sean1997

Trim 246 = Taupe Mohair Fabric, available on models 41, 46, 46S, 46SR, 48, 61, 66S, 66SR, 68 Paint code 432 = solid Phantom Grey Metallic frame no : 2958839 range for 1936 was 2,830,899 to 2,999,496 1290710-1 is a casting number, engine number should start with a 4 for Special (Series 40), see attached photo for location.

BUICK MOTOR DIVISION GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION FLINT MI 1940 MOD. 61 STYLE No 40-4619 BODY No 5481 TRIM No 809 PAINT No 541 MO. DAY YEAR BODY BY FISHER MOD. 61 = Buick model number = Century 4-door touring sedan, 5-passenger 40-4619 40 = 1940 model year 4619 = Fisher body style number 4 = Buick (GM div. number, 1 = Chevy, 2 = Pontiac, 3 = Olds) 6 = Series 60/Century (4=Series 40/Special, 5=Series 50/Super, etc.) 19 = body style code = 4-door touring sedan, 5-passenger BODY No 5481 lack of a plant code means the body was built at Flint MI 5481 = sequential body number, 5481st 4619 built at Flint MI TRIM No 809 = Tan Bedford Cord, available on models 61, 61A only PAINT No 541 = solid Carlsbad Black

I don't know what it means. Doesn't seem to be a stamping error or flaw. It looks like an O or OO on some tags. I've only seen it on a small number of Flint built 1965 tags. Some Flint built 1966-1967 tags have a ampersand symbol (&) in about the same spot, don't know what that means either.

GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION 11B ST 65-49447 FB 30931 BODY TR 608 CC * PAINT ENXT-2K-3B-4F-5KW 11B = build date = November (11) 1964, second week (B) ST = style 65 = 1965 model year 49447 = Fisher body style number 4 = Buick 94 = Riviera 47 = 2-door hardtop sport coupe FB = body built at Flint, MI 30931 = sequential body number TR = trim Trim 608 = Standard Black Vinyl with Bucket-Type Front Seats, available on style 49447 Paint code CC = solid Arctic White * = unknown, but only found on 1961-1966 Flint built cars Option codes Group 1 E = Tinted glass (all windows) X = Power Windows (Except Vents) N = Power Windows (Vents Only) T = 4-Way Power Seat - bucket, left seat only Group 2 K = Air Conditioner Group 3 B = Rear Window Defroster Group 4 F = Remote controlled outside driver's mirror Group 5 K = Door Edge Guards W = Seat Belts With Retractor

Trim 533 shows up on the 1957 wholesale car order form dated revised June 10th, 1957. It is listed as Black Cloth and Ivory Cordaveen, available on models 53 and 56R. I have it in my trim code list here: http://forums.aaca.org/topic/231704-1932-1975-buick-trim-codes-by-model/

The engine number decodes as follows: 53960328 5 = Series 50/Super 3960328 = sequential number, range for 1940 was 3786214 to 4074858 Look for a tag on the firewall or cowl that looks like the one I've attached below.

Car #1 The sticker on the air cleaner probably says Wildcat 445 and not Wildcat 455. This indicates that the engine has 445 lb-ft of torque, making the engine a 401 c.i. nailhead rather than the Wildcat 465 or Super Wildcat which both had 465 lb-ft of torque and were 425 c.i. GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION 03D ST 65-46667 FB 161752 BODY TR 677 R1 * PAINT W-2LR-5KW BODY BY FISHER 03D = body build date = March (03) 1965, fourth week (D) ST = style 65 = 1965 model year 46667 = Fisher body style number 4 = Buick 66 = Wildcat Custom 67 = 2-door convertible FB = body built at Flint, MI 161752 = sequential body number, no relation to VIN TR = trim Trim 677 = Red Vinyl with Bucket-Type Front Seats, available on style 46667 Paint code R = solid Flame Red 1 = White convertible top * = unknown, but only found on 1962-1966 tags from Flint, MI built cars Option codes: Group 1 W = Tinted windshield Group 2 L = 4-spd manual transmission R = Rear seat speaker Group 5 K = Door Edge Guards W = Seat Belts With Retractor Car #2 GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION 04A ST 65-44469 KAN 3430 BODY TR 131 C-C PAINT E 2KXPR 3H 4F 5W BODY BY FISHER 04A = body build date = April (04) 1965, first week (A) ST = style 65 = 1965 model year 44469 = Fisher body style number 4 = Buick 44 = Skylark V8 69 = 4-door thin pillar sedan KAN = body built at Kansas City, MO 3430 = sequential body number TR = trim Trim 131 = Blue Cloth and Vinyl, available on styles 44337, 44369, 44437, 44469 Paint code CC = solid Arctic White Option codes: Group 1 E = Tinted glass (all windows) Group 2 K = Air Conditioner X = ST-300 auto trans P = Back-up Lights R = Rear seat speaker Group 3 H = Belt reveal, wheelhouse opening molding Group 4 F = Remote controlled outside driver's mirror Group 5 W = Seat Belts With Retractor Car #3 GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION 01C ST 65-44437 FB 89968 BODY TR 138 CC * PAINT W-2XP-3H-4F-5W BODY BY FISHER 01C = body build date = January (01) 1965, third week (C) ST = style 65 = 1965 model year 44437 = Fisher body style number 4 = Buick 44 = Skylark V8 37 = 2-door hardtop sport coupe FB = body built at Flint, MI 89968 = sequential body number, no relation to VIN TR = trim Trim 138 = Black Cloth and Vinyl, available on styles 44337, 44369, 44437, 44469 Paint code CC = solid Arctic White * = unknown, but only found on 1962-1966 tags from Flint, MI built cars Option codes: Group 1 W = Tinted windshield Group 2 X = ST-300 auto trans P = Back-up Lights Group 3 H = Belt reveal, wheelhouse opening molding Group 4 F = Remote controlled outside driver's mirror Group 5 W = Seat Belts With Retractor

Yes, I have same information for 1939 and 1941. I have information that I've compiled into an option code list that covers most years from 1938 to 1980. The only year I am missing completely is 1940 and I only have limited data for 1973-1974, but by that time most of the option codes weren't changing much from year to year, so any missing codes would likely be the same as in 1972 or 1975.

