I recently reported the acquisition of a 1988 Dodge Ram for no money down and monthly installment payments of $100 per month for 5 months. I have had it for less than a month and true to form I have already been visited by two different OC Sheriffs Deputies.
I had it parked at the Aliso Viejo Library with the intention of somehow getting it in road worthy condition. The van needs a brake job, a tune up and major detailing work to clean the vehicle of the commercial grime it has accumulated over the last two decades. I was planning to do that a little at a time as I acquire the money and find blocks of time to do a competent enough job. I figured, because the registration was current, the authorities would not give me a difficult time about it.
The first visit came a few days after I acquired the van. I was on my way to the El Pollo Loco Restaurant up the road and noticed a deputy inspecting the van. I hurried back to investigate. I showed him the registration and pink slip and told him that I had just acquired it and hadn’t transferred ownership yet.
After a few minutes the deputy informed me that the registration was actually expired. Apparently, someone had placed a stolen or a fake registration tag on the vehicle. The vehicle is still registered to the person who the seller had purchased it from. We were going to skip registration, explaining why the current seller was not aware of this. Early indications are, someone had committed a blatant fraud. Based on statutes dealing with fraudulently tagged vehicles, the deputy informed me, an officer can automatically tow the vehicle without notice. He pulled out a hunter’s knife and wanted to peel off the 2011 tag. I prevailed upon him to leave it there for fear that it will peel off all the other tags and promised to take care of the registration with a trip to the DMV. He said that I had a few days to do that.
The second visit came inauspiciously enough with my former roommate Desiree walking inside the Neighborhood Cup and asking me if that was my van outside. “There’s a deputy walking around it”, she said. The deputy responded to a call from a concerned citizen (another word for any number of my opposition). By sheer coincidence Des also knew the deputy herself - Deputy Walters - who told me that the registration was not only expired but the tags were fake. He was willing to let me keep the van parked there for a few days. That was when Des offered to have me park it at her complex, where I lived for about two months last year. I explained to Deputy Walters that I didn’t have a driver’s license. He then offered to escort me to the apartment complex where the van is currently parked.
Yesterday, I bumped into the gentleman who sold me the van - Chris. I told him what we were able to find out about the van. He was quick to offer assistance as he was clearly not aware of the fake tags on the plate number when he acquired it. The pink slip still has the name of the previous owner (David), who we now suspect placed the registration sticker on the plates. How he was able to acquire the sticker we can only guess.
So, we have some work to do. It is highly doubtful that the van will pass smog inspection. That’s our most significant challenge at this point. Then, we have to make it roadworthy. Finally, we want to turn it into a race vehicle for a “24 Hour Endurance Race”, something I’ve been trying to do for at least two years now as a way to spend time with my children. I wrote about that project on another blog. Read about it on the HYDROLAC BLOG.
I had it parked at the Aliso Viejo Library with the intention of somehow getting it in road worthy condition. The van needs a brake job, a tune up and major detailing work to clean the vehicle of the commercial grime it has accumulated over the last two decades. I was planning to do that a little at a time as I acquire the money and find blocks of time to do a competent enough job. I figured, because the registration was current, the authorities would not give me a difficult time about it.
The first visit came a few days after I acquired the van. I was on my way to the El Pollo Loco Restaurant up the road and noticed a deputy inspecting the van. I hurried back to investigate. I showed him the registration and pink slip and told him that I had just acquired it and hadn’t transferred ownership yet.
After a few minutes the deputy informed me that the registration was actually expired. Apparently, someone had placed a stolen or a fake registration tag on the vehicle. The vehicle is still registered to the person who the seller had purchased it from. We were going to skip registration, explaining why the current seller was not aware of this. Early indications are, someone had committed a blatant fraud. Based on statutes dealing with fraudulently tagged vehicles, the deputy informed me, an officer can automatically tow the vehicle without notice. He pulled out a hunter’s knife and wanted to peel off the 2011 tag. I prevailed upon him to leave it there for fear that it will peel off all the other tags and promised to take care of the registration with a trip to the DMV. He said that I had a few days to do that.
The second visit came inauspiciously enough with my former roommate Desiree walking inside the Neighborhood Cup and asking me if that was my van outside. “There’s a deputy walking around it”, she said. The deputy responded to a call from a concerned citizen (another word for any number of my opposition). By sheer coincidence Des also knew the deputy herself - Deputy Walters - who told me that the registration was not only expired but the tags were fake. He was willing to let me keep the van parked there for a few days. That was when Des offered to have me park it at her complex, where I lived for about two months last year. I explained to Deputy Walters that I didn’t have a driver’s license. He then offered to escort me to the apartment complex where the van is currently parked.
Yesterday, I bumped into the gentleman who sold me the van - Chris. I told him what we were able to find out about the van. He was quick to offer assistance as he was clearly not aware of the fake tags on the plate number when he acquired it. The pink slip still has the name of the previous owner (David), who we now suspect placed the registration sticker on the plates. How he was able to acquire the sticker we can only guess.
So, we have some work to do. It is highly doubtful that the van will pass smog inspection. That’s our most significant challenge at this point. Then, we have to make it roadworthy. Finally, we want to turn it into a race vehicle for a “24 Hour Endurance Race”, something I’ve been trying to do for at least two years now as a way to spend time with my children. I wrote about that project on another blog. Read about it on the HYDROLAC BLOG.
