Request for Question Clarification by
byrd-ga
on
14 Feb 2004 14:48 PST
Hi lightning222-ga
Although I could certainly be wrong, it seems unlikely to me that a
Researcher is going to be able to provide you with the information
you're seeking. Here's why: under Canadian law, while it is possible
to search (for a $12.00 fee) for the latest or most current
registration and history of a particular vehicle by VIN number, the
information you receive will NOT contain address information, due to
privacy laws. Also, while it is possible to order such a search via
the internet, the information is not available electronically, but
will be mailed and take anywhere from 10-15 days to reach you. Here
is the url of the site for ordering a search from the Ministry of
Transportation:
http://www.tips.mto.gov.on.ca/mto/SRCAT.NSF/HTMLProductOrder?OpenForm&ParentUNID=a08f6ce515a05760852564ee0077be2d
Furthermore, in the U.S. it is not possible to search at all for a VIN
number issued prior to 1981. Your VIN, as aht-ga noted below in his
comment, is decodable, however, and can be decoded thus:
8 = model year 1968
F = assembly plant Dearborn, MI
02 = body type fastback
S = engine: 390 4bbl V8
10796 = sequential production number
You can find this information here:
http://www.vehicleidentificationnumber.com/ford_mustang_1964-1973_2.html
However, even though you can decode the VIN, you still can?t find its
history in the U.S. as there is no central database of pre-1981 VINs,
even if you were to search the records of every state?s motor vehicle
department. As one company, a provider of commerical search services,
states: ? If your vehicle [VIN] has less than 17 letters and numbers,
that means it was built prior to 1981. In 1981, a 17 character VIN was
made standard in the industry. Unfortunately, there is no
comprehensive database on pre-1981 vehicles. You cannot get the
history of these vehicles.? See:
http://cardetective.com/VIN-help.html
If you should send for a report from the Canadian MTO and get a name,
of course there is always the outside chance you could then take the
most recent name listed and try to locate that individual (or company)
by means of additional searches, such as online directories, telephone
directories and/or paid search services (such as
http://www.switchboard.com , or http://www.knowx.com/ ), though until
you try you won?t know whether the person is actually locatable or not
from the information given with the vehicle history.
If you would like a Researcher to undertake this process on your
behalf, and would be willing to accept whatever information may (or
may not) be located as an answer to your question, as well as perhaps
offer to post a tip in an amount at least equal to the fee charged for
the search, perhaps you could indicate that in a clarification. It
might be that someone would be willing to do this for you on that
basis. Or you could just order the search yourself and then decide
how to proceed from there based on whatever information is returned.
Alternatively, I found a paid service in Canada that, for a fee of
course, will undertake all these searches for you, including locating
residential addresses, and standing in line at a registry office if
that should be necessary. Check out their services here:
http://www.legallink.ca/PriceList/pl%20lit%20only%20ver%201.1.pdf.
and their website, here:
http://www.legallink.ca/
However you choose to proceed, good luck in finding your car. What
fun for you if you do locate it! And perhaps another Researcher may
have access to other search strategies that will prove more successful
than the ones I tried. That would be great!
Best wishes,
Byrd-ga
