The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk Serial Number Question

I'm going to take my new '39 1/2 ton down to get the out-of-state VIN verification done on it. On the tech page here at stovebolt.com it says, "The body plate is located on the firewall under the passenger side of the hood. The number on the plate is the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) of the truck. Some trucks, like Kevin Bremer's '39 1/2-ton , don't have this plate and are titled off the engine number." My truck seems to be the same, and the block next to the distributor does match the VIN on the title. Almost. The engine case has 255**** stamped into it, but the VIN on the title (and all the old registration cards I found) is K255**** (same number as the case). The tech page also says, "All truck engines have a "K" prefix. Example: K*2759129." Why, then, does mine not have a K, and do you think I'm going to have a hard time with the people at the bureau? Is there nowhere else on the whole truck where a serial number can be found?

I know the forum rules say that there may be no advice given for lost or missing titles or VINs, etc., but that's obviously not my question.

Thanks.

Dan

Dan,

What is your code?

The code formats and meanings are different for different years of trucks.

Here is code information for 1939 Chevrolet vehicles (cars & trucks).

Depending on the year of your engine, 255 might mean the engine is a 1955 second series truck engine (from a 1955 Task Force truck).

Here are locations of various identification codes. Post your codes here and people will help you ID the engine.

It is quite common for a truck to have a later replacement engine. This makes it interesting/difficult/frustrating when the title/registration used/uses the original engine as an ID.

I don't think the engine has been swapped. It has all of the correct 1939 parts on it as far as I can tell. And if it has been swapped, why would the VIN on the title match it? If the VIN of the vehicle was somehow changed to match the engine number, then why would the title have a K prefix when the engine has none? Plus stovebolt.com says, "1939 engine numbers run 1915447 through 2697267," which puts my 255*** right in line.

Thanks for the links, either way.

Dan

friday evening production or clerical error at the DMV, just add the missing K

Bill

What is you full 255*** code?

Post the other codes for confirmation.
Nobody is disagreeing with you - get all the codes for a full confirmation.

Also, since the 1939 car code had no prefix, a car engine might have mistakenly been placed on your truck engine and the dealer told DMV that there was a K prefix (or, it is a clerical error, as Bill suggested)?

Isn't it not a good idea to share your VIN online?

I'm capable of deciphering my own engine (VIN) number if provided with the correct information. The link above seems to suggest that they're just plain old serial numbers.

Dan

Isn't it not a good idea to share a modern VIN readable by anyone through a windshield?

Casting codes are not listed at that link. Here are some block casting codes.

It still looks to be a sequential production number. What is there to decipher? The flange by my distributor just has seven numbers, no letters.

Not trying to be difficult, of course, I just don't see what I'm missing.

Is it true that engines in 1939 and 1940 had K prefixes, generally speaking? That's what stovebolt.com says. So maybe all the VINs were just given a K by default. Though most of them didn't use the engine number as the VIN so I don't get it. The theory about the engine being intended for a passenger car is interesting. Is there any difference / way to tell?

Dan

what's wrong with putting your vin on the net, are you afraid you have a stolen vehicle or bogus title? what can anyone do with your vin when you have the title and vehicle? if I want to claim your truck is mine by citing the vin it wouldn't do much good without documentation, like the title or a bill of sale

"Though most of them didn't use the engine number as the VIN ..."
where did you get that? GM had a separate 'vehicle identification serial number', but GM didn't put anything on the title, almost every jurisdiction used the engine serial number as the 'vin' on the title into the 50's, and that number was taken directly from the vehicle engine, not made up 'by default'

if the number on the truck [engine] doesn't match the title perfectly, yes you probably will have to do some arguing with your authorities, you might try pointing out the numerical code is the same on both, and hope they accept that .... or as I mentioned, you can just add the K yourself, as you know it's on the title and 'should' be on the engine

also note that, even tho the "VIN" on the paper title may be the engine number, "VIN" around here means the vehicle ID serial number on the cowl or door tag

Bill

All 1939 and 1940 1/2 ton (LIGHT DELIVERY) truck engines from Flint, MI were supposed to have a prefix of K, and all LIGHT DELIVERY truck engines from Tonawanda, NY had a KB. That information for 1939 is shown at the code information for 1939 Chevrolet vehicles (cars & trucks) link that I gave above; and, the 1940 car/truck engine codes are shown here. The same prefix for LIGHT DELIVERY truck engine serial numbers were used in 1938.