I've attached the accessory option code list for 1947. Which options got stamped on the tag varies some. For 1947 K is the most common. In 1948 and 1949 the most common was K (which was now Flexible Steering Wheel) and M (Dynaflow trans). In 1950 it was A (radio & antenna), C (heater & defroster), D (windshield washer), K (Flexible Steering Wheel), and M (Dynaflow trans).

K is the accessory option code for rear wheel shields. They tended to put the accessory option codes at the end of the paint code line rather than try and squeeze it on to the tiny ACC line.

Here is what I have for 1947 two-tone combos:

Let me clarify my post, I said the body numbers started at 1 not with a 1. There is a big difference. Starting at 1 is like counting, 1, 2, 3,...X. If you assume that they built all 1938 model 61s at Flint (clearly not a correct assumption) then X = 12,673 because they built 12,673 model 61s in 1938. If you assume that they built one third of the model 61s at each plant (probably not a good assumption either) then the highest body number would be about 4225. Flint: 1,2,3...4225 South Gate: C 1,2,3...4224 Linden: L 1,2,3...4224 I would expect that there were more built at Flint since the production at Flint was at least five times higher than at the other plants, so in reality the highest body number from Flint is probably much higher than 4225 and much lower than that at South Gate and Linden.

There are no detailed records regarding the Fisher body number. The body number started at 1 for each model (style number) at each plant. For 6-wheeled cars (dual side mounts) the tag was stamped with either a -6W or just a 6 as shown in the two tags attached.

Multiple trim codes are listed because the code number varied by model, you can find my trim code list here: http://forums.aaca.org/topic/231704-1932-1975-buick-trim-codes-by-model/ I don't have enough data for 1938 to estimate a body number. The MO. DAY and YEAR fields were almost never filled in. A. G. Backeast makes replacement tags: http://www.datatags.com/ I believe they also advertise in the Bugle.

Attached is a page from the 1971 option code list that shows *8, nothing is listed for LC though. For the body number, I think Flint started reserving the first 2000 body numbers for SCO cars in 1970. For 1970 and later, every trim tag I have for an SCO car has a low body number, I've include some of them.

Ed's idea of the star indicating the shift is a possibility. It could also indicate something about the paint formulation. By the mid-1960's GM of Canada was adding an extra digit to the paint code for cars painted with acrylic lacquer vs. those painted with enamel. But in either case, I would have expected it to show up on the tags from cars built at all plants rather than just those built at Flint (FB and FL1 for the plant code). I don't think it would affect the cars value since the star shows up on tags for everything from the Special to the Electra 225 Custom and for everything from sedans to convertibles and even station wagons. Or, maybe like Matt says, it was just added to drive us crazy.

http://forums.aaca.org/topic/164705-1941-buick-56c-vin-engine-match/

I don't think the star is related to any specific model, but it only shows up on tags from Flint cars. Earliest tag I have with a star is 04B 1961 (LeSabre) and latest is 12C 1965 (1966 Electra 225). I have pictures of about 215 tags with stars on them, more than 99% of them are for cars that don't have special order paint.

Yes, there were a couple of different styles, see attached pictures.

US and Canada are not the same. The production details listed in Buick A Complete History are for US production. Post WWII Buick production in Canada started for the 1951 model year. For 1951-1953 certain Canadian models were the Custom DeLuxe and the regular models were just the Custom. For 1954 they were the Special and Special Deluxe in Canada. In the US it was the Special and Special Deluxe for 1950-1954. Then the next time the Special Deluxe shows up is 1964. Nothing prior to 1950 in either the US or Canada.

See posts 51 and 52 in this thread. https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/1951-oldsmobile-selector-trans-shifter.531247/page-2

44158941 = engine serial number 4 = Series 40/Special 4158941 = sequential number, range for 1941 was 4,074,859 to 4,457,940 Trim 902 = Tan Canda Cloth (Mohair), available on models 41, 44, 44S, 46, 46S, 47, 56, 71, replaced 901 after approx. the first 1200 cars Paint code 572 = two-tone Lancaster Grey Metallic lower and Silver French Grey Metallic upper

K was the accessory option code for heater and defroster.

I agree with Al. This is exactly how it worked later when Buick switched to the SCO-### notation. SCO indicated it was a special order and ### indicates the order number. If a car was SCO for paint, the actual paint color was usually listed on the build sheet. I've even seen one build sheet with a note that said to include an extra quart of paint in the trunk for touch-ups. I've also seen one car that was SCO in the trim code for bucket seats in a convertible that had SCO-### printed on the window sticker and the same SCO-### stamped on the cowl tag in place of the trim code. So BX-### and SCO-### only indicate that it was a special order and the order number, you would need some other paperwork to figure out exactly what the original paint color was for any car with special order paint.