Early Chrysler 6 engine numbers

An acquaintance has the remains of a Chrysler 6 which I think is a Model 60 but I am not sure. The casting date on the engine is I2525 which I presume is September 25 1925. The head was cast a day later. The engine number is 60883. I have not measured the wheelbase of the chassis but it looks to be more like 109" than 112". It has external contracting hydaraulic brakes. There is a Fisher body badge on what remains of the body and the instrument panel is white.

The model 60 serial number on the motor will start with an H, the 62 starts with a M, the 65 will start with a P

It looks like a late 1926 model 60 motor serial numbers were H21001 - H72800

Thanks for the reply. I will have another look at the engine today and get a closer look at the numbers.

Unfortunately the owner was not there when I looked that the parts today and the engine number was not visible. I will make a correction to the casting date on the block - it is I 23 25 and the head is I 22 25 so they were both cast in September 1925. It is also unfortunate that the FEDCO number has been removed from the top of the dash. All we need now is some info on when the first Model 60s were built. I noted also that it has magneto ignition.

The first Chrysler Model 60 was introduced as a mid-1926 model.

An update on this one. I have had another look at the car and think now that it is actually a 1925 Chrysler 70. It is Canadian-built and has serial number 36552 on the cowl. I am guessing that because the castings were dated September 1925 that it was probably sold here in early 1926. It seems that there are no records of Canadian production but if anybody knows of someone who owns an early Canadian-built Chrysler I would like to hear from them. I have found that the Canadian plant began in July 1925 but I have no idea how many cars they built in the first year.

Hi, it seams I have a canadian built Chrysler as well, serial number;

40224 . The engine number is probably 64543. I trying to find out the engine capacity. Best Regards

Fred

My serial number/VIN decoder shows the following for your serial number:

Unfortunately, there are very few engine number records for the very early Chrysler.

The 36552 serial number falls into that same range.

I'll have to double check my original sources to see why I don't show what plant the car was built in.

If it was built in Canada, it might have some Canadian componentry. My Dodge was built in Windsor; it has a McKinnon Ind generator and starter. McKinnon were in St Catharines, Ontario. There might be other small differences between Windsor and Detroit built vehicles.

Serial numbers on Canadian-built 1924-1925 Chryslers fell into the same sequence as the U.S. built models.  It was not until the beginning of the FEDCO system for 1926 that Canadian-built vehicles had unique serial numbers.  Same held true for Dodge Brothers vehicles prior to Dodge production moving from the Toronto plant to the new Windsor plant as well as all Graham Brothers Trucks.  And Maxwell used the same serial number sequences for all plants.  Thus you cannot tell what plant a Maxwell, Chalmers or pre-1926 Chrysler was built by the serial number.  And that goes for all engine numbers prior to early 1938 as well.  

Chrysler of Canada imported engines from the U.S. until the new Windsor engine plant (25 inch flathead sixes only) went on line in 1938.  Prior to 1938 all engines were built in the U.S.  Thus there are no unique Canadian engine numbers or casting numbers on engine blocks, heads, etc. before the Canadian engine plant went on line.  For example, the Canada-only 1933 DQ was based on the DP and used US-built DP engines.

The Windsor facility at Tecumseh and McDougall opened in 1918 and was owned by Maxwell of Canada.   The plant also built some Chalmers, but starting in 1924 assembly of the the new Chrysler Model B began.  Chrysler Corporation of Canada Limited succeeded Maxwell-Chrysler Corporation of Canada Limited on June 25, 1925.  The Maxwell was replaced by the Chrysler 4 in June, 1925, and the new 1926 models were introduced.   The big Chrysler Imperial 80 model E was not built in Canada.

In 1926 General Motors announced that Fisher Body would no longer be supplying bodies to non-General Motors customers.  With that, Chrysler of Canada purchased the Fisher Body plant on Edna Street at St.Luke Road in 1927. 

Plymouth and DeSoto production began in July, 1928, as well as the new Fargo Truck, at the old Maxwell plant.  Do not confuse this Plymouth-DeSoto-Chrysler-based Fargo with the Dodge Truck-based Fargo of the 1930s.  Although Fargo Truck continued into late 1930 (1931 models) in the U.S., production in Canada ended after about 43 units were built.  As in the U.S., Dodge Brothers (Canada) Limited and Graham Brothers (Canada) Limited became part of Chrysler Corporation of Canada Limited at the end of July, 1928.  Graham Brothers Truck became Dodge Truck as of January 1, 1929, as in the U.S.   Dodge Brothers cars were assembled in Windsor from 1921 to 1924 (basically CKD units from Detroit) and in Toronto on Dufferin Street starting in 1924.  Graham Brothers Trucks began rolling off the Toronto line in 1925.  

The new Windsor plant at Tecumseh and Drouillard (now Chrysler Centre) opened in 1929 and the car production at the old Maxwell plant in Windsor and the Dodge Brothers plant in Toronto was transfered to the new Windsor plant.  The new Windsor plant handled body production, and the old Maxwell plant was expanded to handle truck body work.  Once that was done production of Dodge Trucks was moved from Toronto to the Tecumseh and McDougall plant. 

Histories of Chrysler of Canada from the public affairs people say Dodge Truck production began in 1931.  That is based on the serial number listings which do not show Canadian production prior to the adoption of the seven-digit serial number system adopted in 1931.  Prior to 1931 Dodge Brothers, Dodge, Dodge Truck and Graham Brothers Truck used Amercian serial numbers.

The Maxwell plant located at Tecumseh and McDougall was used through to the 1980s.  The last cars to go through the plant were the 1981-83 Imperials for their quality inspections. 

The former Fisher Body plant was used for storage from 1938 to the end of WW II.  Chrysler also used the former American Auto Trimming Plant on Walker Road from 1938 to the end of WW II for export shipments as Plant #5.  Graham-Paige used the plant from 1931 through to mid-1936 to assemble cars for the Canadian market.

Hope this helps sort out the pre-WW II era of Chrysler of Canada.