[dontlifttoshift]

I'm with Don, buy one with a title. The leg work just isn't worth it anymore.

Some states don't have titles for anything over ~25 years old and just use the registration. New York was one of those states and there were people manufacturing registrations and then you would transfer to your state and get a title. Awhile back Illinois caught on to that, there were four different 32 Fords in Illinois with the same VIN number all originating from a New York registration.

After that things got difficult. There is a process, it varies by state and I don't believe for a second that California would be one of the easier ones.