VIN location 356

mine was on the hump(tunnel) right in front of the rear seat...it was under a flap in the carpet..its facing straight up..should be easy to find

Thank you so much. I will check it out!

Yup - in the normal location as on a VW (since it is VW pan based).  Check that it matches your title before taking it in.  Some times you have to cut some of the fiberglass to get the inspection plate off. Here's photo:

Some states assign a new VIN and don't use the VW chassis number.  They normally put that state stick in a door opening.

This one has a 5 digit VIN that starts with an "S" that was on is original Florida title.  Your VW pic has 10. Did VW ever use a short VIN like that? I spoke to the DMV in Fl and they said that would have been a ligit VIN for them to accept it. The Auction told me they would have had to see the VIN on the car as well to register it to sell. The carpet is glued down on the hump very well and doesn't look like it was removed recently. It's not on the door post and it's not in between the gas and battery. Any other ideas?

Earlier VW VINs were 7 numbers but never started with alpha character.  The CMC Cert of Origin (COO) was a 5 digit "ID" that started with an S (my classic body - non-flared - starts with an S with 4 numbers).  They supplied a gold id plate like below but builder often didn't apply them -

If it's just for formality's sake, there's a guy in Vegas who makes VIN tags and other helpful items. You can find him on ebay. He stays busy, in case you're wondering if there's anybody else in your shoes.

Sierra Madre has these:  

If I had to gin one up, I think I’d go this route. Any locksmith will have a set of stamps to stamp your VIN into the plate.

That is a SUPER idea!! Thank you!

This is great info. I have ordered several parts from Sierra. Great route to go! Thank you for your time.

@Tommy Brown that looks like a "Special" designation/VIN for a replica from the Florida DMV (I'm guessing here, so don't hold me to it, but Massachusetts assigned a "MA XXXXX number to my replica CMC).   Most states affix a "special" VIN plate to the inside of the driver's door opening - some place that can't be removed.   @Matt Berry might be able to help, as he works for a car dealer in north Florida.  Try PM-ing him.

Otherwise, the original VW VIN should be right where Wolfgang showed it should be.  Bear in mind that it'll be 60 years old under that carpet and might be hard to read.  Sand off that area a little with 150-grit in a sanding block and the VW VIN number should stand out for the inspector.  Shoot it with some clear acrylic to prevent rusting.

Most helpful!. I will try to reach out to him. I bought this thru Mecum and they insist that they would have matched the VIN on the car with the sellers title. If it's under that carpet, there is no way they ever saw it. That carpet has not been touched in years. I restored the exterior of the car, tore it down and repainted it.  I know for sure, it's not in the door jams or in the tank and battery compartment.

Just to clarify.  New CMC kits came with a Florida Certificate of Origin (COO) for the body kit.  It looked very much a title.  For the Classic it had a S-9999 (sequential)  number as the serial number along with the matching gold id plate.  (California flared body was SC-9999).  Been a while and haven't double checked but believe the S-9999 was also the buyer sales invoice #.  To register/title the car in your state: you showed the COO, the donor car's VIN title (the VIN was really the chassis # as a 17 digit standardize VIN hadn't been decided upon yet), along with a folder of receipts for parts (along with the body).  The receipts were used to determine state sales tax - a bill of sale may have also been acceptable. (In FL they inspect the VIN and mileage before titling).

I wouldn't use the Sierra Madre id - yours wasn't built by Porsche AG and yo don't want it title as a real Porsche (especially if your state charge annual personal property taxes like VA).  You can still get the CMC gold plated for their TD and Gazelle cars - but unfortunately not the SPEEDSTER (I checked with MGMagic years ago).

So are you saying, although Florida used the COO as the VIN, I should locate the "actual" VIN and the build and submit that to GA? The officer that came out to inspect the car straight up told me, if I can show him a VIN stamped on the car, that he would except that. That's why I feel it would be easier for get a plate from Sierra have it stamped to match the VIN on the FL title. GA doesn't have ad Valorem tax anymore so I'm not working about the cost. This thing has been a can of worms. I just want to get this done so my wife can driver her car.

Usually Fl - DMV (ha, their tax collector) uses the VW donor cars title so mine is a '71 VW.  This makes it easier to resell pretty much around the world.  An argument can be made that it doesn't resemble a 2 door VW sedan beetle.  Some states prefer for hot rod or special construction vehicle re-VIN assignment (but often it results in them using the current year and not the donor or replica represented year - so emission can be an issue).  You want to keep in mind resale down the road.

I would go to a Trophy shop and have an ID plate made that looks as close as possible to the CMC gold plate.  They engrave stuff all the time. Drill 4 holes and rivet it to drivers door opening.

