1937 plymoth vin no#s

[Guest]

Trying to i.d. or break down this vin NO# Got this off of the engine side dash (fire wall)1937 plymoth four door. rear doors are sucide. klberry212@yahoo.com

405-11 7136

76p7=61520

p65588

I have a chance to buy this running car for $500.00. I am trying to do a little home work on it. There is no title to the car. How about those out of State title guys? are they legal? Have any of you done this? Is it hsard to get parts for this car? I am rebuilding a Harley servi car rear end and it is allmost inpossible to find parts. I really like this car and it is very restorable. So what do you think? OH Yeah i am new to your form. I visit Hot rod and Harley forms, but this is my frist time here looking into restoration. Thanks in advance.

Slider in Wa.

[Guest]

In Kansas, registering an untitled antique is fairly straight-forward: Have the highway patrol check the VIN and complete a form(MVE1). If there is an owner of record on file, you must get a duplicate title and have him transfer title. If you can't locate him, you can send a certified letter with return receipt requested to the last known address. If there is no owner of record on file, you take the MVE1&the bill of sale to the courthouse and file for title. Maybe your state has a similar procedure(check with your local title office, here it's the county treasurer). My suggestion would be to have the highway patrol check the VIN prior to purchase. If the seller balks at this, I'd walk away. If the last registered owner is deceased, you can still get a title, but make sure that the person signing the title over to you is executor of the estate. This information is available from the probate court. This car is either a model P3 or a model P4. Good luck!

[Guest]

Bear in mind that the term "VIN" stands for VEHICLE IDENTIFICATION NUMBER, and is the result of Federal legislation that came in, in the 1960's. Prior to that time, most states registered cars by the engine block serial number. Most cars up until the 1960's didnt even HAVE a number on the body useful for registration purposes, until the "Mahroney Act" of the 1960's (establishing the requirement for manufactuers to put a "VIN" number on a piece of metal on the left side of the upper dash).

As a result, since most of your motor vehicle bureau people will have been BORN until after the Mahroney Act took place, the idea that your car does not and CAN not have a "VIN" number on the customary place on the dash, MAY cause you problems. Without a BILL OF SALE, you could have problems. I have seen ads in HEMMINGS MOTOR NEWS for people who have a "service" of helping you paperwork roadblocks like this.

In California, and in Arizona where we live now, there is a way around this - but it is complex - after you "jump thru a few hoops" they will assign an INVESTIGATOR who will either accept the engine block number or body number, OR has the authority to stamp new numbers on your frame.

Personally, I am not clear why you would want to bother with an old Plymouth. Have you ever driven one ? May I suggest BEFORE you spend a lot of energy (AND MONEY) on an ordinary old economy car, you start going to some car shows, try and get a ride in or drive one, and get some background.

The biggest tragedy in the old car hobby...at least from what I have seen down thru these many years...is people who "fall in love" with some old car, pour their heart into it, and then, find out, when they are done, that it does not meet their needs and/or expectations.

Best solution....LEARN more about the car, and the hobby, before you un-zip your wallet....!

Pete Hartmann

Big Springs, Arizona

[ply33]

The serial number for the 1937 Plymouth is located on the front passenger door hinge post. It will be a straight numeric number.

The body number is what you copied off of the firewall plate.

There is also an engine number located on the driver side of the block above the generator.

The serial number, engine number and body number are all different. Depending on the state, the car may have been registered using the engine number or the serial number. I have not heard of a state using the body number.

Most mechanical parts for this era Plymouth are easy to find. Usually at your local NAPA dealer. The same basic engine was used upto 1959 on Plymouths cars and into the 1970s on some industrial applications. They did change the crank and rods in 1941, but nearly all the gaskets, etc. are the same up to the end of production.

Body and trim parts are can be a bear to find, so look your car over carefully in that regard.

Plymouths of that era do not command as high a price as the other high volume brands, so do not be suckered into paying too much for the car. Especially if there is anything missing. As I said above trim parts can be hard to find.

With due deference to Peter Hartman, a 1930s Plymouth can be a good car to drive. You have an engine and drive train equipped with modern style thin shell bearing inserts, full pressure lubrication, hardened exhaust valve seats, hydraulic brakes, etc. It will be geared a bit low for modern freeway driving but other than that it will be as good on the road as any car built upto to the late 1950s.

You may want to check out the Plymouth Owners Club and a lot of the tips posted on the P15-D24 site are also applicable to the 1937 models.

And, of course, there is always my site.

[Guest Dave Mills]

I have to agree with Tod. As an owner of old Plymouths, they are very dependable but they are slow. I happen to have a first year Plymouth, a 1928 Model Q. It has no shock absorbers and does ride a little hard but it sure is a fun car.