<VV> Re: Matching Engine Numbers

[Bill Elliott]

This sort of attention to detail is present even with collectors of British vehicles...

First, often the engine (and sometimes even the gearbox) numbers are on the VIN (or more accurately "chassis") plate, so with a certain sector 
matching numbers brings a huge increase in value.

Rare cars, it brings even more.... I had a '67 Morris (Mini) Cooper S (MK1) from Australia ... had a proper Cooper S engine in it, but didn't match the 
chassis plate. I lucked across the actual engine block out of my car in NZ and increased the value of the car almost 2x...even though the car was a 
"rebody"...

But it goes even further than that... many bits are dated on British stuff... generators, starters, wiper motors, fuel pumps... even trunk locks.... There is a 
good sized sector of collectors that will go to any length to find an appropriately dated piece for their car... difficult when dealing with American cars of 
the 60's... but imagine trying to do so with an early 50's MGTD. An acquaintance of mine had the earliest existing MGTD in private hands (think it was 
number 4.... the first two being factory test mules which were destroyed in testing and number 3 being in the MG museum in Abington.)  

(Interesting story on this car... was purchased by an African American Army officer in the mid 50's when he was stationed in the UK... when he brought 
it with him back to LA, CA, he was abused by both the black and white communities for "not knowing his place" and owning a car such as that. This 
so discouraged him so much that he parked the car in his garage and vowed never again to drive it. My acquaintance purchased it from his estate 
several years ago... Thank goodness we've come a long way from stories such as these.)

Also thank goodness this level of "detail" has not infected the Corvair community... which remains (IMO) one of the closest and "user friendly" car 
communities I'm aware of (our little "family squabbles" not withstanding) (VBG)

Bill Elliott
Urbana, MD