is there a z8 registrar

[mk31755]

I just became the the proud owner of 61725. She has had four previous owners. I know the first and fourth. I have a car fax and am trying to put together the history, mostly so that I can try and find her missing hard top. The first owner claims he traded her in with the hardtop. The fourth owner never got a hard top with the car. Would the registrar know anything about this car? Al suggestions are appreciated. MK

[macfly]

There isn't a registrar I know of except the very loose one we have here, but your VIN hasn't been in our member list before you.

[EDEZ8]

Current privacy laws make it challenging for tracing former owners, but I have one idea for you. Check the Carfax report for services, and then reach out to the dealership/shop where the work was performed. That worked for me when I asked for previous service receipts.

[mk31755]

that is interesting because the other cars I own have registrars to keep track of cars and vins. I think a lot of this has to do with people making clones or falsifying a cars true identity. The Austin Healey Club has a registrar and the Shelby club prints a huge book every so many years listing all the vins and a short history of each car.

[boomster]

I used to have a 1966 Shelby GT350 and was a member of SAAC for many years. Counterfeit Shelbys are particularly problematic since it doesn't take too much sleight-of-hand to turn a $15k Mustang fastback into a $150k Shelby GT350. Luckily, SAAC was able to uncover the records showing the Ford-assigned VINs associated with each and every Shelby Mustang, and will confirm the pedigree of a car if you send them the VIN (which are not readily visible but can be found if you know where to look). Thankfully, other than a few Z4 conversions, no one has attempted to build fake Z8s, so a registry is of less importance.

[2112]

As Boomster said, SAAC really has a handle on this............cause they had to get a handle on it.

They also do not make all the information they know about a particular car public. If you suspect a problem and contact the register, they will confirm or deny such problems. They were sued too many times for outing fakes or rebodied cars.

Still, IMO, they set the standard for registries but really out of necessity. It helps the Marque. The registrars are typically 1 or 2 individuals who do it for the love of the cars. I am not saying the founders and current owners of the SAAC organization don't make a few bucks, but the registrars do not. All voluteer.

Last, the registrars are getting up there in age. I am not positive there are a bunch of young people out there willing to put the huge time commitment to keep it going.

[macfly]

I am not positive there are a bunch of young people out there willing to put the huge time commitment to keep it going.

As I enter my sixth decade on the planet that's something I wonder about too. I recon I've got a good 25+ years to go, but one day I'll be heading out, and there's no-one on my radar to take this one over either.

[Z-acht]

Even BMW Munich stopped following the Z8 after first deliverance.