Hi everybody!

I removed a body tag today, and the number stamped behind it was different, it's off by 61?
It looked like the tag had been on there a long time, and the underlying colour, type and engine number all match

Is the stamping always the same number as the tag? has this tag been swapped?

Cheers

Any photos.

I can get some photos later tonight. The number is stamped directly under the plate.

I can't find any numbers on the Radiator surround, I cleaned all the extra layers of paint off it to look, I have been searching online for info, but not having much luck
Do all cars have the number on the radiator, it's supposed to be on the topside of the cowl, right? and stamped? or a small plate?

What model is it? (I'm guessing an 850)
The numbers moved around and can mean different things in different years.

If it is an 850 it is perfectly normal. If it is a fake Cooper S it is pretty normal too.

The car is early, with sliding door type door catches, long number plate and magic wand hole on the shell.
The matching engine is an early 850, with oil fed primary gear.





Here is my radiator shroud, it's blank as far as I can tell.



I found this plate on the firewall, I thought it might be an ID tag of some kind, I scrubbed it back to metal, but it's blank, anyone know what it is?

It is an 850, it won't have a number on the shroud. The number on the plate should be stamped just below the ID plate. (just about where that hole is)
The other number is the body number and is hidden by the ID plate.

I think that tag on the firewall may be a broken off clip for the fuel pipe.

That tag covers the holes for the accelerator pedal on LHD cars? Maybe..

That could be it! They were using CKD panels at that stage.

Wow, full points to Morris1100, you can see here why I couldn't see any numbers there, 50 years of brake fluid has eaten the steel in that area

But I got behind it and scrubbed off all that shitty contact adhesive and look what I saw!
Amazing, why would they have two sets of numbers, I guess the did a recount and couldn't find the other 61 cars in Australia, the boat must have sunk



I had another look, on the back of that little plate are two holes blanked off, same spacing as the studs used to hold the accelerator linkage, you picked it!

Awesome knowledge guys, thanks heaps

Mine had something similar. But the higher number was ground back .

_________________
Tim
Dusk Blue
1964 850

The number that is behind the ID plate is the body number. It was stamped before the body was painted.
The number below the ID plate is the car number, it is stamped when the car is assembled and is stamped through the paint, this is why it rusts so easily!
Your car is perfectly normal, all Minis have two sets of numbers. (well four sets of numbers if you really want to get picky)
They moved the locations of the numbers around on different models.

Was the pre-paint body number just for identification on the production line?

The pre paint number is just a consecutive number on each body as it is made in the body plant.
Bodies are made, painted and then stored until needed in the car assembly plant.
Numbering them could probably help to control inventory and identify faults.

Bit of a thread hijack, but do the stampings in the following photo look original for a 1962 850?

The car also has the small plate over the holes to mount the accelerator pedal. Same as that in andrew9's photo.

That looks pretty normal to me.
Notice that the top number is very clean because it was painted after it was stamped and the bottom one is pitted because they knocked the paint off with the stamps.

Another thing that is worth a mention is the differences in the fonts between the body plant and the assembly plant.