The VIN plate is not a sure thing as reproductions are available that the manufacturer will change most things on request except the VIN.
I'm confused. Are you saying there are repo VIN plates that can be made up?
1956 Ford Victoria hardtop in beautiful Sunset Coral and White, with a show quality White on Black interior. It also has the Continental Package. 312/225 HP V-8 engine.
The car is a rare S-code, one of only 7 cars built in 1956. It is believed to have been a test or pilot car. The S cars were built at the Pilot plant of Ford located in Somerville, Massachusetts. The third digit in the VIN number indicates the S code.
I usually go one the a$$umption everyone is basically honest but human nature is what it is.
Case in point - http://oscarmotorcars.com/ford-list...ia-hardtop-rare-s-code-312225-hp-3-speed.html
You don't know if the seller was just not knowledgeable or trying to pull something.
Big difference between a restoration and resto-mod.
What tips you off other then it is a resto-mod. The price being high for that or what?
There was also a magazine article many years ago showing a guy's '56 FORD and it had a 368 and was an S-CODE car (or had an S-CODE PATENT PLATE). Very convincing.I had heard of the same story of the 368 engines being in the 1956 cars with the letter "S" in the serial number however when reading the TSB's (Technical Service Bulletin) from 1956 found something different.1956 FORD ‘S-CODE 368’ TSB 366
In TSB 366 dated 8/6/56 there is a paragraph about the "S" code cars.
Para D*2
312 Cubic Inch eight-cylinder engines - 1956 Fairlane, Customline, and Mainline Models
We have been advised that approximately sixty-five 312 cubic inch engines with automatic transmissions and four hundred and fifty-five 312 cubic inch engines with standard transmissions have been used in 1956 Fairlane, Customline, and Mainline models in place of the 292 cubic inch engine with the four-barrel carburetor.
Since these engines were shipped with the regular passenger car decals on the rocker covers it will not be possible to identify them by this means.
The identification of such 1956 units with these engines in this case is made by the letter "S" in the vehicle serial number and a daub of yellow heat resisting paint about two inches square on the forward portion of the engine.
SOURCE- http://forums.y-blocksforever.com/Topic46286.aspx