Plymouth trim tag/serial number

[Guest]

Hi guys,

Im looking at a 1938 Plymouth coupe to purchase. I believe it is a P6. Im not all that familiar with this era Plymouth so maybe you can help me. I cannot seem to locate a trim tag on the car. There is a tag on the firewall that begins with P6 Followed by several numbers. There is also the serial number plate affixed to the passenger side door pillar. Can I get a breakdown of these numbers or is there a site to decode?

Thank you in advance, Greg

[ply33]

There is no trim tag on a Plymouth of that era. Just three different numbers:

 

1. The serial number on the passenger door pillar. Serial numbers are numeric and fall into ranges based on models, assembly plants, etc. This is the number that Chrysler tracked the car by and is the number you can send to the Chrysler historical collection, along with some money and proof of ownership, to get a copy of the "build card". The build card lists the original engine number, body number, options, paint and trim and dealer the car was shipped to (at least that is what is on the card for my 1933 it may vary with year as to what it contains).

 

2. The engine number. On the block above the generator and also usually stamped on a frame rail, with different locations for different years. Mine is stamped between the running board supports on the drive side. Engine numbers are prefixed with the engineering code for the vehicle (P6 in your case) and are sequential starting at 1001.

 

3. The body number. Located in the engine compartment on the firewall and typically prefixed with the engineering code for the model and a suffix indicating body style (guessing you have TPC for two (three?) passenger coupe for your body number suffix). The number in between is sequential for starting at 1001 for the bodies of your style from the body plant. So far as I can tell, the body number was not tracked for anything.

 

Some states used the serial number for titling and registration, many others used the engine number. If the paper work lists a number that starts with P6 it is probably the original engine number. If it is a numeric string then it is probably the serial number. For serial number ranges for your car see: http://www.ply33.com/Misc/vin

[Guest]

Thank you very much. This answers my questions very clearly. I thought there may be a chance there were no trim tags installed on these cars.

I will give the Chrysler Historical Collection a try. Appreciate the lead.

Greg