Engine numbers to car years?

WHN,

What is the Assembly Plant code on your Sport Coupe?

There should not be any confusion at all WHN!

Dates were stamped on the gas tanks from May 1928 thru about September 1929. It is thought by most who have studied this aspect that these dates on the tanks were the dates that the tanks were complete and pressure tested in Dearborn. However there were tanks in this "window of assembly" that were not stamped.

The engine stampings were also done on specific dates as seen on the charts. We are fortunate there to know on what day and month they were stamped on a given year.

These stamped tanks and stamped engines were shipped to 32 domestic (USA) assembly plants throughout the USA. They were utilized as they were brought into the assembly plant for assembly either onto a chassis (engines), for which the number of the engine was also stamped onto the frame, or onto a body (tanks).

It took time to get these tanks, engines and other items to the assembly plants. Dearborn was the closest so there more than likely were Model A's with matching numbers.

Sometimes, yes, the date on the gas tank coresponded to the date of engine stamping. Sometimes it did not as the chart shows. It all depended just where the tank and the gastank (on the body) were at at the time of assembly to the mating up of both. It was not cut and dry. Workers did not care about the "numbers"...they were just to assemble a car or truck and get it off the assembly line for sale.

Tell us WHN...Just what dates do not make sence to you?

Merry Christmas!

Pluck
 
Steve Plucker said:
WHN,

What is the Assembly Plant code on your Sport Coupe?

There should not be any confusion at all WHN!

Dates were stamped on the gas tanks from May 1928 thru about September 1929. It is thought by most who have studied this aspect that these dates on the tanks were the dates that the tanks were complete and pressure tested in Dearborn. However there were tanks in this "window of assembly" that were not stamped.

The engine stampings were also done on specific dates as seen on the charts. We are fortunate there to know on what day and month they were stamped on a given year.

These stamped tanks and stamped engines were shipped to 32 domestic (USA) assembly plants throughout the USA. They were utilized as they were brought into the assembly plant for assembly either onto a chassis (engines), for which the number of the engine was also stamped onto the frame, or onto a body (tanks).

It took time to get these tanks, engines and other items to the assembly plants. Dearborn was the closest so there more than likely were Model A's with matching numbers.

Sometimes, yes, the date on the gas tank coresponded to the date of engine stamping. Sometimes it did not as the chart shows. It all depended just where the tank and the gastank (on the body) were at at the time of assembly to the mating up of both. It was not cut and dry. Workers did not care about the "numbers"...they were just to assemble a car or truck and get it off the assembly line for sale.

Tell us WHN...Just what dates do not make sence to you?

Merry Christmas!

Pluck
Click to expand...

Steve:

We purchased this car in 1979 and restored it in 1981. Back than we just wanted to confirm matching engine and frame numbers. I don’t remember the assembly location code.

Over the years when looking at 28 or 29 cars I was keying in on firewall date and its reference to engine number date. I guess from what I have now read, firewall date could be in question as to meaning. This is why I joined The Ford Barn, to learn.

Enjoy and also have a Merry Christmas.

Bill
 
Steve Plucker said:
OK...But tell us Bill...Just "what dates do not make sence" to you?

Please don't leave us hanging.

Pluck
Click to expand...

The firewall date. It has always been my understanding to be the excepted car assembly date.

Engine approval date can be confirmed. Frame number, if not to rusted, can be confirmed. Firewall date? It’s there, but for what. Enjoy.
 
Ok not trying to hi-jack this thread but I have a Question.

My engine number is approx 4 mos (April 1930)from the mfr date of the car (August 1930). So is this a matching numbers car then?

TIA
Clay
 
Only if the engine number on the engine (no restamp) is the same number on the frame (no restamp), then it is a "matching numbers car/truck".

Pluck
 
My car has a engine frame number that is mid-May 1930. It had several engines so none match as they are long gone. When the car is put together they stamp the engine number on the frame, but that could be months later after the engine number was stamped on it when it was built. My car has many August/Sept parts so 3-4 months during the depression era makes sense to me due to lag time and maybe even longer, depending on inventory and demand.

I stamped my original frame number on my new rebuilt and purchased block. Numbers will match but of course, not really.
 
I've noticed that engine production went way up in March-June 1930. I'm sure that sales were much slower as the depression dragged on; so what happen to the glut of engines produced during those four months? Did many of those engines sit around for a long time (months?) before being installed in a car?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top