Q-Please supply me with the following: The history of vehicle identification numbers; why numbers were chosen; why limit the VIN to a certain number of characters; what does each number and character mean; where are VIN numbers located in each vehicle; a chart explaining old and new VINS, including those with five or six characters; the history of odometers; the history of five- versus six-position odometers; a listing of which cars use five- and which six-character odometers; the definition of odometer fraud; details on how the federal government and each state government investigates and controls odometer fraud; a definition of title laundering; details on how title laundering operates; how the federal government and each state government controls the problem; the names of each service that has national computer programs to track title laundering as well as salvage titles; a definition of salvage vehicle; details on whether each state has uniform laws governing salvage vehicles and an explanation of any computer network in effect that operates in each state to uncover and prosecute salvage vehicle abusers. I need this for an education project. W.B., Omaha
A-We suggest you stand by your mailbox and wait, W.B. You may want to take a sandwich with you while you wait. And a can or two of pop. And a blanket. And a razor. And a calendar.
Q-The “Heartbeat of America” was bad enough, but now “Genuine Chevrolet.” Does that mean there are fake Chevys? A.B., Chicago
A-We still prefer “Heartbeat” and its soundtrack. “Genuine Chevrolet” sounds as if some high-priced market research outfit caught Chevy at a weak moment and sold on it on a theme with purported deep-seated psychological undertones. Though not a psychologist or a high-priced market researcher, we do know that “Heartbeat” would get the toes tapping, but “Genuine Chevrolet” puts us to sleep.
Q-I’ve saved $2,000 and have an ’87 Dodge Shadow to use as a trade in on a new car. I’m 6 feet 5 and have looked at the Neon but it seems small. Perhaps a Saturn, but I want to buy the cheapest model I can. What I’d really like is an S-10 Chevy truck. Suggestions? R.M., Lexington, Ill.
A-Neon has a spacious interior and offers more headroom than the Saturn, which has a plastic body that won’t rust to maintain a high resale value. If the prices seem too steep for you new, you might consider a used Saturn. Neon hasn’t been on the market long enough to provide ample supplies of used ones. Suggestions? Take the $2,000 and your Shadow trade-in, and finance the remainder of the purchase on a new S-10 because you’ll end up being a lot happier making payments on a vehicle you like than on a vehicle that simply was within your budget.
Q-I think you are an incredible genius and would be very effective in championing my cause, which is to abolish the state’s vehicle emissions testing program. The constitution says you are innocent until proven guilty, but the state’s emission law is contrary to that. You have to take the test to prove you are innocent or you get punished. The way to make the test legal would be to make it voluntary with perhaps a tax break as an incentive for those who took it, or for the state to look for cars and trucks on the road spewing excessive pollution and then require the drivers to correct the problem. D.R., Chicago
A-We don’t favor abolishing emissions testing, but we do favor changes in the current system, such as exempting vehicles for the first five years of new-car ownership. We spend lots of time on the road and usually find that those vehicles spitting out pollution are the old ones with bald tires, worn brakes and transmissions 50,000 to 60,000 miles beyond their normal life cycle. They also are usually lack air bags and/or anti-lock brakes. So the Environmental Protection Agency might see such a car and shudder at the gaseous or solid waste filling the atmosphere while we look at those vehicles and quake at the thought of the driver having to stop in time to avoid a carload of people or young kids playing in a lot. If voluntary, only those with regularly maintained and serviced cars would take the test, and that would solve nothing.
– Dear readers: A number of you responded to the letter from H.L. of Lombard who said he had old automotive sales brochures he’d like to sell. We’ve kept your letters, it’s H.L.’s that we lost. So if H.L. would contact us again, we’ll send along the names and addresses of those interested in the brochures. If H.L. doesn’t respond, we’ll keep your letters on file for when another reader is looking to sell similar material. Sorry, but even a genius can lose a letter once in a while.
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Send your questions about cars and trucks to Jim Mateja, Chicago Tribune, 700 N. Milwaukee Ave., Suite 135, Vernon Hills, Ill. 60061-1523.
