Australian Car Number

[Duncan Logan]

The chassis number on mine is the same as the engine number which i believe indicates there were some chassis sent to Australia unstamped. 

Mine is a 29-30

[Tony Press]

From Australian experience, in 1929 many (maybe even most) chassis were supplied unstamped - luckily the books at Gaydon can usually advise the number.

[JonE]

I think it's quite reasonable that the body numbers don't fit a logical sequence. First of all, the bodies probably got stock-piled at Longbridge so bodies and chassis matched together on the sales ledger didn't necessarily have a directly matched production link; and then when they got shipped to Australia, again there is further scope for bodies and chassis to become mismatched.

So are we surmising that CHA-1 wouldn't have a body number that was stamped in Longbridge because it was just a chassis? And the others - very firmly attached rolling unit - would this be demounted to enable the coachbuilding bit?

So we have Australian cars: 

Car No. A9 309,  July 1929
Chassis 87642
Body number 49701

Car No. A8 6175, April 1929
Chassis 83009
Body number 54668

Car No. CHA1-4729, late 1927
Chassis 51146
Body Number 48893

Not seeing any Body Number pattern.

As for the CHA1 numbers, the largest noted is CHA1-9273- does this indicate there were some 10,000 cars with this Car Number designation? 

Seems odd that Wyatt or the other Austin 7 books don't seem to mention this series- or am I missing something. 

 

Again, all the right questions but with only three, there is no hope. Does Duncan's car have car number and a body stamp to add? How many potential cars does Australia "know" which could have details chased/checked? I think the other key bit of information is noting what the model type is, as the body number ranges seem to be different for saloon and tourer. What we haven't checked yet is the sort on car number rather than chassis which perhaps should be the "lead" as per the ledgers. The chassis is easier for a non-specialist to do as its just a number that can easily be made to rise or fall in a sort. But we may thus be missing detail.
But its essential that other CHA1 cars elsewhere are chased - they are the only objects which may yield obvious evidence from their past circumstances.

[Tony Press]

Sorry for the tiny font - I thought it was alright when I left it - bl**dy computers! 
I have enlarged the original (I hope)

[Mark McKibbin]

I was at the Austin 7 Club (Vic) 70th anniversary do and there was another 1927 car, a roadster chassis number 411?? and here is it's plate. Which sort of fits with the sequence.  I hazard a guess that all Australian cars in 1927 or thereabouts have CHA1 prefixes we probably need to enlist someone with access to Aussie club records.
So what was the sequence?
1. Chassis Ordered from Longbridge
2. Bodies are built while they are waiting for chassis
3. Bodies and chassis are united
4. Australian agents engrave number onto car no. plate. Who issues the number?
5. Body number is stamped on transmission tunnel at Longbridge or Aus?

[Tony Press]

Mark,

1. Chassis Ordered from Longbridge
2. Bodies are built while they are waiting for chassis
3. Bodies and chassis are united
4. Australian agents engrave number onto car no. plate. Who issues the number?
5. Body number is stamped on transmission tunnel at Longbridge or Aus?

i believe only the major body builders (Holdens, Melbourne Motor Body, Floods ) would have received an order from Austin Distributors for a number of bodies to be prepared when the Longbridge chassis order was placed- I suspect the myriad small builders would order chassis as and when they were ready to build.

I don't know if Longbridge issued a block of tunnel numbers to Austin Distributors but from local experience the numbers were stamped in Australa by the body builder.

From the surviving Longbridge record books at Gaydon, the Car Numbers were issued and recorded by the Factory so it would seem to be logical that Longbridge 'engraved' the car number plate.

[JonE]

From the surviving Longbridge record books at Gaydon, the Car Numbers were issued and recorded by the Factory so it would seem to be logical that Longbridge 'engraved' the car number plate.

What we ought to start checking is the UK cars of similar age? The "engraving" looks subtly different to the stamping I've noticed on the former, but could that be because they might have been done in slightly different parts of the factory? Here is a NON EXPORT car number tag, but this isn't as early as some of those others so isn't really that helpful perhaps:    

[JonE]

another early CHA1 car number 'ere (and some nice photos)
https://rmsothebys.com/en/auctions/hf15/...son/180733

[Mark McKibbin]

another early CHA1 car number 'ere (and some nice photos)
https://rmsothebys.com/en/auctions/hf15/...son/180733

Another 1927 and not a factory body, seems to be a pattern emerging. Nice car BTW.

[Duncan Logan]

Mine doesn't have any other numbers. Its body was built by a small body builder with less than 10 of the body style. Not uncommon for the time.