"Augustine, Richard S. (LNG-SHEP)" wrote:
>
> Yes, import cars back then were registered in the year they were
> sold. There weren't a lot of changes from year to year so the cars all
> looked pretty much the same. My early '59 is actually registered and titled
> as a '60. I can't remember exaclty but there is at least a year between the
> build date on my BMHT certificate and purchase and first registration of my
> car in the spring of 1960. If you look at the production numbers I believe
> 1959 - 1960 were the years of the highest production of the TR-3 and if a
> car was a slow mover for some reason, bad color, over optioned, etc. it
> could take a while to sell it even after it got shipped half-way around the
> world to So. Cal. etc.
I believe this is also about the time that cars started being registered
by "year first sold" rather than "Model year". Prior to that, "Model
year" was not emphasized so much as a selling point, so for instance a
55 TR3 would still be registered as a 55 even if it weren't sold until
56. From the factory sales literature I've seen, I'd guess it wasn't ST
that started emphasizing the model year, but rather the US dealers felt
at a disadvantage trying to sell "last year's model". So it was
probably a dealer that sold my 58-made TR3A as a 59 model. This "abuse"
is also probably the reason for the "STC" plates on later cars.
BTW, I've heard tales of American car dealers in the late 50s actually
changing trim pieces and whatnot to move a hard-to-sell car as a later
model year than it was originally. I'm not sure how true that is, but
it seems to be a persistent myth.
Randall
58 TR3A TS39781LO - registered as 59
63 Sports 6 HB7826LCV - registered as 65 !
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