If someone came to you and tried to sell you a new MINI and told you it was re-VIN’d would you buy it? If so, that makes you an accessory to a federal crime and as Bill said is an admission of guilt and makes you a part of the problem if it becomes an acceptable trend. Same with any other car, Porsche, Nissan, Honda, whatever. Saying re-VIN is acceptable for the Mini is irresponsible and buying and selling them knowing they are illegal is criminal, bottom line.

Let me be very clear, I am talking about taking the VIN off one vehicle and putting it on another with the intent of changing the newer cars’s identity. Selling cars that are obviously SP and MP Minis as something they are not. Illegal cars in this country. If people were going to the junkyard taking VINs off 1967 Minis and putting them on 1967 Minis we would be hard pressed to prove any foul play and would go under the radar pretty easily. Or if one was stolen off your car and you have the title and you replace it, so what, you are trying to maintain the integrity of the car. You remove it to paint, and put it back without altering it, that’s not the problem at all (still against the law in many states if not all). Norm, if you are trying to give the car it’s original numbers re-creating a VIN, I don’t think anyone has issue with that, so making a VIN using the chassis number, and a good investigative process to establish the true VIN for a car is protecting the car not destroying it and your not trying to make it something it is not. Now if you make a works Mini or a Cooper S out of it and create a VIN to get more money for it, then that’s where I would think the line is. I am not advocating that this should be done on any level, but who is to stop you and why should they. It can be titled as a kit car legally no matter what, and if you have a good detailed history of the build, I don’t see why the title would effect the value of the car, same with a salvage title, so what! If I find a salvage Shelby Mustang, and rebuild it from the ground up and show what I have done, then the value comes in its history and the parts used to restore it.

Anyways, I am sorry if you felt attacked Stratsman, I know saying it wasn’t about you sounded harsh, but these are forums seen all over the world by new enthusiasts looking for answers more than just a place to hang out as a family. Don’t get me wrong, it is awesome and expected and has been so for almost 50 years that people with these cars are immediately part of a unique family and feel it the moment they drive one of our precious cars. The fact that the same has happened for the BMW MINI is a testament to the Mini/MINI <

If I am brand new to the idea of buying a Mini, a law abiding, tax paying citizen, and went to eBay or the cars for sale at MM boards and knew no better (and how would I if no one is willing to talk about it), I would buy the nicest one I could find, and if it is sold as a 1970 and I buy it without knowing that it is re-Vin’d I could lose 10k+ investment and go to jail, I would appreciate someone telling me that there is fraud being perpetrated in the community and to beware of the spec, Spi and Mpi Mini. Is it easier for me to shut up, of course, make me more popular, maybe. But you asked why this is such a passion for me and what makes it so I cant sleep at night? Would you want your son, daughter, father, mother to buy a new car just to be arrested, their car crushed and their hard earned money gone, I think not, and if you do and don’t care, well I consider those that get so mad at me those that dont, so to be honest I don’t care what name is leveled at me, I don’t have time to even respond to those individuals. Stratsman, I see you are level headed and trying to help calm the emotions, and it is very much appreciated. I have been calm, collected, and respectful to those who disagree. If reading any thread I start is a waste of time though, if you see my name next to it, I would encourage anyone not to read it and to keep their foul responses to themselves.