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Is it the case that a Morris Mini 1961 would have the chassis/body number stamped on the right side stiffener in the engine bay?
That this number is seen on a thin plate on the bulk head behind water bottle and on a vin plate mounted on the radiator cowl?

Robinmk1 wrote:Is it the case that a Morris Mini 1961 would have the chassis/body number stamped on the right side stiffener in the engine bay?
That this number is seen on a thin plate on the bulk head behind water bottle and on a vin plate mounted on the radiator cowl?

Edit: believe the thin plate on bulk head is the body number and not chassis number.

I think I want to know if the stamping the chassis number on the stiffener was the norm in those days at the Morris factory (Cowley)???

YES
In fact early Austin AND Morris cars have the chassis number (just the numbers) stamped into the stiffener near the fusebox & voltage reg.

My Morris has a BMK number (the body number) stamped on a little plate next to the speedo.

The official VIN Plate is the oval alloy plate next to the radiator and that should have the full number in the style of "M MA2S4 12345".

I have here a 62 morris Traveller UK market and a unrestaured 62 Austin Cooper with No Chassis Nr stamped on the stiffener...

Fanfaniracing wrote:I have here a 62 morris Traveller UK market and a unrestaured 62 Austin Cooper with No Chassis Nr stamped on the stiffener...

Sounds correct. All the Cooper and S and non-saloons were built at Longbridge and the A frame stamp was a Cowley only process.

We have a June '61 Austin saloon in the workshop at present with the chassis number stamped in the stiffener.

So do I assume it was built at Cowley ?

woodypup59 wrote:We have a June '61 Austin saloon in the workshop at present with the chassis number stamped in the stiffener.

So do I assume it was built at Cowley ?

I don't think you can assume.

both Austin and morris had a stamp on the stiffener

if the front body was original and built at cowley there should be a mfg plate on the front by the right hand bonnet bumper
I think NPM

my april super deluxe was made at Cowley ... even the VIN plate says Longbridge with no M in number

After being at the rather wet start to the Mini Action day at Castle Combe, I was able to check out three 59 Morris Minis and none of them had the chassis number stamped into the stiffener? Was this something performed later on, in my case on a 61 MK1?

My Father in Law worked for BRS & as a Driver he delivered Mini Body in White Shells on his Lorry from Pressed Steel Cowley up to Longbridge .. clearly both Austin & Morris Mini shells were made together at Press Steel Cowley at some point in the 1960,s

The number would have been stamped in at the end of production after the VIN plate was screwed on I should think.

Can I ask what the font size/type used to make the stamp? I have some numbers in no particular order as an example 35064.
TIA for your help and HNY.
Robin

BOTH Cowley and Longbridge stamped the chassis number in the stiffener but it's a random hit and miss affair and certainly became less and less common as the early 60's went on. Cowley persisted with it longer than Longbridge certainly.

The numbers are always UNDER the paint and usually requires the removal of the paint to expose them so the chassis number was allocated to the shell BEFORE paint.

Photograph is of my June 59 Longbridge built Austin stiffener when I bought it, it's difficult to read but the numbers are there.

http://1959miniregister.com/variations-numbers/

Costafortune wrote:The number would have been stamped in at the end of production after the VIN plate was screwed on I should think.

Only discovered the stamping on my November '62 assembled car when I took the paint back to bare metal - the filler primer had been rather liberally applied by the Cowley paint shop and completely filled the indented numbers which as you can see are just bopped in 'straight-ish'. So stamped on before the paint process