what to do if you have the "lost" car

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4spdragtop said:
a car and an orig engine are 2 different stories, but they both boil down to you, or yer cousin being the owner. I would be polite the 1st time...2nd time maybe...3 strikes and yer out..cold!
Now if you had an engine that was orig to a car that someone else owns, i would definitely try and work something out.
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interesting topic....I did not know it was that easy to track a vehicle by the VIN to find the owner but I guess if you think about it, that what they will do when you buy a car with a lost title, they look to see if it is stolen or if it is already owned etc. I wish I could get back some of the cars I owned like the 66 charger, the 67 belvedere, 68 valiant, 71 duster and others. One time I drove one of my old cars that I sold to a friend (a 70 valiant 4dr), you know what, It did not seem like the same car. did not have any sentimental feelings towards the car after that.
 
yellowdart...
well your car is your car and you should not feel bad keeping it if it is a significant part of "your family." however, i can appreciate the original owners actions. my first major mopar love affair happened with a bronze 1968 340 4 speed fastback S barracuda that i bought in 1969 off of a plymouth dealer mechanic who had bought it new. i had that car for two years but then "thought" i wanted corvettes and sold the cuda and started on corvettes. the cuda then went throug a series of owners. many, many, MANY years later, i realized just how much my first cuda had meant to me and started searching for the car. to my amazment, THE ORIGINAL OWNER was in possession of the car (and still is as of this writing). naturally i contacted him to see if he would sell it back to me. well he is still the same nice guy he was 43 years ago BUT told me that he had "restored" the car to "driving condition" and was going to give it to his grandkid. i did "beg" a bit but he was firm in his idea of "keeping the car in the family." so i now have a "copy" of my first barracuda. yes, running the gears of the car i have now is not the same as if i could have gotten "my old cuda" back. but, i have to respect my old plymouth dealer mechanic friend's desires. i told him that if his grandkids change their minds, to PLEASE call me. he said he would. so i do understand both sides of these kind of stories. the photo below is from 1971 when first cuda was still sitting in my driveway (along with a 69 sportster ... which is another story altogether... yes, the idiotic paint job was my idea... what can i say, i was 17!)
 

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Tell him to find you a car you want of similar condition and value. Look at it from his pov.I would hope people wouldn't be as cold hearted about it as some here are if I were in a similar situation.
 
the story is one i can relate too. id love to have my first car back, but its long gone. knowing that, i gave my son his first car, which is the 69 valiant 2 door, and he only gets it when he is legally able to drive, and i get the car back if he decided he dosent want it anymore. if that happens, when hes 40 or 50 ill have his first car, and he wont have to sweat it.
 
I dont think its a hard decision, and I also dont think there is a right or wrong answer.

What I can tell you from what I have learned over the years of chasing cars, Tracking down parts or cars and selling parts and cars....

1. EVERYTHING has a price!!! I have nocked on many doors trying to buy an old car from someone. I have succeeded many times. I have had my door knocked on by someone trying to buy one of my cars.
My answer to them is Its not for sale, But everything can be bought for a price so they can look and make an offer, But because its NOT FOR SALE, I do not have a price. If there offer is high enough I would sell it...I have sold one car that way...everyone else were low ballers and wanted me to counter, and I said, its not for sale and your offer isnt going to pry it out of my hands.

2. knowone EVER regrets they KEPT a Car. thats why it is SO important to really think befor you choose to sell your classic Car. Or you will be chasing a ghost!

we have all gotten raises in our work...do we save that extra money??? 99% no.
we all have un expected expenses and have thought how am i going to make it through this month....yet we all succeeded somehow.

so when your transmision goes in your daily driver, or your roof on your house, or what have you, DOnt turn to your classic to sell. You can and will almost ALWAYS be able to find a way to deal with the situation and keep your classic car.

My advise to you, is the next time he knocks on your door, Say its not your car anymore, but it is in sutch and sutch condition, the current owner doesnt want to sell it, but what offer would you have that could persuade her to sell? adn I will pass on this offer.

then take that offer to your cousin.

the result is your answer, and end of discusion. the outcome could be anything! and both parties could be leaving really happy, or one will be leaving dissapointed but will know he can no longer bug you. If a deal isnt made for the car, I would get his contact info and asure him he will be contacted if it is up for sale in the future prior to selling to anyone else.

I just resently tracked down the previuse owner of a car I have had for 15 years. when I bought it he said to let him have a chance to buy it back...so I did.
 
Burn it to the ground and drop it off at his house.
 
I'd love to have my sassy grass 71 Twister back. BUT I'd better be prepared to pay much more than market price if it was NOT FOR SALE. For this reason I am a little hesitant on tracking it down.

Like someone else said, we all have sold something we had to for some reason or another. To put a guilt trip on someone to try and get it back is lamesauce.
 
