<VV> Spanish Greenbrier scam?

[Jim Becker]

Obviously, I don't know when or how that vehicle was imported to Spain, nor 
whether it was done as a new or used vehicle.  Therefore I have no idea what 
regulations may have been applicable.  However, EU rules on VINs includes:
"The VIN shall be marked by stamping or mechanical hammering on the chassis, 
frame or other similar structure."
Clearly the original VIN on an attached tag does not meet that requirement. 
It is POSSIBLE (not known to me!!!!!) that the serial number was stamped 
into the body as part of the import process.

Those of us in the US that have never been involved with vehicle 
import/export don't have a lot of background on answering why a vehicle that 
might be in Spain has the VIN stamped into it.  A resident of the EU should 
have a better chance of knowing or finding that information.

As far as the "5" vs. "S", it was probably a clerical error by the 
government employee or licensed/bonded contractor that did the import 
paperwork and nobody noticed.  It would be akin to you dropping the digit 
"2" out of the posted VIN.  If the official documents all match what is 
stamped into the vehicle, it is probably best to let sleeping dogs lie.

Jim Becker

-----Original Message----- 
From: Hugo Miller via VirtualVairs
Sent: Thursday, January 09, 2020 10:39 AM
To: Bryan Blackwell
Cc: virtualvairs at corvair.org
Subject: Re:  Spanish Greenbrier scam?

That is very interesting. Why do you say it is clealy not a factory
stamping? The title documents all show a 5 not an S also. Surely it's
easier to switch the VIN plate than to stamp a fresh number by hand?
There is, I believe, a hidden VIN stamping under the chassis. But before
I can check that, I need to find the van!
But there is more to this story. I bought this van on eBay and it was
spposed to be delivered earlier this week. The seller has now gone to
ground. But on Monday I discovered it was listed on ebay again, so I
bought it a second time, using my US ebay identity (I'm in the UK right
now). I am currently stringing the seller along to try & get to the
bottom of it all.
He has posted detailed pics of the van, and of all the documents. He
even posted pictures of himself. I have his address (purportedly) and I
have his bank details. These are very odd actions for a scammer. But on
the other hand, I don't have my van!
I'm planning a trip to Spain next week.


On 2020-01-09 13:51, Bryan Blackwell wrote:
> FWIW, I had a similar VIN issue on the title for our wagon - the title
> had a '2' for the 'W'. It took some work, but I got the DMV to fix it.
> During that, I found that the state will do an inspection on a vehicle
> to provide a clear title.
>
> I don't know anything about the particular history of this van, but
> it could be the tag was removed somewhere along the line, then punched
> in by an agency and whoever did it should have put on their glasses
> first. That is clearly not a factory stamping, and for that matter
> they all had tags anyway.
>
> Also bear in mind that Corvairs were cheap for quite some time, and
> there are a lot of re-bodied ones floating around because getting a
> new body was cheaper than getting a new title. I know today people get
> up in arms over it, but that's the way it was then.
>
> --Bryan
>
>> On Jan 9, 2020, at 7:55 AM, Hugo Miller via VirtualVairs
>> <virtualvairs at corvair.org [1]> wrote:
>>
>> I have attache a pic of the VIN supposedly stamped on the bodywork
>> of a Greenbrier listed in Spain. In case the attachment doesn't
> come
>> through, the VIN is 4R165100689. That is 1265 NOT 126S. It is a
>> beautiful metallic green and fully restored. But there are some
>> puzzling aspects, not least of which is the VIN stamped on the
>> bodyworl rather than on a stainless steel plate, and the 5 instead
>> of an S in the VIN.
>
>
>
> Links:
> ------
> [1] mailto:virtualvairs at corvair.org

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