important question..

[kouki20]

k well... i have a 89 240sx and replaced the dash board with a different one... but the thing is, i forgot to take off the vin# from the old dash and put it on the new dash... so i was wondering, can this lead to any problems? if so, what can i do?

[atamotua]

well... no one can tell you what to do with the VINs... no one can tell you that you should have probably swapped the VINs from dash to dash... though it's the 'logical' thing to do, i think it's illegal to tamper with VINs...

But NOW, that you have the new dash and a NEW VIN, you should not be driving with the new VIN on your car... if you can't recover your old VIN, then you'd have to go to your local DMV Inspections office and report what you have just told us, here... you'd need proof of purchase of the new dash and all that good stuff... basically what they need to know is EVERYTHING, why you swapped it, where you bought it and it shouldn't be stolen, therefore you need proof of purchase...

I was in CALI and bought a car from an auction... and the car didn't have a VIN on the dash... I had to go to the CHP office (Cali Highway Patrol) and they inspected the car, QUICKLY, and then the officer brought out a VIN plate, drilled two holes on the driver's door sill, and riveted the new VIN plate on there...

I was told all vehicles have to have the 3 VINs... one on the door sill on that white sticker, one on the firewall in the engine compartment, and one on the dash... so if one is missing they have to replace it somehow... and nowadays, most vehicles new from the factory have the VIN stamped or attached to all the major body parts of the car... engine, frame, transmission, firewall, door sill, dash, all windows, doors, fenders, hood, bumpers... you name it, it's there... even wiring harnesses i've seen with a VIN on them...