[David Eidell]

Hi,

I live in Mexico. I have a USA 1995 Spirit. Things are different down here - vehicle I.D. is crucial. Regular highway checkpoints called "puestos de controles" have the PFP or SSP federal cops auditing car registration papers and verifying ID with VIN numbers on the car.

A month ago, I had the car in to replace a badly cracked windshield. When the old one had been removed some idiot tipped over a jug of lacquer thinner and it splashed onto the dashboard and VIN plate. I could have lived with that, but the VIN plate melted sort of. It is now impossible to read.

Early this morning a cop told me "You're lucky we know you and the car and you have the "dical" on the door otherwise there would be big problems for you:.

I know where there is another Sprint. It's motor and tranny are missing, but the owner has the correct paperwork for the car. I am considering buying the junker., stripping out the dash, with VIN placard underneath, and then replacing the whole ball of wax. Labor is a lot cheaper down here.

But the cops know about the door sticker and if you know the Spirit you know the dashboard VIN plate is impossible to read unless the overhead sun is just right. I convince them to just use the door decal.

But if I "hit it wrong" and the door decal is missing or does not agree with the dash plate then I am in a heap of trouble.

My car is young mileage wise and a V-6 which is not available in Mexico and gets 30 mpg and has KILLER air conditioning. Used Mexican cars are misused junk and overpriced like stupid.

Two questions:

The dash VIN placard is hidden pretty well. They're going to have to pull the dash to get at it. Is the placard itself hard to get at or some kind of a trick to change?

Is there some "secret way" to steam off or use some chemical to safely soak off the door VIN decal? Then another trick to get it back on the door and make it look convincing.

I am living on social security so a 2013 is out of the question as is trading my car for a Mexican junker.

my email is

mexbungalows[at]gmail.com

I live in Las Peñas, Michoacan

 

[Jeff2KPatriotBlue]

So, your choices are:

A) Keep driving the legit car with the damaged VIN plate - some risk, but you are in the right.


B ) Tamper with the VIN, in the hopes that your fraud will be less hassle than the current state.



The VIN stickers and plates are designed to be tamper evident, so I would not attempt that. Cops know what they are looking for.

I am not sure about 1995 models, but the VIN is several places on modern cars... if you can show several of them, and if there are a few digits on the plate that can be read, you should be able to convince them.

You might want to get a letter from the DMV to document the damaged VIN plate... or a notorized statement from the shop that damaged it.

 

[David Eidell]

This isn't Maine or Massachusetts, it's Mexico and "notarized" letters are about as useless as it can get. "Fraudulent" is a pretty strong word when I would own both cars. So I junk a perfectly good car? The PFP and SSP are suspicious, and sure as heck if I decided to leave that dash plaque with a few numbers still readable and have no other absolute proof, it is adios car. it goes to la corralon, the federal impound yard, forever. And I go to el bote, the jail. Wonderful, a car that passed the entry into California emissions test with flying colors. Just dandy.

I will live with the degradation and dishonor of deceiving myself and attempt to change the VIN plaques. I was just hoping for some tips.

 

[Bob Lincoln]

I don't see why you can't continue identifying the car with the door decal VIN. They've accepted it so far.

You'll never get the sticker off another car and on this one without tampering being obvious. Then you're really screwed.

There are other places on these cars where the VIN shows, there must be a way to demonstrate that. On my last Daytona, the VIN was also on the underside of the hood on a sticker. Unless the hood has been replaced, that should be good evidence to validate the door sticker.

 

[Dave Z]

Good points, if the police are rational at the time.

Wonder what Mr. Source would say?

 

[David Eidell]

Aduana is SO STRICT, they put the car in the shade and PHOTOGRAPH digitally with a camera the dashboard VIN number. It darned well better agree with the paperwork. At roadside checks many times the sun is wrong and the dashboard VIN plaque cannot be read, and then that's when I have to do the song and dance about convincing them to use the door sticker. If I have to, I'll replace the %$%^&$#@!!! entire door to get the job done. Look, it's either this malarkey or coming up with 8,000 dollars and a long, and I mean a REALLY long search to find a suitable replacement Mexican used car. But I NEED to know about how to replace the plastic VIN dashboard plaque.

Statement Above:

"The VIN stickers and plates are designed to be tamper evident"

How is the VIN plaque, the plate, designed to be tamper evident?. I'll change the entire door but I need that dash plaque changed. I don't need theory or conjecture, thank you I need real-life experiences actual knowledge.

Sure as shootin' they are going to nail me unless I do this. I am not a weekend tourist, I live here and I know how the cops and Aduana operate. What they look for.

Would you like to toss eight grand in the dumpster? Personally I cannot afford to.

And NO, positively and absolutely verified, I cannot go someplace and get "letters, documents, or stickers" that would satisfy highway checkpoint police. Document fraud is a way of life in Mexico and the cops are really hip on this. If I change the VIN plaque I am in like Flynn. The door decal and hood thingamajig are frosting on the cake and not absolutely necessary but would be nice.

How do you change the #%^&%$#!!! VIN plaque on the dash??? ???

 

[Bob Lincoln]

Do you know for certain that the VIN plate is plastic? I have never seen a vehicle that was. Can you check to see if it's metal with paint that dissolved? If so, clean it and you're good to go. I understand your frustration, but we're offering clean, legal solutions that you don't seem to be pursuing.

 

[Dave Z]

How do you change the #%^&%$#!!! VIN plaque on the dash??? ???

Just to add one comment -- an authorized dealer should be able to do this legally. You will need to bring all paperwork. You cannot legally do this yourself, period.