You could have an engine from 1938-1940. The head/block date casting codes, if available, give you a little more information about your engine.

DMVs used either the engine serial number or the vehicle serial number for titling/registration purposes.

Do you have a code for your Vehicle Serial Number? That should confirm your vehicle-year? (just asking - keep it secret, if that suits you)

Sorry if I'm offending anyone, I just thought it was standard protocol not to share things like that. People go crazy even if their license plate gets posted, and I agree that it never really made sense to me.

I guess I don't mind sharing it, then, but can anyone explain to me the purpose? From what I'm seeing it's just a sequential production number and the last four digits wouldn't shed any light on anything. I still haven't seen anything that says there's something to decipher about it.

Reading this on stovebolt.com, "The body plate is located on the firewall under the passenger side of the hood. The number on the plate is the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) of the truck. Some trucks, like Kevin Bremer's '39 1/2-ton , don't have this plate and are titled off the engine number" led me to believe that this was the exception, not the rule. So is it true that the "VIN" listed on most titles is actually the engine number?

Thanks again, guys!

Dan

"So is it true that the "VIN" listed on most titles is actually the engine number?"

It is true that "DMVs used either the engine serial number or the vehicle serial number for titling/registration purposes." I have had titles/registrations from same-year trucks in same-states (VA & WA) that used either code.

Posting complete information often allows quicker (and correct) identification (many of us have been doing this for many years and we have wasted time trying to ID something using incomplete/incorrect information).

If you find and post block & head casting codes and date-casting codes, you will then know a little more (or, confirm what you now know). The locations of those codes should be shown in a link in my first post.

You might as well find and use all of the identification information that you have available?

Understood.

Okay here's an update. I do have a VIN tag under the hood but haven't paid attention to it until now because whatever it used to say is faded and gone. There are some numbers stamped into it but they weren't the VIN listed on my title so I sort of forgot about it, figuring they were something irrelevant. But I just got curious so I looked again, and obviously it is indeed my truck's VIN. My truck was built in May of 1939 in Janesville, WI. Neat!

Dan

Dan,

Good.

That is why it is a good idea to obtain as much information as possible.

Now you know more about your truck, find the casting/date codes on your head/block and you will know more about the engine.

I just spent a while talking on the phone to people at the DMV. They said they are familiar with old cars being titled off the engine number but prefer to switch it to the VIN if it has one. I can take it to the Highway Patrol office to have it inspected and they'll write up documentation to have it switched. This will be very helpful, as I can now swap the engine if I ever want or need to and not run into any problems selling the car or so on. Only problem is they can't see me until Sept 9. The suspense!

Dan

Congratulations.

Just a (belated) update. The day of my appointment finally arrived last week. I took the truck down to the State Highway Patrol where they normally inspect salvage vehicles or kit cars so they could A) do the out-of-state inspection and B) make a note to change what's on the title from the engine number to the actual VIN. When I got there they told me to go sit in the waiting room. An entire, nervous hour later they called me back and showed me all the research they had to do, namely on a site called stovebolt.com (HA!). Even though I already knew it all (and could have saved them some trouble if I was there or if they asked) I just politely let them explain and said, "Wow, neat." So in the end, despite the "K" discrepancy explained above, all went well. I then went down to the title office and had no trouble there, either. So the truck is now titled under the VIN, which is great news in case I ever have to swap the engine, and it's in my name! So now I will continue with putting some more time and money into it... eventually. I find myself somewhat unexpectedly moving, and I'm sure you all know what a time-consuming, expensive, pain in the neck that is. I haven't forgotten about you fine folks or given up, though! I'll be in touch.

Thanks.

Dan