Any years Need help decoding 1940 Cadillac VIN

[Hounddog]

I'm looking at buying a 1940 Fleetwood. The issue is the VIN on the frame is 7320465.  The VIN on the title is 3320727.  Can anyone tell me anything about these VIN numbers?  Thanks in advance. 

[Tom Boehm]

If the serial number on the engine and the frame are different, the car did not come from the factory with that engine. The frame number means a 1940 series 72 Cadillac. The engine came from a 1940 Series 75 Cadillac. All that being said, the engine in the 40-72 and the 40-75 were exactly the same. If you want to show this car, the only way to tell it is not the original engine is to look at the serial number.

[Hounddog]

Appreciate the response. If I  understand you correctly you're saying that serial number 3320727 came from a 1940 series 75? That might be the serial number on the engine?   

[Tom Boehm]

Yes. Everything in my previous post is correct. I reread your original post. I get it now. You found the 3320727 number on the title. I read your post too quickly and I assumed you found it on the engine. You need to find the serial number on the engine and verify it is the same as on the title. Do you know where the serial number is on the engine? If not I can tell you.

In my opinion, the frame number should be on the title because that is "the car". Engines can be changed. I am not suggesting something is necessarily shady.

Yes the number 3320727 comes from a 1940 series 75 Cadillac. The serial number sequence for 1940 -75 starts at 3320000.

The car is a 1940 72 series Cadillac isn't it?

When the cars were new, fresh out of the factory, the frame number and the engine number were the same. If they are different, that means the engine has been changed at some point in its history.

[Hounddog]

I don't know where the serial number is on the engine.  I'm wanting to buy this car but trying to make sure I can get it titled.  If I remember correctly all of the old registrations in the car have the serial number that's on the frame which is a series 72.  The title that was issued in 2015 has the series 75 serial number.  I'm going to call the dealership that sold it with that title tomorrow and hope to figure something out.  I'm the meantime I wanna find the engine serial number.

[Tom Boehm]

The Engine serial number is on the driver side behind the bank of cylinders. There is a 45 degree slanted surface between the cylinder bank and the bell housing. The 7 digit number will be stamped parallel to the firewall on this surface.

There will be another 5 digit number with a letter stamped perpendicular to the firewall. Ignore this. This is the engine unit number. This was an engine ID before it was installed in a chassis at the factory. The 7 digit frame number was stamped on the assembly line. The engine unit number was its "maiden name".

I attached a picture of the engine serial number on my 1940 Lasalle. There may be dirt covering the stamped numbers. You might have to use a wire brush or sandpaper to find it.

[Eric DeVirgilis CLC# 8621]

Tom Boehm is correct. The frame stamping is what always takes precedence for purposes of vehicle identification. If does not agree with the serial number on the title, I would strongly recommend walking away until the seller has the title corrected- which he may or may not be able to do. If you accept the car with the error, you will potentially have a serious problem when you go to register/title the car. And even if your own state is lax in old car matters, others are not so generous. Even if the engine stamping matched the title, it is of no help.

[Hounddog]

Looking through documents I found in the glove box I was able to determine the car came from the Lemay Car Museum in Washington state. I called them up and they confirmed that they mixed up the titles.  Easy fix.   Thanks for your input guys!

[Tom Boehm]

So, you are considering buying a 1940 Cadillac series 72 with frame #/vin 7320465. The seller had the wrong piece of paper/title with # 3320727 on it that had nothing to do with the 72 series?

You tracked down the right title at the Lemay Museum?

So the 72 has the original engine?

If and when you buy the car, post some pictures of it on this forum. Tell us about the condition etc.

This turned out to be an interesting story.

[Hounddog]

Correct.  Engine serial number matches the frame serial number.  It was at the museum fora while and then eventually auctioned off. I did buy the car. It has a little surface rust but nothing too deep. I wanna restore her.  I'm still brainstorming the direction I wanna go.

[Hounddog]

Here are some pics

[Tom Boehm]

Hello J. Hudnall, Thanks for posting the pictures. Welcome to prewar Cadillac ownership! Your car looks like a good restoration candidate. I've seen pictures on this forum lately of some prewar limos that were in poor condition. I encourage you to restore this car rather than street rod it. I'm glad you are interested in this car as not many 72s and 75s are getting restored these days. The 1940 72 series was a one year only series with some unique trim pieces. The new for 1940 72 series body was used as the 75 series body from 1941-1949 so your car has a lot in common with those cars. I encourage you to join the Cadillac and Lasalle club to meet others who can help you in your restoration. This forum and the AACA website forum are good places to find answers.

My car is a 1940 Lasalle 50 series woodie station wagon. The woodie body was custom built for a Lasalle Commercial chassis in 1940. A 50 series commercial chassis is a 72 series chassis with Lasalle sheetmetal.  The runningboards on my car have the same rubber pattern and trim as yours.