Vin numbers on a stude.

[Nelsen Motorsports]

My 54 c-body champion has the vin # on the door post which was painted over by the previous owner but legible (and very hard to read), but is missing the firewall vin #. Am I able to register the car for Georgia? (the deadline for the car to be on the road is 10/10/10 (when I get my liscence.)

Alex Nelsen
1954 Champion Coupe
Lizella, GA

[Skip Lackie]

The serial number on the door post IS the VIN number for registration purposes. The plate on the firewall is just a body number, and is not related to the VIN. It is not used for registration. Fifty years ago, some states used the engine number for registration, but that can present problems for those with replaced engines. If you have a legible serial plate on the hinge pillar post, you should have everything you need.

Skip Lackie
Washington DC

[JeffDeWitt]

Alex, just an FYI, Studebakers don't really HAVE VIN numbers, what we know of as VIN numbers didn't come along until after Studebaker was out of the car business.

That's confused many a DMV employee over the years!

Jeff DeWitt

http://carolinastudes.net

[bailsout]

My 62 Lark Daytona that came out of a salvage yard, had to be certified by the California Highway Patrol, because the DMV person and myself were confused by the body numbers on the firewall and the different numbers on the door jamb tag. I thought it all a little suspect because the door jamb tag had slots for screws(missing) and the tag was spot welded, slightly askew. Nevertheless, the CHP accepted the door jamb tag, signed off on it and all is now legal.

[Nelsen Motorsports]

Thanks, because to dump $10,000 into a car and it not be legal is a huge waste.

Alex Nelsen ,the youngest Studebaker nut in the world!
1954 Champion Coupe
Lizella, GA

[showbizkid]

Did Studes have the "secret frame serial number" in 1954?


[img=left]http://members.cox.net/clarknovak/lark.gif[/img=left]

Clark in San Diego
'63 F2/Lark Standard

http://studeblogger.blogspot.com

https://www.studebakersandiego.com

[mbstude]

All you need to register a Stude in Georgia, is a Bill of Sale stating that you own the car, and the Serial number. Take some steel wool or something and clean off that plate on the door post. If it's legible, you're good to go.

Matthew Burnette
Hazlehurst, GA

[studegary]

The plate on the A-pillar gives the Serial Number (S/N) and it should be spot welded, not screwed, to the car. Many, or most, states in the early 1950s used the engine number for a Vehicle Identification Number (VIN). Now, most use the S/N of these cars for a VIN.
This reminds me of a 1953 Starliner that I was changing the engine in and wanted to change the registration/title from the engine number to the S/N for a VIN. The lady at the DMV said that I had to have a letter from an authorized Studebaker dealership. I said that if she could find the authorized Studebaker dealership that I would be glad to get the letter. They settled for a pencil tracing of the S/N plate.

Gary L.
Wappinger, NY

SDC member since 1968
Studebaker enthusiast much longer

[Nelsen Motorsports]

54 studes don't have any secrets vin #s. Mine is down to the frame right now.

quote:Originally posted by showbizkid

Did Studes have the "secret frame serial number" in 1954?


[img=left]http://members.cox.net/clarknovak/lark.gif[/img=left]

Clark in San Diego
'63 F2/Lark Standard

http://studeblogger.blogspot.com

https://www.studebakersandiego.com

Alex Nelsen ,the youngest Studebaker nut in the world!
1954 Champion Coupe
Lizella, GA

[mbstude]

Alex, it came with a 'secret' serial number stamped into the rear-most crossmember. But it was stamped so lightly at the factory, that most cars don't have them anymore. The slightest bit of surface rust, and away goes the number.

FWIW, I've never seen one of those numbers in person, just pictures. It's not even visible on my '58, and it has factory paint still on that crossmember.

Matthew Burnette
Hazlehurst, GA

[53k]

quote:Originally posted by JeffDeWitt

Alex, just an FYI, Studebakers don't really HAVE VIN numbers, what we know of as VIN numbers didn't come along until after Studebaker was out of the car business.
That's confused many a DMV employee over the years!

Wise A$$ reply- VIN- Vehicle Identification Number. Saying VIN number is like saying ATM machine.




Paul Johnson, Wild and Wonderful West Virginia. '64 Daytona Wagonaire, '64 Daytona convertible, '53 Commander Starliner, Museum R-4 engine, '62 Gravely Model L, '72 Gravely Model 430

[Roscomacaw]

The number's there alright, but not always readily visible. As Matthew said, with even light rust (Rusting - what Studes are good at!) it can be tough to see these figures. But even if they're heavily rusted, they're still there - unless, of course, the metal's rusted away.[xx(]

1957 Transtar 1/2ton
1963 Cruiser
1960 Larkvertible V8
1958 Provincial wagon
1953 Commander coupe
1957 President two door

[utfanatic]

Alex, if the door post number is legible, that's all you need. I bought my 41 from a seller in Georgia and he told me they don't issue titles on cars before certain years. With a Bill of Sale with the number on it is all you need to register it. He had the 41 registed with the same amount of info. Good luck with your car. ==robert=-

quote:Originally posted by Nelsen Motorsports

My 54 c-body champion has the vin # on the door post which was painted over by the previous owner but legible (and very hard to read), but is missing the firewall vin #. Am I able to register the car for Georgia? (the deadline for the car to be on the road is 10/10/10 (when I get my liscence.)

Alex Nelsen
1954 Champion Coupe
Lizella, GA

1941 Champion 3G Coupe

"Life's too short.. Eat your cake first"

Robert Kidwell - Pleasant View, Tennessee 37146

Proud new member of the SDC
My Stude Project

[Deaf Mute]

I actually had to do a pencil "rubbing" of the stamped number many years ago in Illinois, they accepted that with no problem. But they did not like the picture I showed them of the same plate the day before. They said I could have taken that photo of any car.??.

duane miller

[studegary]

quote:Originally posted by Deaf Mute

I actually had to do a pencil "rubbing" of the stamped number many years ago in Illinois, they accepted that with no problem. But they did not like the picture I showed them of the same plate the day before. They said I could have taken that photo of any car.??.

duane miller

That's what I thought when the DMV accepted a pencil rubbing of a S/N plate. I was trying to get clear ownership on a '53 Starliner that I was about to spend a lot of time and money on. If I just traced the S/N plate on some show car, I could have gotten ownership on that car and saved myself a lot <G>.

Gary L.
Wappinger, NY

SDC member since 1968
Studebaker enthusiast much longer