ahtublao

this might be in the wrong place/section. please move it if so....but i just bought my wife an 04 civic ex sedan auto trans with about 136k miles. the car has a salvaged title. it was hit in the rear but it has all been repaired and painted new. before i bought it, i had asked the seller if it needed to go through CHP inspection and he said no it didn't and all i had to do was go into dmv and get it registered. so without knowing that it did need a chp inspection, i bought it cause it ran way better then my old 05 civic ex (which was a lemon) and after going to DMV to get it registered, damn right the dmv guy said that my new car needed to go for a CHP Vin Verification and brake and lamp inspection. I know it will pass the brake and lamp with no problems cause all the lights work properly but for the CHP verification, i must have receipts for the parts that were replaced. I dont know what has been replaced besides the rear bumper cover and left tail light. I tried to contact the seller but he has pretty much disappeared and did not provide me with any receipt for the parts that were replaced, nor an actual name. I pretty much screwed myself on this buy and i dont know why as i am always cautious about scammers. but i cant do nothing about it anymore...this is my car now.....im left with a car with 50/50 chance of getting it on the road so my question is

1. To get it on the road, the car must have matching vins or receipts for the parts that were repaired. There is vins on hood, fenders, trunk, dash, except front bumper and rear bumper cover. front bumper looks like its is the original for sure cause it has a lot of rock chips and bug tar but somehow i dont see it anywhere. Will it be okay if i provided receipts from paypal for the front and rear bumper covers to pass the Vin verification? (im planning on buying them off ebay then just use that receipt as proof but not sure if CHP will consider into that as proof.)

2. the left tail light looks like it has been replaced, would i need a receipt for that too? but tail lights dont have vin #s??

Man its been so much emotional stress that i just can't think of no where else to turn to except the great people on here. please help me if you can. I really want this thing road happy for my wife. I appreciate you taking the time reading this and thank you in advance. please let me know if you have any ideas, suggestions, or have been through this before.

lazlong

If your gonna have to get receipts try http://www.picknpull.com/default.aspx or http://www.certifit.com/locations.aspx, they might be cheaper.

Your good with the tail light, they don't have VIN stickers.

Do you have any mechanic/auto body friends or a trusted mechanic that would inspect and write you a receipt, maybe for a small fee?

ahtublao

hey lazlong,

thanks for the response. unfortunately at this time, pick-n-pull doesn't have these newer cars yet in their yard so i cant get a receipt from there. it'll have to be from a salvaged dismantler place but their prices are about the same with ebay except on ebay, its brand new and not used. So I was wondering if i printed out a receipt from paypal, would that pass CHP?

I dont have a mechanic or autobody shop friend that will write me a receipt.


Does anybody have a print out of where every vin is located on these 04-05 civic 4drs? I want to be prepared for this and show any kind of receipts needed next month when i have to take it in for the vin verification. T.I.A.

It Wasn't Me

If the parts you're looking to buy are pre-painted - I'd buy and install them, and sell what you currently have to recover the purchase cost. Then take the receipts to your inspection and hope for the best.


The main VIN's to worry about are likely the only one's they're concerned with. That would be the one stamped in the body, inside the engine bay, behind the air filter housing. The other is on the driver's side of the dashboard, behind the windshield. Everything else is only marked with stickers.

I don't know if they'll even bother inspecting all of the VIN stickers. Sometimes body panels need to be replaced for reasons other than an accident, and they don't come with VIN stickers on them. An example of this would be if you tried to install your own side-marker lights and cut the hole too big or in the wrong spot, then replaced the fender with an aftermarket one.



I'd hate to be in the spot you're in, although it's not a difficult one to get out of.

Best of luck.

ahtublao

Hey thanks for the response It Wasn't Me. yeah it seriously sucks to be in the situation right now and i hope no one ever goes through it. i guess im just going to buy a new bumper cover from ebay and hope for the best on the inspection. i will post back on this after the inspection is done.

bimmerm325

Ugh, I'm going thru the same thing right now. This past weekend I purchased a salvage title 2007 Prius (salvage due to theft from what I was told). The seller told me that all I needed to do was bring it to the DMV and at most pay for transfer fees. I took it yesterday and I discovered that I need the brake & light certificate plus inspection by the CHP. Luckily I'm still keeping in contact with the seller and he's telling me that when I take it to the CHP I just need to tell them that it was salvage due to theft and that I bought it from a private party (which is what I did). When I took it to the DMV and it had to get inspected, all of the VIN numbers matched and so I assume it's ok.

Ahtublao, have you taken your car to the CHP for inspection yet? I'm just hoping that with my case receipts and such aren't asked because obviously I don't have them. Honestly I'm kind of freaking out about it because I've never dealt with this stuff before. Can anyone shed some light on this situation in regards to CHP?

mulletmobile

The VIN verification is this: it is used to verify the VIN's (the 2-3 major ones easily viewable on dash, firewall etc) are matches to what is on the title and that they are not in the database as stolen. They may check VINs stamped on the honda parts to make sure they are not hot parts also. Generally, aftermarket replacement parts are not stamped with VINs so they would not have them thus they "may" ask for that receipt, but since you bought it and have bill of sale/title, any issues can go back on him. The purpose is to make sure that VINs have not been illegally swapped in and that, depending on the amount of salvage work done, the repairs are safe.

