1939 Dodge Trucks having different headlight locations.

Anybody explain why? Both are 39s when I cheeked the Vin #s:confused:

Mid year change? They did the same thing to the 1938 Plymouth passenger cars.

Didn't California have a DMV regulation change that required the movement of truck headlights to conform closer to car headlights around that time?

Here is a picture dated Nov-1938 for the 39 trucks. Headlights are up. So I would think that the mid year change went out the window unless it was the very 1st ones made. I'll check the vin #s to try to find out when it was made.

Standard production 39 trucks had the headlights on the inside of the front fenders like in your picture. From 40 to 47 they were moved to the top of the fenders. In California they had to be lowered to conform to the new regulations so they wound up on the front of the fenders to comply. Not sure of the dates that this was implemented but it was during the production run of the Job Rated trucks 39-47.

]Look at the picture above. 1939 truck line with lights on top. We have 2-39 trucks as pictured above. One with the lights on the bottom and the other with lights on top. Both of these trucks are 1 owner Ca. trucks all its life. I also have numerous brochure of the 39 trucks. None of them have the the lights on the bottom.

Here is 2 more 1946 Dodge trucks that we own pictured below. Been in Ca. all its life also. Lights on top.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]229998[/ATTACH

Maybe the 39-47 Dodge Truck yahoo forum can shed some light on the reasons for the differences.

1939 lower lights and close together

1940-higher lights with stands

[ATTACH=CONFIG]230029[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]230030[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]230031[/ATTACH]

1941-higher lights further apart and lights on the a pillar.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]230032[/ATTACH]

Just as an outsider looking in, I agree with cpwalter. (I know nothing about these years.) I can find no photos in my books or any mention of the headlights being moved by Dodge themselves mid year or otherwise. It would appear they were put lower in Calif. for that rule and you have some of them. They do look like an add-on. They don't look like Chrysler would intentionally put them down front like that unless they had to. And of course the trucks could today be anywhere from the Pacific to the Atlantic.

I would suspect someone changed the headlights on the lower Mounting location. The headlamp has the "running light" mounted on the top. That style was used 1940 and later. The only style of 1939 pickup I have seen was mounted on top of the fender as in your photo with the green hood. Some very creative modifications have been made on these trucks over the years for farm, construction and other uses. Perhaps there is a difference between the pickups and bigger trucks.

On 1939 Dodge trucks the headlights were about halfway between the crest of the fender and the grill like the truck in green with parking light inside with the headlight bulb not a seal unit.1940 was the only year that the headlight had the parking light mounted on top of the headlight being the first year of the sealed headlight still mounted about halfway from the crest of the fender to the grill The only exception was on the 3ton truck.1941 1942 1944 1945 1946 1947 the parking light was mounted on the cowl and headlights were now on the crest only exception was the change over year 1941 around March when Chrysler was using up left over parts from 1940 but the grill was the new stile There for you could have a 1941 with the new grill but 1940 headlights Now to answer your question some countys in Ca and other states required headlights to be a certain height. So from factory a few trucks were built with lower headlights like pictured To prove this look at the trucks 1941-1947 pics and note the crest on fender was not pressed down for the standard mounting of the headlight .Red fire truck and farm truck Now to get a sealed light some people would remove old headlights and place newer ones from wrecked trucks.Keep in mind that dealers might not sale a truck the year it was built.There for the serial no. shows example 1946 but title 1947 Hope this helps

Here's mine, a '39.

Here's mine, a '39.

Nice truck.

Thanks Dave, it's an old state park fire pumper that sat in the station all its life waiting for a fire that never came. Now restored to stock configuration, it has about 20,000 true miles on it. In that photo, it's all dressed up for the parade.

Thanks Dave, it's an old state park fire pumper that sat in the station all its life waiting for a fire that never came. Now restored to stock configuration, it has about 20,000 true miles on it. In that photo, it's all dressed up for the parade.

Could I get more pictures for my scrap book and the particulars?

May work on publishing a book some day on Dodge trucks only.:cool:

I need to take more pictures. Right now, the truck's out in the barn at 10 degrees F. I'll get some, but later.

I need to take more pictures. Right now, the truck's out in the barn at 10 degrees F. I'll get some, but later.

BURRRRR-COLD!!!!!:cool:

It's -29C or -20F right now outside my door. That's 20 below 0 F. Vehicles are breaking down left and right. Aluminum heads and intake manifolds are shinking more than the cast iron blocks. Resulting in head gaskets and intake manifold gaskets blowing out and releasing the antifreeze. Things are breaking off in our hands they are so brittle. You can't touch outside door handles on a house or a vehicle with a bare hand because you will burn your hand and fingers from the extreme cold. The metal takes up the body heat so quickly you have virtually the same problem as touching something hot. Almost instant frostbite/burn. Stings like hell. You have to watch children very closely. Toronto had a "frost quake" last week or the week before. All the ground under the city suddenly contracted from the cold and caused a localized earthquake. My brick home shudders every once in a while during the night when it's at it's coldest and the Sun has been off the house for a while and the house contracts. It can cause a "Z" crack to appear in the mortar lines. The temp. is going to stay this way for another week! This is the coldest it's been in 20 years. Some global warming. You guys in Calif. don't know what cold is.

It was -13 a couple weeks ago here. I had set out a string of t-posts for a snow fence and they were half out of the ground, pushed up by the freeze.

About ten years ago, one very cold winter morning was out with the dogs and heard a snap. Turned around and the bark on one of the maple trees had split open vertically from close to the ground to ten or twelve feet up. I don't recall the weather in the days leading up to that, but it may have been warm and sap flowing.

It's -29C or -20F right now outside my door. That's 20 below 0 F. Vehicles are breaking down left and right. Aluminum heads and intake manifolds are shinking more than the cast iron blocks. Resulting in head gaskets and intake manifold gaskets blowing out and releasing the antifreeze. Things are breaking off in our hands they are so brittle. You can't touch outside door handles on a house or a vehicle with a bare hand because you will burn your hand and fingers from the extreme cold. The metal takes up the body heat so quickly you have virtually the same problem as touching something hot. Almost instant frostbite/burn. Stings like hell. You have to watch children very closely. You guys in Calif. don't know what cold is.

It gets to 15 below in Lake Tahoe Ca. But not for a long period. 1984, I bought my 1st Full service gas station in Det. Jan, 1984, we had 30 below with 60 below with the wind. I could't believe the cars and trucks breaking down on I 275 in Det. We grossed about 20.000 in the 3 days doing road service with 2 tow trucks, a service truck and 2 salamander heaters.

Before I came off the road 3 years ago, I drove a 10 car hauler in the 48 lower states and Canada. Really plays havoc with the hydraulics.