Re: VIN#'s

Posted by BH On 2008/10/7 21:41:01

The large numbers stamped on the firewall represent a body serial number - much like a motor or transmission will have its own, unique serial number. That body serial number, based on what I've read here from others, was not recorded by the state registrars, but kept on file by the factory - in case of theft. Thus, it is also known as the thief-proof number. Unfortunately, those records are long lost.

The vehicle serial number is stamped, along with paint and trim codes, on stainless steel plate that is spot welded to the driver's side hinge pillar, but sometimes it gets painted over. A true VIN number is a much more complicated number that came into being long after they stopped building Packards, but for a car of that era, the number stamped on that plate is as close as your gonna get.

The vehicle serial number was also stamped on the engine block, during vehicle assembly (at the Connor Ave. Plant, for the V8s) - on a machined surface, near the oil fill tube. Check that number to see if it matches the plate on the hinge pillar and model of your car; the first four digits should represent the model of your car. See this site's Model Info feature (or the RPO charts I compiled for the 55th and 56th Series) for more info on model numbers.

BTW, the motor serial number, which is a completely different number, was referred to as the Utica Engine number by Packard. Initally, this number was stamped on the block (by the Utica Engine Plant), near the right rear exhaust port flange beginning with the 1955 production run, but that later changed to the front of the block, at the same location on the engine as the vehicle serial number.