Hi all, :006: I am new here, been reading for some time and just got signed up today. Id like to start by thanking everyone for the help you all have unknowingly already provided me.
I am currently looking at acquiring yet another 57 project car however it is missing its VIN tag. The seller has a clear title but without a number on the car to tie back to I don't know how much good it will do me. Where all else would I be able to find the VIN on the car? Did they stamp it on the frame or anyplace else on the body? If so, where? Any and all detail would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Erich
Look on top of frame rail, passenger side near firewall. No guarantee but have seen some there.
in some states ifyour missing the vin tag on a vehical , andyou have a bill ofsale and the original title, andthe sellerstatesin the bill of sale the vin is/was missing , the state will issue a new vin tag. check out your locl DMV office
Erich:
You can go to John Gamble's 57Ford.com site and perhaps pick up some information about what your original VIN number may have looked like, especially if your 57 is fairly stock. I believe the info from Cool 57 is accurate. A CHP Officer once told me that this is where they look to see if the VIN numbers match when they are chasing down stolen 57's.
Once you have tracked down your original VIN number, you can even have a new VIN tag made. Take pictures of the VIN on the frame rail (if possible), photo copy the bill of sale and "clear title" info and contact Marti Autoworks, 12007 W. Peoria Ave., El Mirage, AZ 85335. They have blank original VIN tags and are a Ford Motor Company authorized vendor. I had my old VIN tag replaced as it had been painted over, sanded , etc. over the years and could only be read from the back side. The cost in 2006 was $35.00 and even comes with the proper rivits to attach the new tag.
Welcome aboard and good luck.
Bob
57AGIN
Thank you all for the replies.
Does Ford or anyone else have records that I can recover the rest of the data off the VIN tag if I can verify the actual VIN?
The car is disassembled and stripped of paint and interior so I dont know what the paint and trim codes were or anything else on the tag.
Thanks,
Erich
If you have the title, and the matching vin stamped on the top of the framerail on the passenger side, where the frame slopes down under the firewall, then you can get a plate made by Dearborn Classics. The cost is between 30 and 40, or so. That is what I would do. You can add the other information based on what you know about the car, ie, color, trans, rear rear, trim, and so forth. The information and codes for these items can be found here:
http://www.1957ford.com/asp/gallery.aspx?catmstrid=7&catdetid=29
Note that there are 5 or 6 pages of code information contained here. Just select the items your car is equipped with, or in the instance of color and interior trim, change them to your preference. Just make sure if you sell the car, that you dont try to pass it off as an original red with red and white interior car if it came with beige and white with beige interior....
Is there any database, or records available from Ford like the Marti or 999 reports the Mustang guys can get that will tell me all the original information based on the VIN?
The car is totally stripped down and disassembled. All the parts to put it back are there but other than taking the sellers word I really have no way of knowing what the original colors or equipment were.
Even if I painted and trimmed the car in different colors I would prefer the VIN tag read as original. I am not opposed to the building of clone or "tribute cars" as long as the numbers tell the truth about what the car really was.
You might consider contacting the International Ford Retractable Club.www.skyliner.org (http://www.skyliner.org) They are meticulous about history and originality. If there is a way to document the build of a 57-59 Ford they will know how to do the research. I have been a member for many years but am inactive. I stay in because I keep dreaming of getting another retract.
Will the entire VIN be stamped on the frame or just the last 6 digits?
EB338
I too live in Missouri and want you to know, just in case your not aware, in Missouri, possession of a motor vehicle in which the vin number has been altered or removed is a felony. It is also a crime to buy or sell a vehicle in which the vin has been removed or altered.
Would be a good idea to pass on this one.
Larry
You will have a letter, the number 7, two more letters, then the 6 digits of the serial number. There will probably also be an asterisk before the first letter and after the last digit.
John
Erich:
When you do get your original VIN number located plus what ever additional information you are able to glean from the variety of sources mentioned or make up based on what you think the car probably came with, the two photos below show what Marti Autoworks was able to do for me.
Bob
57AGIN
Are the VIN numbers definitely present on all frames? Are there any other locations? The owner cant find it on the passenger side frame rail. :deadhorse:
on my 51 fordpick up , they were on the passager side frame rail on the top of the rail just forward of the fire wall
Well, the good news is he found the VIN on the frame, just as described, right top of frame at firewall bracketed by two *. Bad news is the frame VIN does not match his title VIN and even worse it is a 58 serial number on the frame. He is still after the previous owner to come up with the VIN tag that was removed from the body during body work, but he has been after that for over two years already. Real shame. I hate to see a good body parted out, especially a retractable......
Thanks for all your input guys but I guess Im going to have to let it go. :005:
The seller just called and said he has been told that the VIN was also stamped into the body somewhere on the firewall. Has anyone here heard of this? Is the VIN stamped into the body shell anywhere we know of?
I've not seen it myself, but you never know. Most of the VIN I have seen have been on the top of the frame rail on the left side, and another sometimes, not always, on the top of the left rear side rail. Only 2 of the 6 or 7 I have had was this way.
57agin, That a really interesting data plate, both the original and the repo. I did the original research on reproducing data plates in the early 1980s, for Backeast <http://www.datatags.com/> both legal and for production. I've never seen a data tag with the background like that. It just goes to prove that when you think you know everything there is to know about a something you still have something to learn. (Backeast was a client of mine, I do not have or ever have had any interest in thier company)
Lou:
Yes, when I got my car in 1998 I wasn't worried about the appearance of the data plate. But as the car was nearing completion I kept looking a the darn thing and started doing research. The data plate that Marti Autoworks sent me was in a small envelop with a Ford Motor Company sticker affixed and the plates are accurate in terms of the patents listed (as compared with a buddy's plate on his 57). I'm really pleased with the replacement plate. But, without having a real clear photo of the original plate (reverse side) to send to Marti Autoworks, I'm not sure if they could do a reproduction. There was never an issue on my paperwork (VIN numbers all agreed with the data plate) so me situation might be a bit different from Erich's. Also, I kept my old data plate should there ever be a question.
Bob
57AGIN
Fortunately all the 57's I own still have their tags and truthfully they are all virtually perfect in appearance which surprises me given the condition of some of my cars.
I passed on the car in question. It was a 57 retractable that was all apart with almost another cars worth of parts included (which would have been nice for the retract I already have). Im not sure exactly what was going on, but I think they seller got taken when he bought them in the first place. He got a title with a VIN that was too long and only had one letter in it not remotely resembling a 57 number, the frame number which I talked him through finding turned out to be a 58, and the previous owner "lost" the tag when doing body work. With no way to tie even a correct title back to the car with no VIN I was not going to be able to register it in my state or get a reproduction tag, and frankly got uncomfortable about the whole deal. I think the seller was legitimate and thoroughly upset about the situation. He later told me someone who owns a salvage yard in southern Illinois ended up with the car so unfortunately it will probably cease to exist. Its always frustrating to see a car nicer than my project basis parted or caught in a mess like that.
My understanding was that you had to have either the remains of the original tag, and/or the frame number as well as matching clear title in your name to get anyone to make you a new tag. I assume there is someone somewhere who would make you one without the proof but I don't want to live under the radar like that and what would you have put down anyhow?
After reading this information, I checked mine. There it was, just behind the right front control arm on top of the frame. Mark