Question & AnswerQ&A (LTO MEMORANDUM CIRCULAR NO. AHS-2008-953)
No repair or change involving the exchange, elimination, effacing, or replacing of the original or registered serial or motor number stamped or imprinted on the engine shall be allowed without satisfactory explanation and approval by the Commissioner (now Assistant Secretary).
It amended the provision to prohibit any alteration or tampering with the original or registered engine serial number, disallowing any registration or re-registration if the engine serial number has been altered or tampered with, unless satisfactorily explained and approved by the Director of Land Transportation (now Assistant Secretary).
No, assigning and stamping of a new serial number to a defaced engine or motor is prohibited.
No, any motor vehicle that shows traces of having its engine serial number altered or tampered with shall be refused registration or re-registration.
The restoration requires: (a) Affidavit explaining the obliteration of the serial number; (b) Letter-request from the owner; (c) PNP-TMG macro-etching report and clearance; (d) Source documents like Certificate of Registration, BOC Certificate of Payment, Sale's Invoice; and (e) MVIS inspection report, all duly approved by the Assistant Secretary.
No, registration, re-registration, or stock reporting of engines whose serial numbers do not include the model/series identifier (e.g., 7K-12345) is not allowed.
The manufacturer or assembler is responsible for stamping additional characters duplicating the original engine's serial number, provided it is properly reported and approved by the Assistant Secretary.
Manufacturers must number every engine block, chassis, or body in a convenient and conspicuous part as may be directed by the Land Transportation Office to ensure uniformity and identification.
The LTO's mandate is to ensure that the motor vehicle is legitimately acquired, roadworthy, and that the correct road user's tax is collected.
All memoranda and orders that conflict with this memorandum are deemed superseded.