My 48 has a transmission stamping the same as Havi's photo and the numbers match the dispatch box tag. I recall reading that Ford stamped truck transmissions up until about 1948. My 50 doesn't have a transmission stamping.

 

Thanks to all for the info. alot was known but I wanted to double check. Also, in correcting the problem I could sell without hassles if somebody walked up with a large sack-o-cash !!!
Getting any state D.O.T. to man-up and admit that they had made a mistake is the bigger hurdle.
I have sent my $25 to Kansas to help their economy and will take results to the S.C. dot and have a corrected tiltle written.
No matter what...somebody in Kansas did it wrong, honest mistake, and due to the truck never being owned outside of the family and my haste for flying to Va. to buy it without a return ticket...no body ever noticed...
thanks again.
ps...who in the area is going to the "Vintage Tin car show" in Lake Lure N.C. in October?

 

Please be so kind as keep us updated on developments whatever they might be, .........................as information for similar future situations. Thanks.

 

Also, don't discount the possibility that someone in the 56 years you are looking at, needed to title or register the truck and didn't have the appropriate paper work (or location knowledge) to continue with the "original" serial number stamped on the truck - wherever that might have been.

And, DMV workers being what they are and doing what they do best, may simply have assigned a new VIN to the truck, or used some number off the "Engine" erroneously (like he would have on a GM product), to do what needed to be done.

The bottom line is: other than for the sake of discussion or to satisfy curiosity, standard titling convention in your case has been overcome by events.......If you have a LEGAL TITLE to the truck with a VIN number on it THAT IS YOUR VIN NOW.

Edit note: Just to add confusion to the discussion, the "Standard Catalog of Light-Duty Ford Trucks, 1905-2002," states that the last year that Ford Stamped the Engine/Serial Number in the top of the clutch housing was 1947. On the 47 ID, it reads (page 78):

"The serial number and the engine number are the same. The number is stamped on the clutch housing and can be seen when the transmission cover is removed."

But starting in 1948 (page 81 and continuing thru 1952 - page 89), the catalogue goes on to say that:

"The serial number and engine number are the same. The VIN is located on the glove box door and on the left side of the frame near the steering gear mounting."

This is a DIRECT CONTRADICTION to the location of the frame stamped Serial Number as documented in theFord "Operators Manuals" and Ford "Chassis Parts Catalogs" for these year trucks - Made in the US. The Operators Manual States (pages 6&7):

"1.TRUCK IDENTIFICATION.

Your identification of the truck is by the series number which appears on all trucks except the parcel delivery. This number is located on the side of the hood. Each truck is also provided with a serial number. The number is located in three places, the patent data plate in the engine compartment, the rating plate on the dispatch compartment door, and on the top of the right frame side rail above the front axel.

On the parcel delivery the rating plate is on the right-hand side of the dash."

Of interesting Note also is that my '52 Operators Manual for the CANADIAN F-Series also specifies (page 5):

"Your identification of the truck is by the series number located on the side of the hood. Each truck is also provided with a serial number. The number is located in two places, on the identification plate in the engine compartment, and on the top of the left frame side rail above the front axel."

For your '54, the "Standard Catalog states (page 94):

"VIN located on the rating plate. The serial number and engine number are the same."

The catalogue makes no mention of the serial number being stamped in the frame or radiator cross member, and I don't have any F-100 "Operators Manuals" to look in to possibly clarify what Ford says about those locations.

Of course, we all know how disciplined Ford was to adhering to these conventions anyway.

 

I heard from a great lady at Kansas D.O.T. today. She was helpful and full of enthusiam....what a nice change!
It seams that the truck was first titled on Jan, 1, 1954 with the first two digits " V i " believe it or not. sometime before 1991 it was noticed that Kansas did not use the letter " i " on their titles...so they thought they should change the vin to " V l " (lower case L). So the title was NEVER correct from day one. I guess being owned by the same family for 50 years it just didnt show up...or matter.
Anyhow I am getting all copies of the title changes sent in the mail and am curious to see the info. I will get SC DOT to correct with the documents and then add them to the scrapbook I take to car shows with a brief explanation....always cool discovering old history on our toys.
If anything cool comes from those documents I will add it here as well.
thanks again for all of your input guys and gals.
Ed

 

DMV's across the country should clone her.

 

yep, never wake a sleeping dog. but you got lucky.

 

hi iam from canada,i dont know if it the right place to post but i have question about the engine of 1953 to 1956 half ton truck.cuz i want to purchase a ford 1954 f100 and the owner told me that 's the original matching number engine but it a v8 flathead in,and i saw on the internet that flathead gone in f100 ford truck they switch to O.H engine anyways i just want to know if it possible??i told him yesterday to send me the vin number to check if everything ok

sorry my english's bad iam french guy hehe

 

I believe they continued the flathead through '54 in Canada, a year longer than in the states.

 

dawn did you know how i can get spec on that??

 

how i know if it the matching number original engine in the truck????

 

First. Welcome to FTE.
It is a wonderful place with a wealth of info.

If you would start a new thread on this topic you will get a lot of info.
There are a lot of helpful people here but most won't find this at the bottom of this thread.

 

ok thanks!!!

 

VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) introduced by FoMoCo in 1948 (trucks, 1949-cars), registers the entire vehicle.

Prior to VIN's, engine numbers were used to register vehicles and the long ongoing problem was, if the engine was swapped, the number no longer matched.

The VIN system was invented by Les Kelley, the largest used car dealer in the world (and a LA LA Land Ford Dealer), best known today as the founder of Kelley Blue Books.

As previously mentioned (in this thread and 100's of times by myself over the past 4 years), matching numbers is a GM thing.

What Ford of Canada did, I dunno for sure. Try mercurypickup.com.