James, interesting--I never knew there could be such a thing as DeLorean philosophy/metaphysics. So if you close a DeLorean gull wing door in a forest, does it make a sound? :) Honestly, I have no answer to your question--but I would start with asking if it is ever feasible that an owner *would* replace *every single* but of car that is original, meaning all screws, carpet pieces, knobs, windows, etc. If it is probably never going to happen (?), then maybe we never need to worry about the issue, because as long as *something* original exists, it can still be considered its VIN number, right? Richard