RE: [VAL] title search - O TradeWind designation can cause out of state registration probls

["Forrest McClure" <rollie51@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Jim,

I believe the problem DMV personnel have with the old VIN system is
that they have been instructed that the letter 'O' is never used in a
numbering sequence because it would be confused with the number '0'.
That is what I was taught when I had NCIC training. In entering a VIN
into the Federal government NCIC database the format does not permit
keying the letter 'O.' So, even if DMV personnel recognize that the
VIN contains a letter 'O' they have to change it to a zero in order to
record it into the system. This is important to remember in case your
trailer is ever stolen. Be sure to report the VIN with zero instead of
the letter.

I want to thank you for your post because it made me take a look at my
Colorado vehicle registrations. I have both a 1966 Globe Trotter and
an Overlander. Both registrations have recorded the VIN's incorrectly.
I didn't try to correct the DMV clerk when I registered my Globe
Trotter because I knew it would simply create a bureaucratic snafu.
But I didn't even realize that the VIN on the Overlander was incorrect
until now because I didn't read it closely enough. It is a Jackson
Center International model and the VIN begins with the letters "JI",
but the DMV recorded it as a letter and number "J1." With my bifocals
I just didn't notice the difference.

This could be a real problem down the road if law enforcement were to
ever examine the VIN on my Overlander or if it were ever stolen.
Proving the Overlander belongs to me could actually be a genuine
problem simply because of that one digit. I can see it sitting in an
impound lot for months while the inconsistency is worked out.

Forrest