I just received the title for my '54 ford pickup and realized that the VIN doesn't match the plate mounted in the glove box... Did ford use the number on the engine for the VIN in this year? How am I supposed to change the title into my name with no matching VIN? Any help here would be greatly appreciated!

 

There is no VIN on your engine.
Check the VIN on the frame rail usually on the passenger side around the rear of the front fender.

 

Just checked and couldn't see anything, any other ideas?

 

Sometimes, not often, on drivers side. Forgot to say on top of rail.
No other ideas.

 

Thanks fking1, but I can't find it, so I called the dmv's motor vehicle investigator. I'm waiting on a call back now. If anyone else has an idea let me know please.

 

Vehicles were once registered by their engine numbers, but when the engines were changed, the numbers no longer matched.

VIN's introduced in 1948 Ford trucks (1949 FoMoCo cars), register the entire vehicle. VIN's were the brainchild of Les Kelley, the largest used car dealer in the world at that time (Kelley Kar Co.).

Kelley was also a Ford dealer in downtown Los Angeles, on Figueroa St., LA's first "auto row" and was the founder of Kelley Blue Books.

Today only a few dealers are on Fig, cuz the LA Convention Center, Staples Center and their myriad parking lots and I-10 are on the land where many of the dealers were located.

 

i could not find my vin on the frame either.
jus gotta spend your time running your fingers feeling for grooves.
I also took a digital camera with a flash and the numbers popped out.

 

It would be very unusual for the VIN not to be on the frame rail.
Have heard of some not being there.

 

Its there but probably under 50 years worth of grime and rust. I had to use a wire brush to find mine and being hand stamped it was very faint.

 

I have the same problem with my 54...glove box tag didnt match title. I bought a blank serial number tag and was going to stamp the number from the title on it unless I can find the one on the frame.

 

Well I just talked to the investigator and have an appointment for next tuesday. I also went at both sides of the frame rail with carb cleaner and a wire brush but it looks like dad blasted and powder coated the frame. Needless to say I didn't find anything... So I'm going to try the legal route and see where that gets me. Hopefully I don't regret not forging a new plate.

 

on my 54, the vin is right at the front crossmember junction on the chassis rail.
on my 55 it is just aft of the front axle
on my 56, it is just in front of the cab..

sometimes it is ON the front crossmember
so have it under the cab (makes it hard to find for sure)

Sam

 

Ok so I found it under the firewall passenger side, just one problem... I now have 3 different VIN numbers associated with the truck! I can only read 6 numbers positively from the frame - F10D (N) or (1)20. There is a section in the middle of the number that I cant read.

The number in the glove box is F10V5N21047. And the number on the title is starts like F10R -I don't have it next to me so I don't know the whole thing.

My question is for anyone from Idaho or that has an idea of how this will work. I have an DMV Investigator coming over tuesday to look at the VIN, what is he going to say when there's 3 different VIN numbers? Am I going to have to get a salvage title? How long is this all going to take? Any help is appreciated thanks!

 

You may have jumped the gun calling DMV. I would want to see all three complete numbers. At this point you may have miss read one or two numbers. Are the last 3 or 4 numbers the same. You could most likely be ok if two of the three matched. In some states your truck could impounded, suspected stolen. Depends on the investigator. Do you have a Bill of Sale, signed with all necessary information on it? Many do it like Fifty Fourd did. Blanks are available. Good Luck chuck

 

I agree with the above post. You shouldn't have called the DMV so soon. You're opening up a BIG can of worms. It appears that your truck was put together from a few different trucks and a third VIN was used to registered the truck. What probably happened is that the PO, or some other PO down the line, put the truck together and then bought a title and registered it with the purchased title.

As long as none of the VINs come back as stolen, then you should be ok. They'll probably issue you a new state VIN.