Just for giggles, I dug out my 1956 original title and other than the seller filling out his part of the transaction and the same for me as buyer, there’s nothing the state did to the title upon releasing it to me.

This transaction was several years ago before the pandemic, so that didn’t influence anything.

As we suspected, there’s likely no DMV policy and worth asking the agent for it if you want to keep it. In my case it’s a neat piece as there’s quite a bit of other paperwork, including the original Certificate of Origination from the manufacturer.

Just for giggles, I dug out my 1956 original title and other than the seller filling out his part of the transaction and the same for me as buyer, there’s nothing the state did to the title upon releasing it to me.

This transaction was several years ago before the pandemic, so that didn’t influence anything.

As we suspected, there’s likely no DMV policy and worth asking the agent for it if you want to keep it. In my case it’s a neat piece as there’s quite a bit of other paperwork, including the original Certificate of Origination from the manufacturer.

Massachusetts doesn’t let you keep the original title. When I bought my 1000 mile Biscayne it had the original title so I sold the car on a bill of sale to a friend that lived in Maine which is a no title state. He registered it then sold it back to me with the registration from Maine. I took it to the DMV in Massachusetts and registered it that way and got a new title in my name . Keeping the original title.

I’m a firm believer in titling every vehicle I own into my name. In Maryland, the latest title printed trumps any previously printed one, so if you bought a car and never titled it, the previous owner could apply for a duplicate, and legally, they now own the car (again). Also, let’s say you buy a car and don’t title it into your name…you decide to sell it…buyer wants to write you a check, but your name is nowhere on any documents…buyer stops payment on check…see where I’m going here?
The last Camaro I owned was a 900 mile ex-SuperStocker. I spent a lot of time tracking down copies of titles/ownership to prove mileage and made copies for MVA and my own records. I did title that car and the miles were stated correctly on the latest title.
I guess ‘cause I’m in the car business, I tend to cover all bases because I’ve seen about every titling scam known to man.

Those are my concerns too. I know full well that allowing anyone to see the car whether in private or at a show risks someone seeing and noting the VIN and pulling some shit. Unless there was a compelling argument for keeping it under that 1971 title I will be transferring it into my name. Yours is the answer I was looking for. Thank You !

If you tell the DMV the title is lost, the O.O. will have to go and apply for a duplicate title. BTW, since it was never licensed it is possible the DMV won't even have it in their system anymore. Depends upon the state, but they often purge old records when implementing new computer systems. I own a towing company and deal a lot with my state DMV on classic "abandoned" vehicles where the titles have been lost or the car was sold many times and the title never transferred at each sale. More often than not, a car that age that hasn't been licensed for years will not be in the DMV system.