Expert
Posts: 1480
Location: Pacific Northwest | Just came across a 1961 Plymouth Suburban that was supposedly an ex fire vehicle. Is there any way to verify through the VIN or fender tag that is was perhaps a special order fleet vehicle? Canadian built, 9 passenger, 318, power steering and power brakes. Uff Da!
Thanks, Andrew
Edited by ABloch 2015-10-05 10:15 PM
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Expert
Posts: 1819
Location: Vancouver, BC | Canadian built? The US-built Mopar cars had a code in the VIN for police (9) or taxi (8). These digits were the second entry on the VIN, replacing the series codes (Savoy, Belvedere, etc.).
Canadian-built Chryco cars had no such VIN codes as the police and taxi vehicles were optional packages with sales codes. Which are not recorded on the vehicle and there is no Chrysler Canada Historical to call upon for information.
The Plymouth is a Custom Suburban, based on the Belvedere series. All Canadian-built 1961 Plymouths and Dodge Darts used Plymouth instrument panels with Dodge Dart upholstery and door panels.
There is a body tag on the car, but it is not the style used in the U.S. The Canadian version, used from about 1935 through to and including 1965, has the following information -
Model No
Body No
Paint Code
Trim Code
The colours offered on Canadian-built cars were not the same as offered in the U.S. Would be interesting to see the colour code - if the red was the normal production red or a special fire engine red.
The VIN should start with 3619. There is no way to tell what day the car was built, but if you let me know the last six digits I can tell you the month.
Also, if the engine is original, it should be a 313 V8, not 318. The bore is slightly smaller. The 318 was not used in Canadian-built cars until 1965,
The engine number is stamped on the front of the block, left side, just below the head. It is usually hard to see due to the power steering pump or generator. The engine prefix in the US for the 318 was R318 (R was for 1961) but the Canadian 313 was RV-. The 225 slant six was R- and the 361 RV-HP- on Plymouth and Dodge Dart models.
And that is another thing. Alternators were optional on Canadian-built Chryco cars until 1963. Chrysler of Canada offered optional HD generators and alternators through 1962.
Edited by Chrycoman 2015-10-06 7:59 PM
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