VIN Numbers/Production Dates

[PeterC]

Vanpelts site has an excellent breakdown of Ford VIN numbers/ranges by year - any way to estimate the date of production to the Vin? I know you can determine early and late - but any closer then that?

[4dFord/SC]

If the car still has its original glass, each pane has an etched label (or "bug") that includes the month and year the glass was manufactured. The car was probably assembled within several months of the glass date.

[V8ER]

The Francis/DeAngelis V8 book has VIN by month for 1932 to 1938.

[PeterC]

Originally Posted by V8ER

The Francis/DeAngelis V8 book has VIN by month for 1932 to 1938.

will check the glass but unlikely original - my interest at this time is my 1939 Coupe

[DavidG]

The VINs of that period are engine/transmission serial numbers so with a single engine manufacturing site and assembly plants spread out across the country, the date of vehicle would always lag the date of the engine's manufacture. That lag could range from a matter of days in the case of Dearborn-assembled cars and trucks at the start of the model year to a matter of weeks or more to cars and trucks assembled on the west coast.

[FrankWest]

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The 1933/34 restoration guide book has the production dates too.

[Charlie Stephens]

I would go with Dave in post #5 but an additional bit of information comes from the Model A Judging Standards. Of course it refers to Model A's but I doubt much changed. The Model A Judging Standards state "The assembly date for a vehicle may be as long as three months after the date the engine was produced".

Charlie Stephens

[Cecil/WV]

According to VanPelts book, production of the '48 started with #899A-2,071,118 and according to the V8 restorers guide, starting frame # on a V8 was 1,984,859 and ending frame # was 2,381,447 making a total production of 396,578 V8's. I don't know about the discrepancy in the 2 publications. My '48 has a VIN # 2,228,400, so that makes mine #343,541 out of 396,558 which would seem to be towards the end of production. The book says they started the '48 year in January of 1948 and the '49's came out in June, which would make it a 6 month run. Mine was probably built sometime in March and my glass codes are dated Dec. 1947 or L DG. Feel free to correct me if I am wrong. All the parts books shows the '48 with crank out vent windows, but mine has the latches like the '40's had.

Mine does have the matching numbers on the frame and transmission and shows 60,000 on the odometer.

[DavidG]

Charlie,

Further to what the Model A Standards state, it could be even longer in the case of '32 four-cylinder engines as over 45,000 of them were produced before the first one was installed in a chassis (because of the decision to go ahead with the V-8) and then there is evidence that they weren't withdrawn from that massive inventory on a first in, first out basis once they were released for vehicle use..

[TonyM]

Originally Posted by V8ER

The Francis/DeAngelis V8 book has VIN by month for 1932 to 1938.

Watch the 1937 numbers, there is a mistake.