The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop matching numbers question

I read a lot about old cars having matching numbers. What does this really mean? How can you tell if you have matching numbers on the head, block, clutch housing, transmission, rear end, cab, & frame? I think all my items are original on my 1956 Chevy 3100 shortbed pickup.

When i transfered my title from utah to nevada the only number they used on the door jamb. They did not use the frame id or engine id.

Matching numbers in most cases means all the date codes are period correct. Some sellers would have you believe that it means everything is "all original", one of the most mis-used phrases in the business. Certain vehicles have had certain items with matched numbers, for instance the engine and Hydra-Matic tranny on '50s era trucks, but for the most part, "matching numbers" is hogwash. It's probably the second most mis-used phrase in the business.

Thats what i wanted to know. The matching numbers sounded real good to me. I heard it a lot plus when i view the classifieds it sounded like a good selling point.

Thanks

If you had a 1970's Hemi Cuda where only a few were made, then having all the numbers match would means something. It tends to weed out some of the clones. Trucks on the other hand, really don't apply.

Joe

+1 on what Cletis said... Matching number is too widely mis-used. I prefer to use these terms instead:
Period correct = all date codes are within 90days due to the production process and it should/would have rolled off the assembly line this way.

Born with = what car/truck actually rolled out of the factory with. This is harder to determine on the older cars/trucks unless you know the complete history of the vehicle.

Hope that helps some.
Thanks,
-Paul

I know personally of a car that a friend of mine bought and built. It had a later engine, wrong transmission, no data plate. We found a correct hemi 4 speed and a correct date coded block. He sold the car and was straightforward about it. He got a call from the manufacturer expert that was reseraching the car as it had been sold again, and miraculously, now it is a numbers matching car! Bottom line is that numbers matching can easily be faked so in my opinion, it means very little anymore.

I'm not sure about US vehicles but here in Canada, we can get original paperwork on vehicles assembled in the Oshawa, Ontario plant. (I have this sheet for 2 old cars I own) This document will tell me what the serial number should be on the cars I presently have in my garage at home. This is not only the VIN but also the engine and transmission serial numbers. My Chevelle has the exact number on the GM document that the engine has stamped on the block. These numbers match, (it's a hi-perf 396) and the fact that these numbers match makes it more valuable to some people, also makes the book value higher.

As far as I know, the American assembly plants didn't record and store all these numbers until much later than here in Canada.

My point is that "numbers matching" is way too easily faked. It is to the point that a true "pedigreed vehicle" requires much more documentaion to back it up than was required before the value of the cars and trucks reached the point that it payed to fake it.