Ludicrous? Just ask the Corvette boys that have been sued in civil court over the issue of an original engine!
I think you have missed my point. The Corvette hobby in particular has turned into a bunch of con artist's trading cars. LOT'S of restoratation motors that everyone forgets to tell the next buyer about.
I stand by my statement: How can "you", as second owner or after guartantee the engine is original in your car? You cannont because the car was not in your pocession since new and you could be the victim of a restoration motor.
Yes, this is all semantics in how it is said or presented however are you willing to guarantee in writing that the engine in your car is original? I would not place myself in that position of potential litigation if there is a problem.
Yes, most restamps are easily detectable. However not all. Just ask Al Grenning. The man with a library of over 20,000 detailed pictures of Corvette engine VIN stamps. The stamp is not the problem. The "broaching" of the head surface upon which the stamp is applied is the problem. Chevrolet used a broaching machine instead of a decking machine. A 10 power eyepeice can be your friend. There are a couple guys in the Corvette world with a broaching machine and they can make their stamps un-detectable! This is why Al can charge $1000-$2000 for a personal pre-purchase inspection of a Corvette to verify the engine and other components. This is what the Corvette world has become.
If restoration is the ultimate goal of many SSP Mustang owners this could "ruin" this part of the hobby also. Let's hope not as this process develops over years as cars become more valuable.
Untimately it's "All About The Money"! That's why people restamp engines and change dates on all the other components which they "claim" is in the name of restoration. That's BS! It's about the money and making their car more valuable.
I personally could car less about an "original engine", "matching numbers" or a "restoration engine". The car does know or care what engine is in it driving down the road. I am stating my opinion that has developed and changed over the years concerning the issue of original/restoration engines.
On a $5,000 SSP Mustang, nobody cares! But you can damn sure bet whoever buys that 8,000 mile 1993 SSP Mustang running on Ebay right now DOES CARE and will check everything out properly. By the way, the seller of that car is also selling the car "AS IS" with no guarantee!
Quote:
Originally Posted by ImEvil1
Mike,
We're not "ruining" anything here, and your post is full of inaccurate information.
Altering, removing, restamping, etc. etc. etc. is a crime in many states, and there are probably Federal regulations that impact that activity as well.
Many people have cars with the original drivetrains in them, and there are ways (ie. studying machining marks) to prove that the VINS on those blocks are not restampings.
It's ludicrous to say that not one SSP owner can verify the originality of their engine. Personally, I don't see a problem with a replacement engine, but why anyone would would to "restamp" one with the correct VIN, other than wanting to pass the car off as "numbers matching", is beyond me.
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