1940 Chevrolet 12-cwt Ute

[Mike Cecil]

Lang,

If the engine number lengthened in 1941, how come the vehicles listed in AMW126 were sent overseas with the 1st AIF contingent in early 1940 with seven digit engine numbers? Example, AIF-V-33 to AIF-V-62, all with R199xxxx numbers. And I suspect these are 1939 model GS utilities, too, as the same engine number sequence listed in the AMF registrations have 'M-39-" chassis numbers listed.

Something doesn't add up between these sources. Very puzzling.

Mike

[Lang]

Mike

I too noticed 1939 long numbers.

Production lines did not start and finish on the first of January. Entire shiploads of engines from the previous year would take many months to reach port and work their way through storage and production into a finished motor vehicle. Almost the entire vehicle up until February or March might be constructed from materials born in the previous year. I think they should be talking about "Model Year" not "Production Year". Look at the situation now where manufacturers start advertising the new 2024 model in July or August of 2023!

I think the GM (and probably Ford and Chrysler) system was so convoluted that nobody can say truly what numbers were what.

1. Canadian built engines for multi-international use eg UK.
2. Canadian built engines for specifically Australian use.
3. Canadian engines with no numbers as replacements or local foreign numbering. (All replacement engines had no numbers in Australia until 60's eg GEM and REPCO Holden engines stamped by the mechanic to match existing paperwork)
4, US built engines supplied to gap fill Canadian shipments or vice-versa.
5. Possibly thousands of engines in various long and short term storage being picked by the fork-lift drivers months out of sequence, Many people say engine numbers are unreliable and the date should be the body/chassis line production number stamped during assembly.
plus numerous other combinations.

Lang

[Lang]

And This:

1940 passenger car engines that were assembled in Flint carried 7 digit numbers. Tonawanda assembled engines used a 6 digit numbering system preceeded by the letter B.

The range of serial numbers for a 1940 engine are as follows:

Flint: 2697268 - 3665902

Tonawanda: B105462 - B221935

1940 engines bearing the prefix BR or just a single R were destined for right drive country production.



Canadian production figures are within this group. Obviously duplicating US numbers but hopefully differentiated by vehicle application prefix.
Walkerville, Ontario aka Windsor: 1997877 … 3556862 or 3557935

My engine falls in the Tonawanda 6 digit group for 1940??

[Mike K]

Originally Posted by Lang

And This:

1940 passenger car engines that were assembled in Flint carried 7 digit numbers. Tonawanda assembled engines used a 6 digit numbering system preceeded by the letter B. If you happen to have the B preceeding the six digit number given your engine was assembled in the month of February 1940.

The range of serial numbers for a 1940 engine are as follows:

Flint: 2697268 - 3665902

Tonawanda: B105462 - B221935

1940 engines bearing the prefix BR or just a single R were destined for right drive country production.


Walkerville, Ontario aka Windsor: 1997877 … 3556862 or 3557935

My engine falls in the Tonawanda 6 digit group for 1940??

Your ute probably should have a Canadian built engine, in the contemporary adverts they made a big deal out of this: The Chevrolet is a 'British Empire Product'

Both of the engines in my Jan. dated utes which are 100% the correct engines , have a CR prefix. The two body tag serial numbers are only two digits apart.

re: the body plants . I think Woodville stamped the higher volume models and Fishermen's Bend stamped the lower volume more specialized types.

From David Hayward's old site:

MIKE KELLY’S 15CWT. HOLDEN-BODIED UTE:
BUILT JANUARY 1940?
ENGINE CR2,003,874
ARMY BOOK SAYS FIRST 515 SERIES 13 UTES HAD 3-SPEED GEARBOXES AND THEN THE REST HAD 4-SPEED GEARBOXES.
THIS ONE HAS A 3-SPEED GEARBOX
Note “CR” PREFIX: “C” FOR LIGHT COMMERCIAL CHEVROLET 216 AND “CR” FOR RHD LIGHT COMMERCIAL CHEVROLET 216 MOTORS

[Lang]

Who knows Mike. I don't think the British Empire Product would weigh heavily on GMH conscience outside the marketing and finance (tarif) departments.

100% American owned Windsor plant sending goods to 100% American owned Australian plant doesn't sound too rigidly British Empire to me.

Whatever the source of my engine it still keeps popping up as a 1940 model. Clearly backed by the casting number. I hope I can find the square plate to indicate a confirming number.

I notice your engine number agrees with the Canadian production numbers indicated in my last post.

Lang

[Mike K]

I had a look at my 1939 and 1940 GMH NASCO parts book for the Australian Army.

GMH refer to the 1940 utility as: Series 12 Pullman. The ute had 10 leaf rear springs . The sedan had 9 leaf. And a different front bumber was fitted to the ute

The book mentions the army units had wider rims to accomodate wider tyres.

[Lang]

Mike C and Mike K

After reading The Authority on a web site saying that 1940 utes had no stamped chassis number and were identified by engine number and data plate serial it really did not seem right.

So after stripping the chassis I found this. Can you blokes advance the cause with that information (I have picked the very light stamping out with white-out so it can be easily read)

Mike K. The vehicle came with tyres fitted to wider rims which the owner said was original. He also gave me 5 good rims from a car that are a full inch narrower, Hubcaps the same on both. I have fitted 205R85-16 which are close to the same height as the 7.00-16 offered by GMH for Military (and probably commercial use also).

[Mike K]

Originally Posted by Mike Cecil

Lang,

And I suspect these are 1939 model GS utilities, too, as the same engine number sequence listed in the AMF registrations have 'M-39-" chassis numbers listed.

Something doesn't add up between these sources. Very puzzling.

Mike

Yes the earlier 12cwt's listed would be 1939 models. The AIF had some 1939 models.