How can I track the history of my car?

[evilhawk]

I want to find out the history of my 59 Silver Hawk, but I have no idea where to start. I learned already that the car was in an accident and that it did not have the original engine or drive train when I bought it. I do not have a title for this car or license plates, but I do have the serial number or VIN from inside the drivers side door 59V-20359. I know that if I send the the Studebaker museum $50 I can get the build sheet, but I was just wondering if anyone here knows how to read these serial numbers? I am also wondering if any of you have successfully tracked down your cars history and what process you used?

Thank you,
Sam

[BobPalma]

Sam, there isn't too much information to be gleaned from the Serial Number, but thank you for posting it.

59V20359 is deciphered thus:

59: 1959 model year Studebaker automobile built it South Bend (as opposed to Canada, which would be 59VC)
V: V8 engine
20359: The sequential serial number among all 1959 Studebaker passenger cars built with V8 engines, starting with 59V1001. That Serial Number could have been assigned to a Lark station wagon or a Lark 4-door sedan or a Silver Hawk or even a taxicab, etc. Yours happens to have been affixed to a Silver Hawk.

Studebaker built 37,703 1959 V8 automobiles in all series, so 20359 is about 60% of the way through 1959 model year production.

The Production Order from The Studebaker National Museum will give you much more information, including the day the car was built and to what city it was shipped, but "all the above" is all we can learn from the serial number by itself. BP.

[skyway]

Not much to that "VIN"; it is (in order) a 1959, V8, and the 20359th car made in that year.
Since the only V8 available in 1959 was a 259, that should have been your original displacement.
More info to be gleaned from the body tag which is screwed onto the upper right side firewall.
Essentially the body style (a letter), trim line (a single numeral), and the chronological order in which your body was built (usually 4 or 5 digits).
The build sheet will provide more detail, is original color, drive train,accessories, and delivery destination.
Smarter folks that me will have more to share.

- - - Updated - - -

Opps, one of those smarter folks also types faster than me!

[TWChamp]

What part of Minnesota did the car come from? My late friend, Mickey Zallar owned a Silver Hawk that he rodded with a Chevy 350/350. I think he also put louvers in the hood. Mickey was a house painter and lived in Park Rapids, but passed away about 5 or 6 years ago. I saw the car when he first bought it and it was a very nice original car. I tried to talk him into keeping it original, but he wanted another rod. He also rodded the very nice original 1950 Chevy pickup that I sold him with the understanding he would keep it original.

[evilhawk]

My car came from Estelline South Dakota. The guy I bought it from claimed that he found it on an Indian reservation and was headed for scrap. It was in terrible condition when I bought it and has a bent frame and crude repairs to hide the fact that it was in an accident. The top half of the car was white original paint and the bottom half was painted black. The engine in the car was a 1955 259 V8 with a three speed and a split drive shaft with a carrier welded into the frame.

Its actually the car in my profile pic, I attached more pics of what it looked like when I bought it:

[studegary]

Not much to be gleaned from the body tag. All V8 1959 Hawks were 59V-C6 models. The number below that will indicate the sequence of the body build, out of 5371 V8 1959 Hawks (also 2417 six cylinder 1959 Hawks). As mentioned, only the 259 cid was available in V8 Hawks for 1959.

[Skip Lackie]

In answer to your original question, "How can I track the history of my car?" -- you probably can't. Thanks to privacy laws, it's virtually impossible to track down the names of the prior owners of a car. Some states will provide the name of the previous owner(s) (if they were residents of that state) for a fee, but only if you can prove that you are the current legal owner. Before you spend a lot of time on the car's history, you might want to focus on getting a legal title, since without one it may be very difficult to register your car. Every state is different, so it might be worthwhile to contact the DMV or a local title company (if such exist in Minn) to learn the system. If you know who the previous owner was, ask them to request a duplicate title and then have them sign it over to you. In a pinch, call Broadway Title in Alabama -- they may be able to help you (for a fee).

[BILT4ME]

Have you done any work to the car? It seems as though it has had a very ROUGH life and will be a LOT of work to rebuild. Maybe you would want to use it as a parts car and find a better specimen with a title that needs less work?

Sometimes, getting a title for something like that can prove to be a trick and in the end, you MAY not be able to keep the car.

I would recommend that you start at the courthouse closest to where you bought it, take in a vase of flowers, and a box of chocolates to the local DMV and ask for a favor from some of the folks that work there to track down the car by VIN. In some of the small, remote towns, you may get lucky, BBBUUUUTTTT, you may need to get the RIGHT courthouse because NONE of that was on computer then and in order to find it, you must find WHICH courthouse has the title for THAT VIN because they are all in file boxes/cabinets.

Some states (Kansas for example) you can buy a car and get a Bill of Sale from the seller and go the DMV and get it licensed as long as it is older than 1981 (or something) AND it came from Kansas and is STAYING in Kansas. So, If I have a friend in MO that wants a car in KS, his best bet is for me to "buy" the car, title it in KS, then "sell" the car to him in MO and then he has a clear title.

[evilhawk]

Lol yeah I know the car is rough and will never be a show stopper, but makes a great platform for a rat rod. The plan is fix the frame, drop in a 4 speed (I already have a t10 from a GT Hawk) rebuild my 63 289 and then turbo charge it. I want the body to look like crap, but I did removed all the surface rust. Its going to be like some of the cars you see on the internet show "Road Kill".

So far I did drop in the 289 and got it running, driving, new brakes and etc. The car is actually pretty solid despite its looks.

In the state of MN it is possible to get a title for a vehicle purchased without one. It is also possible to build a hot rod and have the car titled accordingly. Some guy at the Benton county car show built a manure spreader into a car and got it titled and licensed.. It takes some time and work, but it is doable. Otherwise I could always get the car licensed through Vermont and that would allow me to get a clear title in MN for less money than what the DMV charges to get the car re-titled. Most title companies use the Vermont loop hole. If for some reason I cant get the car titled, it would be ok.. I paid next to nothing for it and most of the parts are rust free. It would make a great parts car.

[evilhawk]

But yeah, anyway the main thing I am after is accident history. Id like to know what happened to the car and when. To bad car fax doesnt go all the way back to 1959

[Milaca]

With the build sheet, you would at least know what city/state it was sold new in. From there, research the city on the internet to find out more about the dealership and anything related to 1959 in that specific city. You never know what might turn up.

[PeterHawk]

I was able to get a copy of the original IBM retail sales punch card from the Studebaker Museum. It will cost you. On mine it showed me who the first owner was, then I went to the library where the original owner lived and requested a copy of their obituary. Hopefully that will give you some next of kin. Then track them down and continue the process. Good luck!

[evilhawk]

Thats a really good idea Milaca. I think Ill start with the production order and like you said, try and dig up information in the city the car was sold in.

PeterHawk, How did you get the copy of the IBM punch card? Is this something you had to request from the museum? I dont see them for sale like the production order... was it expensive?

[PeterHawk]

When I got mine in 2009 it was the same cost as the production order.

[dean pearson]

Try Carfax.

Dean.