Ok. We are buying a mini. There has been a lot of hassle cause the vin is 13 digits.(to short) We were informed that we will either be okayed for the vin or assigned a new vin number. The car itself is a 1975, so im hoping that the vin will be ok. What's the likely hood that we wont have to wait another month almost for the vin to be replaced? this car was imported in october and they are just now complaining about the vin. ANY advice would be great

 

Just so you know that cars produced here sometime before the 70's didn't have 17 digits anyway.

My title has a couple of zeros tacked onto the end of the vin but I did not bring it over myself.

 

I have a 65 Volvo that has a six digit vin, no problem here in Ohio.

 

Pinheaded bureaucrats don't realize that old cars are different. If your paperwork supports the vin, what's the problem? At most the state will issue you a new vin and plate to be attached to the car. But, it really doesn't make sense. Guess when your only tool is a hammer, the world is a nail...

 

some states will do that.....which is absurd, but it seems to work for them.....I saw Kansas mini with state vin tag and it's original vin. The original vin was removed to avoid confusion when it was registered in another state.

 

Before I purchased my Mini, I had to sale my 74 Datsun Z. It had a 12 digit VIN and it was imported to the USA by the dealers at that time. Lots of older cars have VIN plates with 12 and some even fewer digits then that. I don't understand how someone at your DMV isn't intelligent enough to know that from the get go. BTW, where are you anyway, you didn't say?

 

17 digit VINs began in 1981. (Look up "Vehicle Identification Number" in Wikipedia. (Admittedly not always a reliable source.)) I would think any state DMV should know this. Of course some of their employees may have missed it in their training.

Up to 1980 most manufacturers used shorter numbers. My 1970 Datsun 510 was "PL510" followed by six digits; but the DMV registered it back then with just the digits.

Keith