Early 1920s Studebaker ?

5 minute(s) of a 173 minute read

Can any one please tell me definitely where the engine number is actually located. I can only find one likely site on the left side of the block high up next to Number six exhaust port. The problem is that I cannot clearly make out what the number, if there is one, is? The casting date as seen in the third photograph is 9-14-20 i.e..  9th month 14th day 1920. The casting number is 43151   1. In the photograph the first digit (4) of the number is accidently cut off. At this point my camera battery decided to become "exhausted". I now have it on charge but that will take a little time

Is there a Studebaker Historian who can decipher any of this for me?

Hello NZCarnerd,

I had seen photographs of that "beauty" before, it reminded me NOT to paint my car yellow with red wheels. I think that the original Black mudguards (fenders) with Belgium Blue up to the waist line then Black above it, suits my car. I still have to decide whether to paint my wheels the same Belgium Blue as the body colour or Black. I have  found traces of both colours on different wheels on the car.

Hi OnSafari.  

The inlet manifold is a three forked passage cast into the cylinder head, the gas passes into the block behind the valves through three transfer ports so there are six separate exhaust ports and three siamesed inlet ducts/ports The order of the valves is  from front to back, E-I-I-E-E-I-I-E-E-I-I-E

The exhaust manifold shows this spacing clearly in the drawing below. The carburettor is mounted on the other (right) side of the cylinder head. In cold climates hot air is drawn from around the exhaust manifold through the duct across to the carburettor. i.e. via the " Carburettor Hot Air Stove".

Bernie j.

My next option was to remove the starter motor so I could throughly examine that area on the side of the block. It is a bit too late to start tonight (9.45 pm).

More tomorrow

Bj.

Thank you Stude Light

I have just had a quick look and there is a number stamped exactly where you suggest. It is going to take a little more cleaning before I can read it.  Without having the engine out I doubt I would have found it without your help. With 97 years of build up of dirt and oil it would have been impossible to find without knowing precisely where to look.

Hi Scott

Fortunately the head on the engine appears to be OK but I will not know until it is off and cleaned up. The welded one came in the rear seat. I am still waiting on the AOMC ( Assn of Motoring Clubs) the organisation that has all the early Registration documentation archived. This was originally all hand written on a card index system. They have discovered that at some time in its early life the car changed its Registration number. Hopefully they will discover the date of its first registration and the name and address of its first owners. As with many old hand written records, tracking them can take some time. We are lucky that they have not all been destroyed. I have seen some of them and even to be able to read the writing is a bonus. Not all were legible, some are even written in pencil. The Registration actually expired in December 1941. One possible explanation is that at some time the engine has been swapped for a later one, something we will not know until I can read the engine number.

Bernie j.

So far, we have found that:
-   Registration 103981 was issued in 1926 for a Morris
-   At some time later it was issued to the Studebaker
-   103981 was cancelled in Feb 1942.
-   but prior to 103981 the vehicle was previously registered as 74593
-   we are still working on 74593.

Hello Again.   HELPPPPPP!

Having cleaned off the engine number I can confirm that the number shown on the Registration label is the correct one for the engine in the car ( 2350 ) How that fits in with the dating of the Chassis-plate Serial Number can now hopefully be ascertained, having cleaned this properly I have to ask  if the one I thought I had read in the half light last night 1002350 or the one that I can read in the full light of day having washed the Chassis plate off with a rag wet with petrol 100  3 ?

I am sorry but I really do not know. What I do know is that IF correct this must make the whole story of the car even more confusing.

Was it just wishful thinking  that the engine number and the (chassis) Serial number would be so similar.  

Bernie j