help with getting a title

[drifter69]

I just bought a 1940 chevy school bus and it is in restorable condition but the guy has no title for it. I need some help! Is there a way to title this thing or ?.

[ac_knight]

Depending on what State you are in there is usually a way of getting one.  What usually happens is you get the paperwork from the BMV, probably online nowadays.  Once you have the paperwork call your local law enforcement agency, and ask them to do a VIN check, some departments charge a small fee for this.  This usually consist of an officer coming out and doing a physcial inspection of the vehicle, running the VIN through NCIC (to see if it reported stolen), then signing off on the paperwork if everything checks out.  You then take the paperwork back to the BMV and they then send or give you a title.  If you bought it off Ebay or craigslist or someone you have questions about, you might ask the officer to run it through the BMV as well and see if anyone has registered the VIN.  This isnt usually done where I am from, but would help to know if someone was trying to run a scam.  It would tell you if they illegally sold they VIN, and who the last registered owner of the vehicle was.

This might vary State to State, but that is how we generally do it in Indiana.

[drifter69]

Thanks, I know the bus has sat where it is for 40 years. I just don't see a vin on this thing. Would they have put them in a diffrent spot on something this old.

[Alaskan_TA]

Go to your state agency as suggested, they will find the VIN when it goes through the inspection process.

[no318]

I am familiar with the process in Nebraska, which includes a certified DMV inspector to look at it first.  I am one, but not certified for that type of vehicle.  I know guys that are.  Again, that is only for Nebraska.

[jeryst]

If you lived in PA, the only way to get a title would be to send away to a title service and get one.
Pa will not give you a title for any vehicle that does not have one unless you can prove you are the original owner.