So what is the guys story? What was his reson for having to sell and why does he just now have the money to buy it back? If you, or your cousin, have no sentimental attachment to the car, then work him a deal and move on to the next car. With that being said then i would be looking at how much the value of the car is if the original owner were selling it, and work a price from there.If you guys put alot of work into the car that you wont recoup money on, let the fella know that and maybe he'll make you whole on it and you can use the experiance on the next car. OR, just tell him sorry not for sale and go on about life.
 
If it were me personally I'd consider finding a car as nice or nicer and telling him if he bought me that one he could have his back. Like I said, I'd consider that but it'd also depend on what all I'd done to the car, for instance, if I'd put in an alter-k-tion or something that'd come back out n stay with me.
 
Is the guy cool about it or an ***? If he's cool about it, think about what you would sell the car for. Offer it to him for that. Make sure it's a price that you are comfortable with. Put yourself in his place. How badly would you want it back? While you might really like the car, to him it may represent something much more. I'm not saying you should do it, but consider every angle. It would be really nice of you. We only go around once.
 
I think the scary thing here is there is enough information out there that he was able to track you down as a previous owner of your car. I would tell this guy next time he shows up at your door step that the car is not for sale an you expect this to be the last time he shows up on your doorstep . He did not have a gun to his head forcing him to sell the car and he made a conscious decision to sell it , case closed
 
You've asked your cousin, they don't want to sell it. Short of taking the guys name and number, I'd politely ask him to not keep coming by every few days. Right now, the car is not for sale. But if he offers something ridiculous, talk to your cousin.
 
It's a miracle any of these cars survived to 2014, they were built to last about 7 years. Ever car on this board has a story to make it this long. It's your car and I wouldn't feel bad at all to keep it.
 
FredS said:
You've asked your cousin, they don't want to sell it. Short of taking the guys name and number, I'd politely ask him to not keep coming by every few days. Right now, the car is not for sale. But if he offers something ridiculous, talk to your cousin.
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As long as the paperwork trail is clean, your cousin owes this guy nothing. If he persists in being a whiner with you, the next step is a court order. If I wanted to be a nice guy, take his name and number and let him know someone will call if the situation changes. Right now, no sale.
 
yellowdart72 said:
I am concerned because locally there is a man who bought a 70 swinger brand new. And he had the vin number and was able to track it, however when he tracked it down his search led to my front door because I now own his old car.

The problem is that he wants to buy it back but its not for sale. I bought the car 5 years ago and gave it to my cousin and it was paid for with cash and everything was on the up and up with the papers.

This man is trying to guilt me into selling it back with a sad story as to why he sold it, and he is making it seem like I have something that belongs to him and keeps dropping by every once in awhile. But is was him who sold it years ago and it went through 2 other owners before I bought it. So it was his own will and choice to sell it years ago and as far as I knew, when you sell something it is gone and you got your money so its over.

At one point I asked my cousin if she was interested in selling it before she was made aware that the original owner is trying to buy it back. I figured if she would part with it then I would sell it back and make everyone happy. The problem is that she likes the car and I don't see how its fair to take it away from her to make someone else happy who chose to part with it years ago, for whatever reason which is irrelevant now.

What do you guys think about this situation and what would you do?
what is one supposed to do if you have the "lost" car or engine or anything like that?
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I'm only going on this post.
Reuniting is only a good thing if everyone concerned is happy about it.
This is a case of car stalking.
Swear out a restraining order against him.
Your car's safety could be in jeopardy.(Only half kidding)
 
I'm on the opposite side of this question. Long story short, I regretted selling a 70 Swinger 340, found it recently and spoke to the current owner. They are not interested in selling it and I respect that. I let them know I'm interested in buying it back but certainly understand them not wanting to sell it right now. They have my info and I check in with them periodically (every other month or so).

So my advice would be to tell him that you have all his information and will call Him first should your family deceide to sell it, but right now its not for sale. If he really wants it that bad then let him come to you, and your cousin, with a serious offer for it. Being a pest isn't going help him one bit.
 
If it was mine I would sell it back to him as long as he paid a good enough price for me to buy another. Want and price tend to go hand in hand. Price it high enough and if he really wants it you can buy another with cash in hand.
 
Sort of same story. I built a 70 Duster drag car from scratch when I was 17. 340, HEMI 4 speed, Dana 60., In 1974. Got married, had a son, went through a couple jobs. 4 years later sold Duster, no time or extra money to race. Son turned 16, i wanted it for his first race car, tracked down car 1 mile from my mother in laws house, sitting in a crappy garage just as I sold it, to the same guy, a roller with a title. Well, my son and I stopped in to make an offer. I sold it for 2500. The guy had an attitude, but I wanted it back. I offered 10,000 cash. He basically laughed in my face. Guess what? It's still sitting there. So, no matter the price, sometimes it doesn't matter. Good luck with your situation.
 
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