your glove box, matching VIN#s on the firewall and everywhere else. If they THINK any VIN plate on the car has been tampered in any way, they can, and most likely will, impound your vehicle.

My original dash VIN was riveted onto my new dash. When the CHP officer was combing through my car, he looked at the dash VIN and said "these rivets might have been tampered with" and they took my car, kept it for a week, and gave my my car back minus the VIN plate on the dash. The car had a new VIN plate with my original VIN# on it; it was stamped onto the door jamb.

[SinisterSntra91]

how is it any different than when a body shop does it themselves do you honestly think they get it checked?

just don't admit to swapping it out to a cop and you're good :angel:

this is a ridiculous argument, it's so easy to do it yourself and virtually impossible to prove you swapped it urself

stop being vags

x2.......If your dumb enough to admit to swapping your vins on your dash then you should probably go ahead and admit to the copied cd thats playing in your cd player too. Come on people there are some laws that are just plain ridiculous and this is one of them. Its not like they are magic or special pop rivets that only autorized people can have. I can understand if the vin # doesnt match the rest of the car in which case it could be a stolen vehicle, but when your just putting a new dash in the car for cosmetic reasons and all the vins match who is going to know unless you become a babbeling truthful idiot when you see the cops.... I guess its tight out in cali, the cops around here barely walk around the front of the car to notice I dont have a front licence plate much less check my vin #.....

[g6civcx]

when your just putting a new dash in the car for cosmetic reasons and all the vins match who is going to know unless you become a babbeling truthful idiot when you see the cops#.....

I disagree with this. The state has a way they want you to do when replacing any VIN tag. Better do it their way or you'll pay the price.

[98s14inaz]

I just drilled out the rivets and rivted on my old plate to my new dash.

Same here. Rivets and black sharpie ftw, it looked just like it came from the factory when I was done. That seems like a huge waste of time and resources to me involving CHP. Yet another reason I have for never moving to commiefornia.

[sky53line]

I wonder how this is supposed to work in FL. I know someone who had their Kouki impounded because of this, don't know if he got it back.

I have no idea how this works down here as im from naples Florida. I got pulled over for no registration because the DMV was late to do all the title transfer work when i got the car. Previous owner has swapped the dashes and I had absolutely no clue to it. So when the cop checks my dash vin and matched it with my insurance, he said that my car was neither registered nor insured. So my car got towed. I'm then stuck on the side of the road dumbfounded as to what just happened. I went and took care of the paper work and at the impound they would not release my car since non of the vin on my insurance and on the dash did not match. I then put two and two together and told them to look at my firewall. It all matched up.

Honestly though, like the people with brains said, just pop the old one out and rivet it back into your new dash...if you dont admit to it then who else will know but you?

[jspec240]

fuckin californian law!!!!

Around 8PM last night, a friend and I got pulled over by a police officer for supposedly streetracing(heard my friends super loud exhaust at 6500rpm). He followed us for about a mile from this highschool and finally decided to pull us over once we got to our houses(our houses are next to each other). Then comes the usual questions and trying to self-incriminate ourselves, he was just going to give us a warning anyway.

Everything went all gravy until he started checking for VINs. He asked me to take my school parking permit off my dash so he can look at my VIN, I told him my dash VIN wasn't going to match the rest of the car since I replaced the dash for another one that I bought from the junkyard. The officer then asks a dispatcher to run my dash VIN and it comes out to be in fact a junked car. He was sorta confused how I replaced the whole dash and proceeded telling me that he can impound my car for the non matching dash VIN. He asked me to pop my hood and I do so so he can see my VINs. The officer was pretty cool about the whole situation and since I was being a good cooperative little boy, he tried helping me out by refering me to a detective that handles such cases. The officer gives me the detectives number so I can talk to him and see to it that I get taken care of and hopefully get myself another identification number the legal way. My friend and I get a warning and the cop goes merrily away.

This morning, I called the referred detective and left a message. He then calls me back and we talk about my problem. He was another cool cop going out his way to help me out by handling my case instead of me trying to figure everything out through DMV with their six months process. The detective is going to call me again so they can look at my car again. He also asked me to email and fax some information such as copies of registration, dash purchase receipt, pictures of the VINs and my car. And so here I am on the computer trying to scan everything so I can send him all my information. The detective told me that he won't take away my dash but will take away the dash VIN and get me another identification number.

