Help with vin #'s

[guido]

hi,

i'm new to this forum and have some questions regarding the vin #'
s i've seen on 1967 convertibles.

the question is that there have been several convertibles that i have looked at personnaly or have seen on e-bay, that have vin #
s that indicate that they are hardtops, ie: 7F01Cxxxxxx when i thought it should have been 7F03Cxxxxxx. did ford screw up or are these guys trying to pull a shot.

thanx

 

[ponyboy289]

Hello and welcome to the site.

The Vin question is a tough one. I would say it has to be taken on a case by case basis. It is true that Ford did have a few Misstamps but in all honesty they were ridicolously rare. First hand I have seen cars that had the numbers changed due to accidents,etc. Where the front clip or fender aprons were changed. I've also seen where they were swapped for legal(illegal) reasons . Lastly I've actually seen and recently pointed out to a car owner that his car started life as a coupe and was made into A convertible,Unfortunately in the case of this most recent car,It was not done properly at all. If you are ever looking at a questionable car it can't hurt to post a picture or info and ask others like myself. Additionally on 67-later cars you can always get a Marti report done,which will tell you exactly how the car started out.

 

[guido]

thanks for the quick response PonyBoy289.

The one car i actually got to drive as a convertible, i think started life as a hard top and was converted. this owner had it for five years registered as a convertible with a hardtop vin. he bought it from down south from a guy who had it registered the same way for 10 years. the vin on the fender showed it was a hard to "01" but was a convertible. also the warranty plate was missing on the door so i was really suspicious.


thanks again for the reply and i'll keep looking for that numbers correct car

 

[jmiller]

if doors and fenders have been replaced some times the VINs wont match up... my door plate does not match the plate under the dash.

 

[ponyboy289]

For what it's worth you can order new repo door tags.With the correct rivets they are exact.
As far as the convertible/coupe, did/do you still own it? Convertibles are easy to authenticate,all I need is one photo of the undercarriage or even the interior. Convertibles have a lot of additional structural metal underneath them to keep them from folding in half.I've spent alot of time under Convertibles(replacing these parts) to know exactly what to look for. Many cars were involved in front end hits and such over the last 40 plus years,Prior to the last few years you had no choice but to cut aprons out of a donor car,so that would explain alot of under hood problems and doors well they rotted,got hit,etc. And got replaced.

 

[guido]

would you have any photos showing the difference between the underside of a hardtop compared to a convertible??? that would be helpful in my search for a true convertible.

i'm going to try to include a photo of the interior of a convertible with a hard top vin #, maybe this will help.

thanks again
guido

 

[ponyboy289]

Hey Guido,
Unfortunately ,I am terrible with photos and posting them,etc. So I don't have comparison photos. That said in a quick glance that picture appears to be of a legit convertible. The way I tell Is I look at the outboard side of the front seats,You can see how the rug goes around the boxed inner rocker rails. Also If the angle was better or if I could feel the Transmission tunnel I could feel for the Seat Box that is unique to convertibles. In convertibles the seat box is a one piece and it goes over the tunnel,where in Hardtops the seat boxes are two piece. The one piece adds strength in fact "Dynacorn" Has been incorporating these into thier Repo hard top(fastback) bodies for additional strength. In this day and age all of the pieces can be added to a car.Like I said I would take it on a case by case basis,when looking at cars.

 

[guido]

thanx once again PonyBoy289.

There is one car that is local, within 150 miles that the photo I posted came from and it appears to be a fine restoration, but the vin # had me stumped, had the "01" for a hard top and not "03" for convertible.

I saw the vin on the driver's side inner fender that matched the registration, and someone told me that there are additional vin #'s on the passenger inner fender and else where on the car. Are these other other locations readily accessable or would i have to remove the passenger fender to see the vin on the inner fender, etc.

any help would be greatly appreciated.

thanx again
guido

 

[ponyboy289]

Hey,
Is this a car you are considering purchasing? If so feel free to pick my brain on it, show me photos of the undercarriage,etc. Convertibles were very prone to rot, So it is very important that you do or someone else do a through undercarriage inspection assuming you would be paying top dollar? That said there are typically Vin stampings on the passenger side under the fender,You don't have to take it off to see them,But you do have to loosen the fender and pull it back some Sellers get very funny about this one. I have to say a Convertible registered/Titled as A coupe is very very Suspect. For legal reasons you would want to get that cleared up before you purchase the car. Good luck