Buying tunnel with title

[Icefishr]

Well guys im venting here a bit. i was looking at doing a project sled from bare tunnel up but went and talked with my local courthouse about how to register the sled when its done and she said that i would need the tunnel's vin # a bill of sale and the registration. im just like WTH? its a bare tunnel! so just out of curiosity how many of you (who have bought tunnels) have bought them with a registration or title?

IMO the state of iowa is frickin clueless when it comes to registrations and the regulations on snowmobiles. The regs are written so that they can be interpreted differently between officers and i have run into this before with registering my 03 RMK when the book said i had 30 days on bill of sale before the registration of the original owner would expire and i even called our local officer and had it ok'd but when i got out to ride it i get a ticket from some young dumb officer working for a special weekend telling me i dont get any amount of days even after i had it ok'd and the other officer to back me up!

ugh. i need to move...

rant concluded

any input though on if anyone gets registrations with bare tunnels?

 

[hilpulr]

Tunnel

I live in MT and I put an 08 Cat tunnel on my 07 M1000 (bent the other one). I didnt get any paperwork with it. I went down to our courthouse and paid $5 for a new sticker and that was it. Dont know about selling it since no vin. is on the tunnel now.

 

[slash]

Cant regester here without a title or a bill of sale for all parts, mostly the tunnel. So find a salvage unit or buy a tunnel with title and put it togeather then title the COMPLETE sled .easy...the last two I paid 1.00 for with titles

 

[snowblind]

we cut the vins off our old tunnel to rivet to the new one. why do you need to reg it?

 

[Icefishr]

well here in iowa we also need the bill of sale and current registration or a title for our sleds and i quized the courthouse about waht would be done since im building from frame up and that seemed to be a new one to her. in order for me to ride the sled when done (in iowa) i need to be able to register it. even to sell it to someone else in most cases i still need to get a title or registration so im not jumping title. the lady told me if i were to build the frame then i could classify it as a completely home build sled and wouldnt need a previous registration on it i have noticed that sleds in iowa can be a real headache if things arent "textbook" for the county courthouse.

 

[winter brew]

Probably varies from state to state, but can you apply for a "homebuilt" or "custom" vehicle title/registration? Then the state applies a ID# and possibly a vehicle inspection?...not that they'd know what to look for but just to verify the vehicle does exist and is functional. ???

 

[Icefishr]

see thats what i thought but according to the courthouse they still require a title or registration on the tunnel if i didnt build that from scratch too. If its got a vin# and has been owned previously they want registration. i did find a process called Bonding which is a long *** application process that requires the vin# to find the previous owner and varify that sled isnt stolen then a bunch of paperwork and an inspection before applying for a new title for the machine......way to make things simple.

but i guess its a way to make it work. might take all summer to meet their frickin requirements for that process.

 

[sdsnocop]

I agree titling and having a new vin assigned can be a total pain in the axx but it will be worth it to you to have a clear title and a proper vin. Selling a sled in some states without a title or vin would be difficult. If the sled was stolen it would be difficult for it to be recovered without a vin. I was requested by our local PD (since I have knowledge of snowmobiles)to assist in the inspection of a snowmobile without a vin that the owner was legally going through the process to title and have a vin assigned. The owner had purchased the snowmobile in Alaska and had it shipped to South Dakota. He was told the sled was built from spare parts and did not have a vin. I expected a cobbled up old piece of junk sled but found a 1 year old Polaris with 800 miles on it. The owner paid $2000 for the sled which threw the first red flag. I found the black hood was painted red, the belly pan was the original red plastic. The tunnel had sanding marks on both sides which was the heaviest where the vin was to be located. I suspected there was an issue with this sled and advised the local PD not to sign off on the inspection. I recorded the motor number and was able to have Polaris do some research and came up with the vin assigned with the motor which came back as stolen out of Alaska. After the sled was confinscated we used fine sandpaper on the area where the vin was suppose to be and was able to raise a portion of the vin which did not match the vin assigned to the motor. Further research found the vin on the tunnel was from another stolen sled out of Alaska. Sorry this story was long but it is an example of why it is important when you buy or own a snowmobile that it has a proper vin and title. In SD it is a felony to posess a vehicle (including a snowmobile) with an altered vin. Even if the officer believes the owner did not alter the vin and is not arrested the snowmobile will be confinscated until proof of ownership can be established which will be difficult without a vin, title or registration.

 

[vdo1948]

I can live with the pain in the axx. The problem is I have yet to find someone in South Dakota who can tell me how to go about properly dealing with either adding an aftermarket tunnel or a tunnel from a different sled. Not meant to be personally aimed at you sdsnocop but irritates the he11 out of me when someone preaches that I have to follow the rules and then can't tell me how to do so.

 

[sdsnocop]

I can live with the pain in the axx. The problem is I have yet to find someone in South Dakota who can tell me how to go about properly dealing with either adding an aftermarket tunnel or a tunnel from a different sled. Not meant to be personally aimed at you sdsnocop but irritates the he11 out of me when someone preaches that I have to follow the rules and then can't tell me how to do so.

Your local treasurers office "should" know how how to deal with it but unfortunately some dont. I have known snowmobilers who have gone through the process of swapping a tunnel but have not done it myself. I had some issues with my local treasurers office assigning a vin for a homemade trailer and I had to go through Pierre to get it resolved. Try going on the SD state government home page and click the link for the Department of Revenue and Regulation. You should be able to find a e-mail address to ask questions. That department is responsible for the titleing and licensing of motor vehicles in SD. The county just impliments their requirments and procedures.

 

[KrazyCanadian]

Ratsled out of Vernon BC makes a great Tunnel... great prices too... 250-542-4024 or email steve burrantt... steve@ratsled.com

 

[skippy]

In Minnesota you can just go to the DMV and tell them you need to register a custom made sled and they will then ask you to make up a ten plus digit/letter personal vin number. You will then need to scribe/engrave your personal vin into your tunnel on both sides like the manufacturers would do. They will then print you off a registration card with the vin number on it to keep in your wallet. It was actually pretty simple... Hopefully your state is similar to Minnesota. Later

 

[roughrider99]

from previous experience like mentioned earlier when replacing a tunnel cut the vin off the old tunnel and rivet it onto the new one. or apply for homebuilt sled.