Originally Posted by Clare
There have been more questions added since I read it yesterday. Yes he does now state it was a 'brand' new shell. But im still a little concerned for you, only from his description of how the chassis number was stamped: 1) The question from the Police officer is true and valid, new shells are stamped on the strut not the floor, & witha totally new chassis number to prove a traceable history.
2) The check that Vosa do to ensure a brand new shell is used is NOT to check if there is a number already stamped underneath the new one, you have to provide original documentation (a reciept) to show purchase of a brand new shell from the manufacturer.
If none of the above is satisfactory it should be issued with a Q.
The guy seems to be taking offence at peoples scepticism, which I guess is a little understandable but having worked with the DVLA rules and processes for 4 years, it still just doesn't sound quite right to me. Ask him if he has a copy of the original reciept for the 'brand new shell' from Ford. If he has, then I personally would feel a lot more comfortable parting with a large amount of cash for a car like that.
Brand new shells from Ford have not been available for many many years so it would be impossible to provide a receipt for the purchase of one! However new shells do still crop up from time to time from other sources and I think this is what was used here.
That looks like a superb car and I don't think anyone is going to invest that amout of time and money to try and sell a ringer. I hope he gets his price and I would have no qualms about buying it after viewing/inspecting it.