Modern Vespa

There's a girl in Cincinnati ... and she had a PK50 that was stolen about 6 months ago.

So, i notice a thread today on a columbus forum that one of the mechanics who had previously worked on it recognized a thread on the BBS where a guy was asking for help with PK50 floor rails. And the guy is out of Kentucky. Now, remember, there's very few PK's in the whole country ... so a guy with the same bike turning up not far from the scene of the crime seems highly suspicious.

Anyways, Josh ( previous mechanic ) verified that the bike INDEED was the one stolen. The new owner posted "before" shots that allowed Josh to recognize it as the stolen bike. I don't know that they've contacted the poor guy that bought it off of the hood rat that stole the thing, but he's going to lose the money and time he's got into that project once the police seize it and give it back to Shannon.

( ignore, for this story, the fact it's a 50cc bike, where there is no title and that the guy really couldn't run the VIN # against state records to see if the vehicle was stolen )

Remember, having a clear title in your hand is a really crucial thing to have before starting work on your project.

http://www.scootcolumbus.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=353 <--josh's thread


http://www.mypk50.blogspot.com/ <--- guy who bought the bike's project blog

I have been battling with the Iowa DMV to get my P titled.

The shop where I bought the bike suggested International Title Service, but they seemed kind of pricey and I had read there was a long backlog and waiting for them.

A guy I work with has gotten old cars out of barns that need titles. He worked directly with the Iowa DMV to get them titled. This is the route I am taking.

I had to send in a copy of my Bill of Sale and the VIN number. The DMV came back to me with a value they felt my bike was worth ($1000). I then had to go to an insurance agent and get a surety bond for 1.5 times the amount of the value ($1500). This cost me fifty bucks.

The bond is good for 3 years and is held by the state of Iowa. Once the DMV has the bond, they send an inspector to my house to make sure the VIN on the bike matches the number they have on file. If it does, he gives me the paperwork to get a clean, Iowa title and license the bike.

The inspector is crazy busy so I've been waiting about 2 months for him to show up. In the meantime I'm riding around with no plate and a bunch of papers in my glovebox. I never have gotten picked up, if I did I would just play stupid and tell them I'm in the process of getting it licensed. Hopefully that would fly.

Once the bond is in place, the bike is mine. If during the 3 years of the bond someone shows up with proof that I have their bike, they get the value of the bond ($1500) and I get to keep the bike. This way, any money I put into the bike is protected and the previous owner gets 1.5 times the amount.

International Title Service was around $150. With the method my state put forth it only costs me the price of the bond.

The beard continues...

Wow. It was only 75 bucks when i used it 5 years ago.

I used it 1 time, until i realized that titling something in michigan was an absolute joke.

I could write a number on my wang with a sharpie and the michigan state government would issue me a title for it so long as the number wasn't in their computers as stolen.

Would that be considered a clean title?

I guess that would depend on how well i loofah'd beforehand.

Wait a second. Didn't you say up above that anything under 50cc was not titled?

Al

I'm scared of where this conversation is going. Let's just say that i'm not going to displace 50cc to prove whether it should be titled or not.

titles depend on where you live too. here we need a title for anything with two wheel and a motor that older than 1974, even a 50cc. before that you don't need a title.

my 1965 doesn't have a title, my 1979 p200 does.

jeremy, what a pain. eric is right, if you have the pazienza to wait one hour (the average wait), and a few dollars you can title anything. i said i paid 100 dollars for my scoot too, so i only paid 6$ in tax.

Why such a hassle to title a '79 P range?

I titled my Allstate using International Title a couple of months ago for $85. It's a bargain unless you've got LOTS of time to spend dealing with the DMV.

It really hasn't been a hassle, more just waiting and waiting for the DMV inspector.