Collector car paperwork, and what it is worth

On an ordinary used car the documents are an administrative step. On a collector car they are a meaningful fraction of the value, and a problem with them can make an otherwise good car genuinely difficult to own.

Verify this before you bid, not after you win. A title problem discovered after the hammer is your problem.

The title

See an image of the actual title before bidding. Not a description of it. The things worth reading on it:

• Whose name is on it. If it is not the seller's, you are buying from someone who does not own the car yet, which is legal in some arrangements and a serious problem in others. An open title — signed by a previous owner and never transferred — is a common collector-car shortcut and it can leave you unable to register the car.
• The brand. Clean, salvage, rebuilt, flood, lemon. A salvage or rebuilt brand follows the car permanently in most states and reduces value substantially regardless of how good the repair was. It is not automatically a reason to walk away on an old car, but it must be priced.
• The VIN, against the car. Read it off the chassis yourself, or have your inspector photograph it, and compare character by character. Also check that the VIN plate and its fasteners look undisturbed.
• Mileage wording. "Actual", "exceeds mechanical limits" or "not actual" are legally distinct and affect value.

Some states title old cars by bill of sale only, and some do not title pre-war cars at all. This is normal — but what matters is whether the paperwork you are being handed is sufficient to register the car in your state. Check your own state's requirements before bidding on an out-of-state car, because the rules differ and the seller has no obligation to know them.

Originality documentation

What counts as proof differs by marque, and the terminology is not interchangeable:

• A build or option record from the manufacturer — issued by the factory or its archive, stating how the car left the line. This is the strongest document for optioned cars and the one buyers pay for.
• A certificate from the marque's own archive, where one exists. Several manufacturers run an archive service that will confirm original specification and colour against the chassis number.
• Registry and club records. For low-production cars, a long registry history is strong evidence of identity and of what has happened to the car.
• Continuous service history. Less glamorous and often more useful. A stack of dated invoices from one specialist beats a single impressive certificate for predicting what the car will cost you.

"Numbers matching" needs definition every time it is used. Ask specifically which numbers: engine to chassis, gearbox, axle, body. A car with its original engine and a replacement gearbox is honestly described as matching by some sellers and not by others, and the difference is real money.

Imports

In the United States, a vehicle at least 25 years old is exempt from the federal safety and emissions standards that otherwise block import, which is why cars become importable on a birthday. That exemption is federal. Your state can still refuse to register it, and emissions-testing states in particular have their own rules.

If the car has already been imported, you want the customs entry paperwork in hand. If it has not, understand that importing is a project with its own cost and timeline, and that an unregistered import is worth less than a registered one for exactly that reason.

The smaller things that still bite

• Liens. A recorded lien has to be released by the lender, not the seller. Ask for the release document, not an assurance.
• Keys, manuals, tools and jack. Original tool kits and handbooks are worth real money on some cars and are commonly missing. Confirm presence rather than assuming.
• Spare parts in the sale. If the listing shows a pallet of spares, confirm in writing that they are included and who pays to move them.

The rule underneath all of this

If a document is claimed to exist and cannot be shown to you before you bid, value the car as though it does not exist. Sellers with the paperwork produce the paperwork. It is the cheapest thing they have to give you and the easiest promise to make without it.