Here's how to register a restored vehicle without the original title
Q
My career military brother, now deceased, brought his non-operative '66 Vette to his last assignment in California.
It had been registered once, when he bought it in 1966, in Connecticut. I transferred ownership of the vehicle with no problem following his passing, as I had the required documentation to do so.
After a complete restoration, I now want to register it.
The CA DMV wants a title to complete the registration. I could not find the title among my brother's records.
The Connecticut DMV did not find a match for the car in their records. What do I need to do? — Charles A. Berls
A
The DMV replied that customers who are missing supporting evidence of ownership can register a vehicle without the certificate of title, but to get a new certificate of title for the vehicle, you must submit a Motor Vehicle Ownership Surety Bond (REG 5057) form or a bond alternative.
For more details, see: https://www. dmv.ca.gov/ portal/handbook/ vehicle-industryregistrationproceduresmanual-2/ bonds-andcertifications/ motor-vehicleownership-suretybond/
Q
I'm sure the column you ran recently about drivers' excuses will produce a snowstorm of new stories. Here's mine.
My wife was driving our Toyota Land Cruiser to SoCal for our annual beach vacation, full of kids, with a baggage pod on the roof. At the Grapevine, she was crawling up the hill at about 45 mph. Going down the other side, she was flying at about 80 mph. A pesky road boulder, a white Camaro, was in the outside lane. She flashed her headlights at the driver, and he pulled over and let her pass.
He was a CHP officer in an unmarked car. When he stopped her, she said, “I was only going 45 up the hill. If we average that with my speed down the hill, I was under the speed limit.” She says the cop was laughing so hard he had to lean against the car to keep from falling down. He said if he wrote her a ticket for the speed she was going, he would have to arrest her. He wrote the ticket for five miles over the limit.
A
Quick thinking on her part.
— Wallace Murfit, Menlo Park
Q
Why is the right bore of the eastbound Caldecott Tunnel almost pitch black, and wet? For that matter, can we please improve the lighting in all 3 of the older tunnels? — George R. Mathews, Antioch
A
Caltrans reports that it improved lighting in all Caldecott Tunnel bores and repaired lighting in bore #1, the far right bore on eastbound State Route 24.
Earlier this year, Caltrans completed major drain work to resolve water issues on the roadway here, but water sometimes seeps through from the mountain, so they continue to monitor the storm drains.