Please do not respond with "you should've replaced the dash VIN from your old one" because the nice cop answered me with "you cannot alter or mess with any of the VINs at all because that is illegal." Yes, swapping them out counts. I lost my old one and I was planning to the DMV route until last night happened.

Hope this helps some of you guys out. I will update later and see what happens from here.

[Gnnr]

Honestly though, like the people with brains said, just pop the old one out and rivet it back into your new dash...if you dont admit to it then who else will know but you?

I think the main thing to watch out for is to not scratch it or the rivets so it doesn't look tampered with.

[an_orange_s2k]

Please do not respond with "you should've replaced the dash VIN from your old one" because the nice cop answered me with "you cannot alter or mess with any of the VINs at all because that is illegal." Yes, swapping them out counts. I lost my old one and I was planning to the DMV route until last night happened.
good to know i was thinkin about swapping dashes

[SiI40sx]

This has happened to me as well 4 years ago. The way I provoke the officer to look at my vins was because I was driving without plates (regardless of being within 1mile radius of the dmv and explaining to the officer that the vehicle was an out of state vehicle, it was sold to me without plates, and I was on my way to the dmv, oh and yeah it was like 7am) and the funniest part of it all was that BOTH vin's belonged to me anyway. The dash on the car was from my old car that was wrecked. He popped my hood to check my firewall vins (and tripped the hell out on all the shiny stuff my pos bugundy 240 had) impounded my car for further inspection on my vehicle to make sure it wasnt stolen.

In the end, apparently the officer said cars have vin #'s engraved in them in more than a couple location (i guess secret locations?) and finally, regardless of my illegally swapped / modified sr powered 240, they actually gave it back to me. Hmm I wonder if they'll do the same now???

[Suk02Si]

You're not in CA, are you? lol.

[los_inc]

I just drilled out the rivets and rivted on my old plate to my new dash.
exactly kids are just lazy and forget about the details
-los

[SiI40sx]

You're not in CA, are you? lol.

Actually I am, and it was montebello pd that impounded my car. I was shitting it soooooo bad thinking I wasnt gonna get my car back because of my motor.

[BustedS13]

one time i got pulled over doing about 85 in a 60. forgot my wallet at home. cop notices there's no VIN on my dash (i had hot glued it in place, it fell off, i needed to rivet it back in place). so he asks to look at the VIN on my doorjamb. Maaco painted over it because they're fucking clowns. and as bad as all this looked, he still looked up my license on his computer and let me go with a warning.

...anyway. rivet that shit to your new dash and be done with it

[Suk02Si]

Actually I am, and it was montebello pd that impounded my car. I was shitting it soooooo bad thinking I wasnt gonna get my car back because of my motor.

hahha, crazy. You're one of the lucky ones :wtc:

[0wn3r]

Its the troof. They rivette on a new plate on your door jam with the same vin number as your current vehicle


You're telling me they replace the VIN # on your door jam, with the same exact VIN # that's already on the jam, despite it still not matching the one on your swapped dash?

Dude, still not making sense.

[1CLNS14]

Wow can't belive its such a big deal to swap your old vin to a new dash? doesnt make sense. Were I work we have done countless dashes and stock the vin rivets? It's not hard to go to your local dealer and order them up, Nissan has the part numbers and cost about a buck a pop? I know alot of poeple are cheap and call the dealer the "stealership" but why go thru all the hasle? I mean think about it say you buy a "new" car, your dash starts to warp or bubble up for some strange reason. The dealer will change it out if warrenty permit's and they will order a new one, have it swaped out vin plate and all. they dont call up no CHP, or no damn bodyshop!? they make less money if they sublet it out to someone else.
Infact i just looked them up here is the part number= "00603-20930" retail 95 cents each! now if you dont have your old vin plate then I understand having to go to the chp but if you have your old one just take care of it while your already there :) goodluck getting everything straighted out.

[Pacman]

If your dumb enough to admit to swapping your vins on your dash then you should probably go ahead and admit to the copied cd thats playing in your cd player too.
Thats just funny shat right there.

Aren't they just black rivets? Can't you buy them at a freakin' hardware store? Hell, a part number is right there. And, what about work under the dash where you have to remove it? If the plate gets scratched in the process it automatically is an accusation of "tampering"?

I'm cool with have CHP punch holes in my car, I'll just swap VIN's. They're old cars, who knows the history of them.