Curiosity would be killing me as to what a reputable auction like Mecum looked at.  I'd have out my hair dryer removing the carpet glue to see what's there. You could doo something like this after cutting out the carpet -

I used to be fairly hardcore on this when the SEMA states finally came out with titles that allowed us to register our cars legally as replicas manufactured in the year they represented (195X, in this case). I really don't care at this point, because nobody is really very serious at the state level about what exactly it is - they seem to care much more that you can prove that it isn't stolen and that you actually own it.

My only remaining concern with the VW S/N is with insurance, which is a much bigger deal (to me) than the law (which nobody in various state offices or squad cars really seems to understand). Registering as VW involves a bit of misrepresentation, and it could come back to bite a guy in the event of a bad "at fault" wreck.

But if your paperwork has the MCO number as the VIN ot the car, and if the guy from the state said he'd accept that if it was on the body, I'd go with that - because there's no downside and no fraud. He already told you what he wanted - why make it harder than it needs to be? He wants to see a stamp with the number on the title.

That being said, I wouldn't get the VIN plate from Sierra Madre for 2 reasons:

1. That's a re-pop VIN plate. Your car is not a Porsche, and representing it as such is just going to get you in a pickle down the road. That's an expensive plate to affix to the car just for the purposes of getting something on the body.
2. How are you going to explain the sudden appearance of a big-'ol plate, stamped "F Porsche KG" when he already knows it isn't a Porsche.

I don't think there's any need to get an engraver involved, because nobody (outside of us) Knows what a 30 year old CMC plate (often never mounted) even looks like.

Just get a set of metal stamps from Harbor Freight, and a piece of 1/2" wide aluminum strap from a home improvement center. Cut off about an inch of the strap, drill two 1/8" holes in the ends, and stamp the number you need in the aluminum. Rivet the plate somewhere out of the way (I'd put it where the VIN plate is on a new car, or in the driver's side door jam) - and get it inspected.

There's your title/rego for Florida.

Once you have that in hand, there's nothing stopping you from locating the VW S/N and filing for a lost title for the pan. I once had two titles for the same car (one using the MCO number on the title, and one using the VW S/N on the pan). You needn't register it, but having some legal documentation for the pan may make it easier to sell to somebody out of state down the road.

Replica Replica Replica.

I think it's fine to mimic the original if that is what you want, but phoney VIN plates that are copies of Porsche are where I personally draw the line because I don't ever want to have to 'splain dat to anybody.

My car sort of mimics that 60's boy racer look, but even a cursory observation by anybody who knows much reveals that it is faux.

Maybe it's the "2100 Super badge on the back that could be the tip off.

To each his own!

I totally agree with Stan.  The inspector told you what he wants to see ::> A permanently stamped tag attached/riveted to your car with the same number as your existing title.  That's it.  No fancy etched or silk screened trophy store plate, just a length of 1/2" wide aluminum strip with numbers stamped onto it, preferably mounted in the driver's door jamb (just like the VIN strip under the windshield on your daily driver).

If you want to see a CMC tag for one of the "Speedster Californian" cars, here's mine in my door jamb, along with my Massachusetts issued VIN.  My body kit order number with CMC was "SC 1208" and I presented that paperwork to the inspector to show a purchase invoice which was all he wanted to see.   Absolutely no one has ever been interested in seeing that CMC plate except me (and now you!) but I had already mounted it after Wolfgang put the fear of the DMV in me and even they didn't care about it, but there you go.

I still needed to show the inspector the VW VIN on the top of the tunnel, only because that was on the original title before I converted everything to a Porsche Replica, and a new title, a few years back (and he ran a quick check on that old VIN to insure that the car hadn't been stolen).  If your title shows an S XXXX number, that's what your tag should say - Simple as that.

And that's what I'm going with!  Every one has been extremely helpful and now I have a path to go on. I don't care about ever seeing the VW VIN. Besides, who ever glued this carpet down, didn't want it to ever come up. That's for sure!

THAT's the Spirit!

if he was a true SOC r he would use JB weld,,,,friggin carpet will never come up.

Here's an available TD CMC "VIN" plate for $10.  Just stamp your # on it and install.  Can later black out the TD bit.

Badge, Identification Plaque "Classic Motor Carriages" Classic TD - MG Magic, Classic Motor Parts (mgmagicclassicmotorparts.com)

Perfect! Thanks for finding that.

@WOLFGANG posted:

Here's an available TD CMC "VIN" plate for $10.  Just stamp your # on it and install.  Can later black out the TD bit.

Badge, Identification Plaque "Classic Motor Carriages" Classic TD - MG Magic, Classic Motor Parts (mgmagicclassicmotorparts.com)

Talking about CMC in Hallandale Beach; this was the location on US1 many years ago; before they moved to a bigger location further south in Miami. This is about a 3 minute drive from where I live.