Insight on an old 240z

[z_ya]

The city has come to own a (going off the door jamb plate) 2/72 HLS30-69776 I know there is a z registry but, other than that is there no real way of finding history of these cars? If not can anyone on here give me insight to the history of the car, maybe it is a long lost love for someone on here. I'm looking to buy it and would just like to know a bit more if anyone can help because I will have to fight to achieve a lost title as the previous owner never filed for one. And i'd hate to see this beautiful blue beauty be scrapped :sick:

[jwtaylor]

Can the city get a title through the lien process? How did the city acquire it?

You may need to check with your dmv as to the process in Ill.

[240260280z]

I think police or DMV can run the vin.

Here is a quick general intro to the car model

You can find a ton more here: http://zhome.com/

Welcome to the club

Edited January 2, 2013 by Blue

[grannyknot]

Good luck, could be a great project. Don't seem too eager but make it known that you are interested.

Cities usually just want to liquidate these kinds of things, set a price of what you think it is worth (and that means all of the stuff that it will take to get it road worthy, rust repairs and such, then double it).

[jwtaylor]

A title search as suggested by "Blue" would be smart. You do not want to buy a stolen vehicle. I have heard of stolen cars being returned to their original owners after being restored.

[26th-Z]

The data Blue posted has a VIN error. Up until July 1972 (I think) the serial number was 5 digits, not 6. The six digit serial number began with HLS30-120000 I believe.

[geezer]

Good eye Chris. Also, on the first line they have omitted 6/70 to 12/70 builds or more likely, 5/70 was a misprint.

[26th-Z]

This doesn't surprise me. When I first began the process of restoring 26th, I spent a huge amount of time and money buying the parts I would need. (The whole scheme backfired on me when the economy took a dump in 2008) Back then, buying, say a correct windshield for a 1969 build, was no more of a problem than finding the correct Nissan part number and ordering it. What I found was a very (did I say very? Yes, I said very) confusing part to build date correlation and I think that is where some of the misinformation we see from a reputable vendor like Black Dragon comes from. The old part numbering system was apparently revised a number of times and the updates include missing build months and incorrect serial number ranges to name but two confusing gaffs.

[z_ya]

From what I've been told the owner of the property did not even have a title for it or never filed for one, as much as I love the idea of owning two Z cars bought IMO dirt cheap it may be in best interest to stay away to prevent myself from getting screwed by buying the car then getting caught up in fees and time for a title that I may not get or have it come back as a stolen car. As much as I'd love to have it I don't think it would be a wise idea. I might see if I can just get some parts like the wheels off of it and then kind of just see what i can get off of it.

[z_ya]

Although maybe i'm jumping to conclusions i'm just kind of scared from the stories that I've heard from people buying cars with no titles and then spending a lot of money or just having the car taken away because they did not have the title. I am completely willing to listen to your opinions and advice on this one. I own a 1978 280Z and I love the idea of owning a 240Z along with the 280Z.

[Hardway]

Depending on the laws of your state and how vehicle titles work you may be able to get a bonded title for the car. My questions is, if the city "owns" it why can't you just buy it from them or is it an impounded car? There should be some way to buy it without fear of recourse from a previous owner or insurance company. In my opinion if you are not able to secure such legal security then just leave it be, there are plenty of 240z's out there and this just may not be the one for you.

[tlorber]

Here in California I would first check with Department of Motor Vehicles. If the vehicle has not been registered in a long time, it will be out of their system and there will be no back registration fees required. Then it may be a process of holding a lien sale in order to get clear title. There are people that specialize in this-I just spoke with a guy that charges $195 to perform this process. He said it would take 30 days.