Hi,
I've been thinking of purchasing a MGA from a guy in the
Bay area. The car is in the middle of a frame off restoration, with
the work done so far to very high standards. The only problem is with
the title... The car is alledgedly a 1961 MK II, the title shows a 1956
date, with what appears to be an 1500 cc engine number as the vehicle
I.D. number; the California DMV title number is BD15GB6835.
Is this in fact a 1500 cc engine number?
The vehicle I.D. plate is missing, but I found the following
numbers on the car:
Frame number #45833
(according to Moss, this is the same as the chassis number
from the right hand side crossmember )
Body number 56522
(from a badge on the vertical surface near the heater box
Rear axle number 3404 1.0 to 4.1
(from the frontside of the rear axle.
There is no engine plate on the engine, which was steam cleaned,
and rebuilt...
The frame appears to be a MK II, it has, for example; disk brakes,
seat belt mounting points, a 1622 engine. Of course the engine, and
brakes could have been added later, but the seat belt mount points
(not drilled or tapped, but there non-the-less) would have been unnecessary
before 61.
Can anybody shed any light on the estimated dates of these pieces?
Will spending $40.00 on a British Motor Heritage search help any?
What kind of records did BM keep? Will a frame number generate a
VIN of the format shown in Moss? Will BMH be able to tell me the
engine number that was originally sold with the car?
What I really would like of course, is clear title to the car, with
an engine plate and Chasis ID plate (purchased from Moss?) to reflect
the actual car I would be purchasing. Does anyone have any experience/
stories in this area (purchasing an old car with insufficient records).
Any help british-car 'netters can provide will be greatly appreciated.
Larry
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"No guts, no glory. If you're going to shoot him down,
you have to get in there and mix it up with him." Major Blesse
Lawrence C. Schuette schuette@roadkill.nrl.navy.mil
Code 5133 (202)767-2739
Naval Research Laboratory
Washington D.C. 20375-5000
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