Buyers beware
 

So last Friday I go looking at a 1969 Camaro that I found on Craiglists here in San Diego. I inspected the car and it looked good all the way around, I even drove it to test it out. I found a few issues that were fixable that I felt the owner should fix before he sell it. While checking the vin plate on the firewall in the engine compartment I noticed that the vin # did not match the vin on the dash board which seemed odd. The owner said he was not aware of any issues because It had been registered here in California, he had purchased the vehicle in Texas. That really thru a red flag in my decision on purchasing the car, because I have read stories were legitimate buyers loose there car because of the buyer not knowing the car was stolen.

Buyers beware

Car Theft in SD has always been high. They strip them down very quickly for parts.

Are you talking about the dash VIN plate not matching the "Trim Tag" riveted to the firewall on the drivers side? If so, that number on the trim tag is not the VIN# so they will never match. That is know as the body number. If you are talking about the partial VIN# stamped in the sheet metal in the cowl/wiper area and by the blower motor then that is a problem.

More info here:
http://www.chevy-camaro.com/chevy-ca...ecode-1969.asp

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Thanks for the info, I was always under the impression that the trim tag on the firewall was the vin #. The guy still has the car for sale on Craiglists so I will make contact with him, maybe I will get my 69 Camaro that I have been wanting forever. Just have to pull the trigger. :thumb:

Good luck with the 69. Post some pics if you buy it. Also, check out camaros.net if you get it. it's a great first gen site with lots of great info and knowledgeable guys.

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I'd call your local authorities with both those numbers first, just to remove all doubt about buying a potentially stolen car.

They would only be able to check the VIN#. The body number is not something they could do a "search" on unless someone documented the two car online at some point and it's found that way. You can usually tell if the body number is not original to the VIN if the dates are not within a reasonable time frame of each other or other issues like wrong year, coupe/convertible mismatch etc. Although, I don't know if the authorities would know that, or how to check/decode a body number on a trim tag. There are lots of show and race cars that don't have trim tags at all. It's like a VIN in that you couldt register or drive the car without a trim tag, not without a VIN plate.. Red flag if it's missing the trim tag, possibly, but it depends on what you are looking to do with the car. One issues with trim tags is there are lot's of classic cars (not just Camaros) running around with fake trim tags that can be installed to make a car appear to be something it's not IE Z/28, SS ect. That's a whole different story.

There are 2 hidden partial VINs that could be check against the dash VIN but neither are easily visible. One the cowl would have to be removed and the other the blower motor would have to be removed. Most sellers aren't willing to let you start pulling their car apart.

All great info guys, if you want to see the 69 look under Craiglist San Diego, it's the red one with black stripes. He is a little high on his price but it negiotable.

Thanks again

ProZ is right, the trim tag is not a "legal" form of vehicle identification. However, Nastyz8 website has pages that will decode the vin and the trim tag so you know what options the car should have. I have a 1970 Camaro and I use that site all the time for research.

If something smells "fishy" it usually is. And there are plenty of other cars out there now. Especially since they are making a "kit car "1969 now. Id another way to go.

Bingo. When I bought my 67, I was able to match the vin on the vin plate to the vin stamped under the dash. I could see it with a flashlight without having to take off anything. Not sure how feasible that is on a 69, but on my 67 I could see it through the vents on the passenger side of the hood.

Good luck!