Stu Brennan's post about the Porsche 917 with Alabama tags brings back
memories. It was Road & Track's cover story in the late '70s or early '80s,
and it reportedly had nothing to do with Alabama's vehicle title law which had
already been in effect since 1974. If my fuzzy memory serves, the 917's owner
was one of the principals of Martini and Rossi in Italy. He was said to have
been unable to get the car licensed for road use in any European country --
one country even insisted on crash-testing it first! The solution was an
American State with no vehicle inspection requirement. There may also have
been a NASCAR connection, at least on some personal level. A police check of
the tag number revealed that it was a valid registration to the owner cited in
the magazine article. The address was given as Speedway Boulevard in
Talladega County. That is the wide access road that passes adjacent to the
famous NASCAR track and motorsports museum there.
Also interesting was the fact that the photos showed two identical Alabama
license plates mounted on the 917. Alabama only issues one plate. And none
of the mounting holes matched the standard pattern. The license director in
my county told me that duplicate plates are not issued and that none are
issued without the standard mounting holes. So while the registration was
valid, the plates may have been counterfeit. But they were good copies
otherwise.
My county requires that license department personnel visually confirm the VIN
for the initial registration of a car brought into the state by an individual.
No mention was made of that 917 ever coming to this country, so Talladega
County either didn't require a visual VIN confirmation, or a special favor may
have been granted to a locally influential person. One must assume that an
Alabama title was also issued. I sent a letter to Road & Track telling what I
had learned locally and seeking more information, and Joe Rusz responded
directly; but he could offer only speculation. It would have been interesting
to know more of the story.
Jim Burruss
|