Fiesta with invalid VIN, only 16 characters

unixus · 13-12-2014, 04:03 PM

Hi,

We recently purchased a Fiesta WZ Trend. I'm now trying to register with Ford (https://www.ford.com.au/registration) but I'm unable to as it says the VIN is invalid.

The VIN seems to be missing one character as it's only 16 vs 17 characters long:
MNBXXARJ8ET30693

Anyone has come across this issue before? How is it possible this went through quality control unnoticed? Surely there must be some system that checks for invalid VIN numbers?

I called my Ford dealer and he says the VIN matches with the order/delivery forms so he's not able to provide or correct the VIN...

Pursya · 13-12-2014, 04:06 PM

Call ford help line.
They will have to provide a valid VIN as at the moment you may well not be correctly registered or insured.
http://www.ford.com.au/contact-us
Phone 133673

You have a crap Ford dealer as this is something they should have done for you.

unixus · 13-12-2014, 05:36 PM

Thanks for the info Pursya,

I've called the help line and they advised to verify the VIN on the car body under the carpet on the driver's footwell instead of the one inside the door.
Will need to wait until the wife is back home with it though.

You have a crap Ford dealer as this is something they should have done for you.
Yeah no doubt... We dealt with a friendly salesman when buying the car, very helpful and genuine. However once you're an owner you need to deal with the service department and there's little transparency what they will be like beforehand.

Pursya · 13-12-2014, 07:01 PM

Sounds like a plan.
If you find a full 17 digit number, make sure Ford change it in their system, as recalls and warranty items will run through that number.
Then, and this is the hard part, go to your local Government registration shopfront and explain that the number in the rego is wrong. I'm sure there will be an issue here. Maybe a letter from Ford with the correct number will be required, so get that before you go and front the Officials.
And don't forget the insurance company once you get the rego changed. These ****** will use anything to get out of a claim and a discrepancy in the VIN would be a great lever for them.
Good luck. Would love to kick the lazy bastard who misfiled the paperwork up the ****.

A bit of light reading;
http://www.infrastructure.gov.au/veh...orts/vins.aspx

Quote:

A VIN is always 17 characters long

Your dealer should have known that and rectified it before sale. They may have broken the law.

mik · 13-12-2014, 11:03 PM

hmmm that could have been a bit of a hassle, good info there Pursya.
yeah you need your i`s dotted when you front your rego branch,
reminds me one time i turned up at the rego branch after purchasing an f100 and getting it transferred into my name, and the girl at counter said those plates are off a torana ! er what ?

commodorenutt · 13-12-2014, 11:39 PM

I'm really amazed it got this far. Surely the dealer should have realised they made an error at some point when doing the paperwork for the car? Everyone in the car industry knows that an ISO VIN is 17 digits.

Does the VIN sticker/stamp on the car have the correct 17 digits?
If so, I'd be going back to the dealer and put it on them to fix it, as the error has come from their sheer laziness at using paperwork, instead of getting off their butt to inspect the actual car.

If you're in NSW it's a real pain in the butt to fix this, as you need to go to a blue slip inspector (and pay money) to get it inspected, then go back to the RMS (and then all the other crap as noted above).

I've been through this when the NSW RTA transferred rego on a car I bought, and did a typo on the chassis number - transposing 2 digits. Because I could prove from previous RTA rego papers showing the correct number, that they had screwed up, they reimbursed me the inspection fee, but I still had to do all the running around.
Hence why I think your dealer should be responsible for righting their error, and especially covering the costs.

dirty hands · 14-12-2014, 12:05 AM

they better let you drive the car while this is being sorted

Happens quite a bit even with computer data entrys=barcodes

I bought a new 4 cyl car and the sales person entered a V6 engine vin and I didnt pick it up for two years ..I was refunded the rego difference and the car manufacturer sales division copped a fine and the salesman had moved on

fiestaz · 14-12-2014, 12:20 PM

Yep take it straight back to the dealer. Its their fault. They need to fix it. Would drop the keys straight to the manager.

Unfortunately show's Ford's customer service and attention to detail these days :(

Pursya · 14-12-2014, 08:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by commodorenutt

I'm really amazed it got this far. Surely the dealer should have realised they made an error at some point when doing the paperwork for the car? Everyone in the car industry knows that an ISO VIN is 17 digits.

Does the VIN sticker/stamp on the car have the correct 17 digits?
If so, I'd be going back to the dealer and put it on them to fix it, as the error has come from their sheer laziness at using paperwork, instead of getting off their butt to inspect the actual car.

If you're in NSW it's a real pain in the butt to fix this, as you need to go to a blue slip inspector (and pay money) to get it inspected, then go back to the RMS (and then all the other crap as noted above).

I've been through this when the NSW RTA transferred rego on a car I bought, and did a typo on the chassis number - transposing 2 digits. Because I could prove from previous RTA rego papers showing the correct number, that they had screwed up, they reimbursed me the inspection fee, but I still had to do all the running around.
Hence why I think your dealer should be responsible for righting their error, and especially covering the costs.

Spot on.
ALL COSTS must be covered by the dealer, or FordOz if the car came into the country with an incorrect VIN.
This is not the owners fault. But if the law is applied to the letter the owner will be held liable in the first instance.
In the modern world it's inexcusable for this error to get as far as registration/insurance papers.

Cashie · 14-12-2014, 08:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pursya

Spot on.
ALL COSTS must be covered by the dealer, or FordOz if the car came into the country with an incorrect VIN.
This is not the owners fault. But if the law is applied to the letter the owner will be held liable in the first instance.
In the modern world it's inexcusable for this error to get as far as registration/insurance papers.

Something's not right here, there's no way this car got through all paperwork missing a digit in the VIN. Registration and Fords own systems check for the correct digit count.

Quote:

Originally Posted by unixus

Hi,

We recently purchased a Fiesta WZ Trend. I'm now trying to register with Ford (https://www.ford.com.au/registration) but I'm unable to as it says the VIN is invalid.

The VIN seems to be missing one character as it's only 16 vs 17 characters long:
MNBXXARJ8ET30693

Anyone has come across this issue before? How is it possible this went through quality control unnoticed? Surely there must be some system that checks for invalid VIN numbers?

I called my Ford dealer and he says the VIN matches with the order/delivery forms so he's not able to provide or correct the VIN...

Looking at car sales at all WZ Trends, it just looks like the number 8 is missing.
Ie. MNB8XXARJ8ET30693

Pursya · 14-12-2014, 10:08 PM

Nice pick up Cashie.
But the original poster needs to check that his rego, insurance, has 17 digits.
Because by the sounds of things, and I'm no expert here, the car is not legal in this country with a 16 digit VIN.
If the paperwork is wrong, then it needs correcting. But as I said before, in this day and age it should never have got to this point.
And Unix should not be financially penalised in any way.