How to title an abandoned car in ohio

48ford · October 03, 2005, 11:02:02 AM

Can anyone help, The kids bought another rental house and in the garage sat a 72 V.W. ghia.nice car,talked to the neighbors and they say it was in there forever,Son in law(the banker) said pop get this junk out of here i need to rent this place.so now I got it,It has a 72 Ohio plate on it,but no paperwork.any ideas how I can title this thing,and Ohio will not take the paperwork from broadway title and the like. There has to be a way.
Thanks Russ&Irene

enjenjo · October 03, 2005, 12:06:38 PM

There are a couple ways.

If you can find the original owner, they can apply for a duplicate title. If you can get the VIN number off the chassis,you can use that to trace the owner.

Second, you can put a lein against it, for storage, and after a period of time, 90 days I think, you can get posession.

If the above is impossible, there is another way, but I would rather not discuss it in public, you can call me and I'll fill you in.

GPster · October 03, 2005, 01:37:19 PM

There is a VW junk yard in Byesville (right by I70 and I77) that might have an answer. Maube he would have an Ohio title but that would limit it being sold out of state because the numbers wouldn't correspond. If they are anything like "Bugs" the numbers are on the top of the shifter tunnelin the back over the rear torsion bar tube. GPster

GPster · October 03, 2005, 04:47:45 PM

Maybe instead of looking for the title by the serial number of the car you should look under the lisense plate number. If the owner that bought those plates sold the car since the last time he bought plates for it but the title was never transferred than that owner would be the one that is still on record. Record of the plates may be in the record of the county where they were sold but I think counting the age the title may have gone from county to state records. GPster

SKR8PN · October 04, 2005, 06:17:57 AM

The best,cheapest and easiest way is to go to Columbus BMV and get an "abandoned vehicle form". Have a buddy with a repair shop , fill it out,make up a storage bill that exceeds the value of the car,and file it. Within 2 weeks,they do a title search and if there are no liens(in Ohio) against it,they give you the paperwork to take to your local BMV and they will make you new title. I got a title for that 1951 Pontiac that way. Cost me a grand total of 3 dollars and 36 cents.

48ford · October 04, 2005, 08:39:47 PM

Thanks for the tips,I think I will try to get an abandoned vehicle form and go that way.I hope this works out.
Russ

Crosley.In.AZ · October 04, 2005, 09:39:56 PM

Property owners in AZ have laws to get a title for a vehicle left at a rental or apt.

That is what I would look at first as mentioned.

You never know what will pop up though. A buddy got his Camaro IROC back after some folks were evicted from a rental place in Phoenix some where. His Camaro was stolen a year earlier

enjenjo · October 04, 2005, 10:09:35 PM

Quote from: "Crosley"Property owners in AZ have laws to get a title for a vehicle left at a rental or apt.

That is what I would look at first as mentioned.

You never know what will pop up though. A buddy got his Camaro IROC back after some folks were evicted from a rental place in Phoenix some where. His Camaro was stolen a year earlier

I had a buddy who had a similar experience here. He bought a 63 Rambler Classic, the guy signed off the title with him standing there. The engine was bad, so he pulled it, went through it, and put it all back together. He invested about $2500 in it. Yes I know it's a Rambler, but he liked it.

At this point, he went down to transfer the title, only to find it showed up on a hot sheet as having been stolen in 1980. Come to find out, it had been stolen with a blown engine, and the title in the glove box. Nothing know of where it was for near 20 years, or who the guy who signed the title actually was. The end of the story, the guy who actually owned the car, from whom it was stolen in 1980, was so overjoyed to get it back( yes I know, two fools) that he paid my buddy for all the work he had done on it. So it ended happily for all.

48ford · October 04, 2005, 10:15:18 PM

It may have been hot and stashed in a garage,with 72 plates on it ,the bank may be looking for it.
Maybe I should just run the vin numbers,and see what pops up.
It is a nice little car.
Russ&Irene

Crosley.In.AZ · October 05, 2005, 12:57:59 AM

Quote from: "enjenjo"
I had a buddy who had a similar experience here. He bought a 63 Rambler Classic, the guy signed off the title with him standing there. The engine was bad, so he pulled it, went through it, and put it all back together. He invested about $2500 in it. Yes I know it's a Rambler, but he liked it. At this point, he went down to transfer the title, only to find it showed up on a hot sheet as having been stolen in 1980. Come to find out, it had been stolen with a blown engine, and the title in the glove box. Nothing know of where it was for near 20 years, or who the guy who signed the title actually was. The end of the story, the guy who actually owned the car, from whom it was stolen in 1980, was so overjoyed to get it back( yes I know, two fools) that he paid my buddy for all the work he had done on it. So it ended happily for all.

Crazy stuff , it sounds like.

Back in the 90's I sold a non running 55 chevy truck to a guy about 4 blocks from my house. An early camaro suspension clip on the front , 12 bolt diff , no power train, steering was not even hooked up ( no column)

The truck was stolen from his house that very night!

Flash forward 3 years....... AZ state police ( DPS) call him. They found his truck in Wittman AZ during a large bust of an illegal drug operation and stolen vehicles ( Go figure). Wittman is a small dirt farming town