g741.org

Hi Guys,
I finally coughed up the $35, ordered and received my M37's build card from Chrysler LLC. It includes the VIN, engine serial number, wheelbase, etc., and a lot of other coding that I can't make out.

I don't know how much longer Chrysler will provide this service so I recommend that anyone who desires the factory data order this before it goes away. You will need to include a copy of a current Registration or Title to prove ownership.

http://www.fcanorthamerica.com/company/ ... cords.aspx

Gary

Congratulations.

Bert

Cal_Gary wrote:Hi Guys,
I finally coughed up the $35, ordered and received my M37's build card from Chrysler LLC. It includes the VIN, engine serial number, wheelbase, etc., and a lot of other coding that I can't make out.

I don't know how much longer Chrysler will provide this service so I recommend that anyone who desires the factory data order this before it goes away. You will need to include a copy of a current Registration or Title to prove ownership.

http://www.fcanorthamerica.com/company/ ... cords.aspx

Gary

Gary, did you hear or read something that suggests this service will be discontinued? Other than the storage space in Highland Park, I don't think it costs FCA anything, since the labor is done by volunteers. Not to say that large corporations always do things that make sense, but with the (limited) re-opening of the Chrysler Museum at the Auburn Hills headquarters, I don't sense that they're on a mission to purge their history.

Hi Elwood,
Nothing definitive-just my gut feeling, as military history continues to fade from the public eye. They might get tired of storing these and say "why are we keeping these if there is so little interest?"
Gary

Gary, I wouldn't be too pessimistic about the Chrysler historical collection, at least not until the next big downturn in the auto industry. The G741 truck records are part of a larger collection including the civilian products, and I doubt they'd spend time to extract and purge them, since they're already on microfilm. At some point, though, they'll have to decide to eliminate accessibility to the collection or digitize it. Microfilm is not a permanent medium.

Hopefully, if (when) that time comes, or when the next round of bankruptcies threatens the auto companies, a third party, such as the National Automotive History Collection at the Detroit Public Library, will gain possession of the records and preserve them.

http://www.detroit.lib.mi.us/featuredco ... collection

http://www.allpar.com/history/memories/NAHC.html

The condition of the vehicles in the Highland Park storage facility is more of a problem, although I don't think there are any G741 trucks there (or anywhere at Chrysler).

There are (or were) some photos of WC series trucks on the walls at Warren Truck Assembly (their birthplace), but I don't know if those are still there. Or if anyone working there even knows what they are or why they're significant.

Thanks Elwood-sure hope you're right!
Gary