Re: 64 or 66 VIN Law/Regulations???/Sweet dreams

[Matt Haas <mhaas@xxxxxxx>]

<snip>
> Placement of the VIN itself was left up to the manufacturer until
> January 1968 or 69 (I'll have to check my notes!), when the law stated
> that the VIN had to be visible through the windshield. This was to make
> it easy for law enforcement and insurance companies to check cars
> without disturbing the owner or damaging the vehicle. Prevents
> repossessing the wrong vehicle and such... ;>
<snip>

The date was January 1, 1968 when the VIN had to be permanently attached to 
the vehicle and it had to be on the lower left hand side of the windshield. 
1968 AMC's produced after this date have the VIN on the dash as well as the 
passenger side shock tower. 1969 and later just have it on the dash.

It's been a while since I dug into this but IIRC, the purpose of regulating 
the position of the VIN had very little to nothing to do with law 
enforcement (at least in the sense you've stated). It was to make it easier 
for the NHTSA to positively identify the vehicle at a crash site so 
statistics could be compiled.

Matt


mhaas@xxxxxxx
Cincinnati, OH
http://www.mattsoldcars.com
1967 Rambler American wagon
1968 Rambler American sedan
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