Need help with North Carolina car history

[Joe R.]

Hello All:

Please pardon me for taking a shot in the dark here, but I figured it was worth a try.

I've made some progress tracing the ownership history of my 67 convertible (S/N 15586) back to 1969 in North Carolina, but now I'm stalled. I thought I'd post a question here just in case someone who lived in the area in 1969 might remember the car or the owner.

It appears that my car was purchased in 1969 by a young woman named Brookie Haynes (now deceased) who probably grew up in Fair Bluff, NC. Brookie later married Bob Andersen, who worked at the BF Goodrich plant in Lumberton, NC. Brookie drove the car in the Lumberton area until about 1976 when Bob was transferred to Ft. Wayne, Indiana.

The car was red/black when new, but some time before 1976 it was painted white.

A North Carolina title search shows the NC owner who bought the car from Brookie, but does not list Brookie herself. It is possible that their records do not go back that far.

I'm trying to find out who Brookie bought the car from in 1969. Since the car was only two years old then, that person may have been the original owner.

[Nicholas L.]

Re: Need help with North Carolina car history

Hi Joe, a few years ago I traced my 1960 from North Carolina all the way back to the original selling dealer. So the records should be there. See if another title number is written on the side of the title you have. If so, request a search of that title number.

[Wayne W.]

Re: Need help with North Carolina car history

North Carolina has extensive archives. Usually it is easy to get that information, but sometimes files have been misplaced and the microfilm record is incomplete. Since you say you did a title search in NC, I assume you have already tried this route. Sometimes when dealing with govenment agencies as this, they are a little lazy, if the information is incomplete, you might want to try again and list any other information known, like old title numbers. NC title numbers indicate how many owners that the car has had by the title number. The original has no suffix, but the second owner will be listed as A, third as B etc. This works as long as the car has been in NC, but if the car came from out of state the first owner in NC would be A. Good luck. I just ran my 33 Cadi. They has it back to 1953, but the older records were lost.

[Joe R.]

Re: Need help with North Carolina car history

Thanks Wayne and Nicholas. I did run a NC title search but they only showed the second time the car was titled in NC, in 1978. Brookie owned the car for several years (approx 1969 to 1976) in NC but moved to Indiana and brought the car with her when her husband was transfered.

Two years later, in 1978, she sold the car to someone she had known in NC who still lived there, so the car returned to NC. I have pretty good information on the post 1978 history, but very little else.

Based on what you have told me about the NC records, I'm tempted to ask for another title search in NC and include a note to specifically look for Brookie's title.

[Dick W.]

Re: Need help with North Carolina car history

As Wayne stated, results from NC DMV are sporadic. I researched a '28 Buick, '29 Ford, and the '61 Corvette that I had in 1962-1963 and came up with total ownership history. I researched a C-3 that was sold in NC and has been here since new and came up with zilch prior owner history. Go figure

[Wayne W.]

Re: Need help with North Carolina car history

If Indiana is like NC they would have listed the NC title number on their first record and then assigned their own number. If you can find that NC title number, you have it made. Otherwise you need to tell the NC archive people that it was titled in NC twice and have them look for it. They can find it, if they are willing to.

[Joe R.]

Re: Need help with North Carolina car history

Hi Wayne:

I can't find any info on the Indiana title referencing a prior NC title number, but I have taken your suggestion and submitted another search request to NC explaining that the car was titled in NC at least three times and that I would like them to check again.

The only NC record that turned up in the first search was for the third NC owner, who I am in contact with anyway. Owner #2 and Owner #3 both lived in Lumberton, NC in the 1970's and were good friends during that period. What breaks the trail is that Ownwer #2 moved to Indiana in 1976 and took the car with her. Then, in 1978, she sold the car to owner #3, who re-titled it in NC.

So, the car left NC for a while but came back, and the title number trail was broken.

It's frustrating to learn that the information on the other two NC owners is probably there on file but the DMV may not be motivated to dig it out for me.

Do you know if it is possible to visit the DMV in person and possibly get a little more attention to the search, or does all this have to be done by mail?

[Rick S.]

Re: Need help with North Carolina car history

Do any of you folks know if they list the color of the car on a North Carolina title from 1967?
Thanks,
Rick

[Wayne W.]

Re: Need help with North Carolina car history

No colors listed on NC titles that I have ever seen.

Yes, you can go by the office and wait on the search. It might be iffy as to how they do if they are very busy.

[Rick S.]

Re: Need help with North Carolina car history

Thanks Wayne...The reason I asked the question is that my car was delivered from Charlotte,NC and the trim tag has a typo for the paint code on the trim tag. I have contacted the original owner listed on the POP, now living in Pa, and he confirmed the color of the car as Goodwood green not Sunfire Yellow ( 1 digit off). My problem in trying to prove the typo, is that the original owner has not yet written to me yet confirming the color and to help me substaniate the trim tag typo. Al Grenning has reviewed my documentation and agrees that in all likelyhood that the trim tag is a typo but I would like to have additional documentation to back up the typo claim. So without a written statement from the original owner I am looking for anything else to prove the color of the car. Sorry for the long post but I am looking for any evidence to help me prove the correct color of my car.
Regards,
Rick