NCRS shipping report vs. tank sticker, timing issue

[Michael J.]

I was finishing the research on previous owners my '67 L71 coupe, which was made very much easier when I translated the zone and dealer code from the tank sticker, which I understood was "the real deal" and verified by a previous owner who removed it and sold it with the car. I also got the NCRS shipping info later, which of course matched the dealer and zone code on the tank sticker and the previous info I had on what dealer it was that delivered my car from the NCRS zone and dealer database before the shipping reports were available. But then I got to thinking, if I had done this today, and got the NCRS shipping info first, I could have easily made up a fake tank sticker with things that matched it. I am thinking I should be very careful to document that the tank sticker came from a previous owner long before the NCRS verification, and is thus not "suspicious", as one would be if you had no documentation of a previous owner having removed it. Am I being too paranoid, it just seems these fakes are so easy these days, and thus suspicion is there for anything? I think the NCRS shipping data report may bring up more issues in the future due to this timing issue.

[Terry M.]

Re: NCRS shipping report vs. tank sticker, timing issue

I was finishing the research on previous owners my '67 L71 coupe, which was made very much easier when I translated the zone and dealer code from the tank sticker, which I understood was "the real deal" and verified by a previous owner who removed it and sold it with the car. I also got the NCRS shipping info later, which of course matched the dealer and zone code on the tank sticker and the previous info I had on what dealer it was that delivered my car from the NCRS zone and dealer database before the shipping reports were available. But then I got to thinking, if I had done this today, and got the NCRS shipping info first, I could have easily made up a fake tank sticker with things that matched it. I am thinking I should be very careful to document that the tank sticker came from a previous owner long before the NCRS verification, and is thus not "suspicious", as one would be if you had no documentation of a previous owner having removed it. Am I being too paranoid, it just seems these fakes are so easy these days, and thus suspicion is there for anything? I think the NCRS shipping data report may bring up more issues in the future due to this timing issue.

You are obsessing needlessly. There are features of the tank sheet that allow NCRS to verify its authenticity beyond those you have mentioned. If you opt to spend another $40 and send NCRS a good copy of your tank sheet they will tell you if it is the real deal or if it is fake. Then you will have all the proof you could want.

In the cases where NCRS has the shipping data for the car they can detect fake tank sheets or verify the real deal. Of course for those of us who they have no shipping data -- all bets are off.