Should I pursue this - 1996 Ducati SS frame question?

Question

In 2005 I tore my bike down and handed over the cracked frame (manufacturer's defect) to the local Duc shop in Charleston, SC. They claimed Ducati needed to decomission it prior to building my warranty replacement. I just got a certified letter from a cycle shop in Florida stating they had my (old) frame and had put a lien against it.

My suspicion is the SC Ducati dealer actually sold my frame to another party. I would confront them on this but have since moved to California and it's not as easy as just dropping by.

Maybe I should let this go? I have my new frame and am off and running...

Mayby I should confront the matter and pursue some sort of compensation?

What would you do?

Answer 1

You may want to consider learning about Salvage Title/Lost Title/Warranty etc before trying to take any action against anyone whom you have no claim against.

Especially on any sort of motor vehicle title matter.
and Double especially in an Interstate matter

There's no Lien against YOU,is there?

A lien against the VIN,,,,
which has not been YOURS since it was reclaimed under warranty.
(I assume Warranteed,,,cuz of Mfgr Defect???)

It's an "open title",,Ducati's Warranty is the "bill of sale" transferring rightful possession.

Whether or not Ducati went and bought license plates and had title transferred to their name .

Drive by any salvage yard,,,100's of those cars you see are exactly same situation as yours.

Warrantied Frames and Engines,,,same thing.
They sit Open in DMV records,,,Until somebody proves ownership and re-registers it.

The SIMPLE way to transfer title in these kinda deals ,,is to file a workman's lien in most states.
The procedure requires notification of last known owner.

No "Release of Lien" or Title Challenge after X-amount of time grants the award of clear title to the lienholder

Warranty Parts are required by Mfgr to be held under ,,,various terms & conditions.
Final Disposition of the warranty claim is either the Mfgr requests possesion of the item,,,,

or they "release" the item.
And it's at Dealer's discretion of what to do with the item.

Mfgr figuratively "dumps it in the trash & walks off".
It BELONGS to the MFGR.....they can do that.

Sometimes they demand items be destroyed,,sometimes they demand Proof of destruction.
Or,,Contractually define disposition terms----such as "You cannot Sell or Transfer or put back into serrvice any items replaced under warranty"

Compliance with that??
It's a DEALER,,,Their Mfgr OWNS the Stuff.
For them to NOT comply with the contract/instructions is THEFT.

Many Times,,,the Dealer is allowed to "Dumpster Dive" all they want.
Finders Keepers sorta rules.

Perhaps,,,the Dealer Sold Ducati's frame,,swapped it,,gave it away---or,,Trashed it and somebody came along and got it from DEALER's Dumpster...
........................................................................................
On the Other hand,,,if You can Prove You Rightfully Own the frame,,
or Ducati has not fulfilled their legal obligations under warranty terms,,,or The Dealer cheated you out of your rightful ownership of it....
Then YOU could actually be The Owner and should seek remedy if so.

If NOT,,its fairly easy to prove that you did in fact have knowledge of the frame replacement under warranty.

TUFF to explain to a Judge why anyone would file a lawsuit across state lines to gain possesion of a VIN/Title while knowing it was not theirs.

That could easily and simply be cleared as an honest misunderstanding.....

But still leaves the Plaintiff liable for the actual owner's expenses to defend his right to title.

Simple Terms>>
Be Certain what your getting into,,,cuz if You're Mistaken,,,it possibly could cost you a few bucks.

Answer 2

First, I would make sure that all my bike's paperwork was in order. Bills of sale, reciepts, work orders, everything that shows the frame was replaced. For my own piece of mind, in case I ever had to prove what's mine is really mine. Then, I would ask how they got the frame, and why they put a lien on it. I shouldn't have any problem, as I could now prove the frame is no longer mine. That makes it their problem, between them and whoever they got it from. I wouldn't bother with compensation as I haven't lost any thing to be compensated for. I would also go to the DMV in both SC and CA to make sure ownership was not still listed in my name. That's probably how the Florida shop got to you.

Edit: At NH DMV they call it the Office of Financial Responsibility. They use the VIN to look up the last REGISTERED owner. They don't care if you sold it, junked it, or whatever. As far as they are concerned it still belongs to the LAST REGISTERED OWNER. Until you go there and tell them different and have it removed from the list.

Answer 3

No disrespect to the Impala however the a brand new Mustang GT might smoke it. Not even near. The main issue is wherein the race used to be held. If 2 men are using down the freeway, one would begin earlier than the opposite, one perhaps within the incorrect equipment, and so on, and so on. At a drag strip wherein it's extra managed, Mustang GT everytime except the motive force forgets to show the auto on. Maybe again in 1996 it might had been a race. The Mustang then handiest had 215 HP, so who is aware of. The Impala used to be a well auto in its day, simply could not grasp with a brand new Mustang inventory vs inventory.

Answer 4

I would think that if they put a lien against it, they are holding you responsible for some cash for one reason or another. I would try calling the shop that sent you the letter and explain it to them and see what they say?