I saved the craigslist ad from mine and the text messages from the seller for tracing if the need arises, but mine has been titled in Cali for 4 years since reported salvaged.

Any one with more questions feel free to PM me.

mulletmobile

By the way, VIN verification can be done by any trained peace officer in the state, so call around to your local agencies as they are likely to be less strict and will just check the two easy VINs on dash and firewall.

wolfy47

a suggestion i have would be to buy all the parts that have been replaced that you think/know will be checked, but dont install them, use the receipts in the inspection...then after the inspection return what was bought

mulletmobile

I have never seen them ask for a receipt for the parts, they are mainly looking for the larger vins on dash and firewall though. Since my RF fender was aftermarket there is no way to locate a VIN for it. They are just verifying it isn't a chop shop car and not a VIN swap

bimmerm325

Thanks for the feedback! Hopefully it all works out this Wednesday morning.

mulletmobile

Alright bimmer, what is the update?

bimmerm325

No bueno.

I took it to the CHP yesterday morning and told the officer that the car was salvage title due to theft and that I bought it from a private party (as the seller told me to do). He then asked me why I didn't have the re-builder or seller with me and I said he couldn't make it out. Then he began to check my car and said that I need original receipts for the trunk lid and rear bumper on my Prius that was replaced (I didn't know anything was replaced. The seller didn't provide me w/ this information). Then he said I need to provide the purchase vehicle receipt and pictures (interior/exterior) from the Auto Auction. By this point I was getting extremely mad that the seller didn't give me any of this. Then the officer took my ID and paperwork inside and asked me to wait in the lobby while he checks the vehicle to see if it's stolen.

At this point I started freaking out, thinking OMG I just paid a lot of money and may be screwed.

The cop comes back and hands me a paper that reads:

"Your vehicle will fail the salvage inspection if....

Per 5506 CVC. California State law requires the re-builder to have the salvage inspection completed BEFORE SELLING THE VEHICLE. Contact the person/company you purchased the vehicle from and have them complete the inspection.

All DMV paperwork and fees must b epresent at time of the salvage inspection. ALL Bills of Sale must be included, as well as the Purchase Vehicle Receipt and Pictures (interior/exterior) from Auto Auction!

You must provide a receipt for any component parts that has been replaced on your vehicle. If the part is used, the receipts must show the Business name, address, list the part that was purchased, and the VIN number of the vehicle the part came from. If the part is new from a dealer, you do not need a VIN. ONLY original receipts will be accepted."

It also lists a bunch of other stuff on it that didn't pertain to me because everything else was ok.

During this whole process I was calling/texting the seller asking him about all of this and he wasn't getting back to me. I'm upset that he lied to me and said he registered the vehicle a few months back. If this were the case, then he would've taken care of this CHP inspection since he was supposed to by California State law prior to selling the vehicle. Luckily he contacted me a couple of hours later. I'm supposed to meet with him either today or tomorrow. And I emailed him saying that if he cannot provide me everything I need, I want a FULL refund because this is straight BS if you catch my drift. I wasn't supposed to be going thru this CHP inspection in the first place (by law) and I am because of him. Hopefully he keeps in contact with me and doesn't try to run.

Geez.

ahtublao

sorry guys, it's been a while but i wanted to update my scenario with you guys on what happened when i took it in for a CHP inspection. I have been trying to contact the seller and after threatening (leaving vm's and text msgs) that **** that if he didnt have all necessary paper work then I wanted all my money back or was going to sue his *** and file a small claim against him. I bs him that the restaurant that we met at had video surveillance and that he might as well give up cause they got him on camera and that i made a police report already. He finally calls me back after 6 long hours and said that he had all the receipts for the parts that were replaced and that if we can meet at the same spot then he'll give them to me. I met him up, made him sign a bill of sale with his name and DL# on it (just in case after CHP inspection and it didnt pass so i can sue his ***). Everything looked kool, only thing that was replaced was the rear bumper and right tail light. Went to the CHP inspection and I gave the chp guy all my dmv paperwork and proof of receipts, he asked me how did i obtain the vehicle, and i had to lie to him that i bought it from an insurance company since the title was in the insurance company's name. he looked at the car, told me to go inside and take a seat, test drove it, came back and gave me this pink slip with CHP stamped on all paperwork and that the vehicle passed. I took it back to dmv and it was all good to go. thank goodness this sh8t was all over with. Received the title within 2 weeks. Really though if you buy a salvaged car from someone, make sure that the title is in his name and make sure it has plates. I seriously thought having the title and car was all i needed but lesson learned. this is a new car buying experience that i will never forget or let it happen again. But if you happen to f*cck up like me, you can show receipts from paypal and it'll still pass as long as you know what has been replaced imo. peace guys.

bimmerm325

Dayum ahtublao! Crazy story. Glad to hear that it all worked out for you. The same thing pretty much happened to me. My story is waaaaaaay too long for me to type out right now, but yeah in the end I pretty much got everything I needed myself w/ virtually no help from the seller. I'm just glad everything worked out. I've definitely learned a lot from this experience. And if by some miracle I were to buy a car off craigslist in the future I now know exactly what what I need and what to check for.

ahtublao, where are you from? I wonder if it's the same guy who sold me my Prius, lol. My guy even had a fake name and everything. My friends did take a picture of him when the whole exchange of funds was going on. Good thing I got it all taken care of because if I couldn't... dang I'm gonna stop typing now.. lol