abandoned car title

[SIZE=5]abandoned car title i would like to know how to get a title for an abandoned car the car has been abandoned for 20 years or more and i would like to fix it up.]

  ranch

Hi ranch, what state are you in? The rules and regulations vary from state to state. I bought a 58 Edsel wagon in the mid 80's from some local folks that had never registered the car and they had bought it from a wreaking yard. If I registered the car with the Dept. of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and told the truth about it being from a wreaking yard I was in for alot of inspections and headaches. What I did was, I told the DMV lady that "I bought this old car from a guy that had no paper work on the car. He wrote me a bill of sale and signed it. And then he went home to Mexico... and... he's like gone. I towed the car over to my house on a trailer."
Then what she did was start the paper work going on a new title for me. The first step was to have a law inforcement officer come over to my house and check the serial # on the frame and sign a document verifying that this is the car that is to be registered. Then I took that document back to the DMV and they handed me a new set of plates. :laughing: Check around with some local old car enthusiasts in your area someone will know the ins and outs of registering a no title car in your area.

  Snappydwp1

Basically the same thing applies to Wisconsin. Except that after the officer comes over to inspect the numbers on the vehicle, you submit that document with the rest of your documents to the DMV and wait. They make an attempt to contact the previous owner based on prior registration. If they don't reach anybody then the car is yours.

If they do reach somebody and they say the car was stolen or they didn't sell it then you may not get the car.

They said the process can take up to 6 months but I got my title within 6 weeks.

Good luck.

  theman352001

I got a 1965 Ford out in a field and had a friend run the vin# to find out who it was last registered to. I got the name it was last registered in and I contacted the person and he claims that he sold the car years ago to another person. This person never had it turned over into his name. As far as the state of Missouri is concerned, person # 1 still owns it. He refuses to file for lost title and I can't get ahold of who he sold it to. How do I get a clear title for this car. My email is : rlalma@interlinc.net

  rlalma

In WI you would have to apply for a lost title yourself. They will ask you how you got the vehicle and you would tell them what you know about it including the owner you talked with previously. They would make attempts to contact the owner on record and that person would tell them the story.

Since there is no other owner on record and the old owner is not interested in the car, the DMV would most likely issue the title to you.

This process varies by state. You should go to your local DMV website and research the process.

Good luck.

  theman352001