THE PLYMOUTH SUPERBIRD NASCAR RACE PROGRAM 1920 SERIAL NUMBER LIST (Product
Planning Technical Services Fleet Engineering)
I don't personally know anyone who has seen an original serial number list. The photo to the
right is of the cover of the copy I purchased from the Daytona-Superbird Auto Club many years ago. These are still available
from DSAC and show up on Ebay from time to time. In addition to 77 pages of Superbird serial numbers, there are a dozen
or so other documents describing aspects of the Superbird project. This is a must have for any Superbird Enthusiast.
This set of documents
is just one of many available from DSAC. Also available is one of the aerodynamic engineering studies and a copy of
the Superbird-only parts list that was supposed to be mailed to the first owner of each car. The Superbird-only parts
list is more extensive than the one found in the 1970 Mopar Parts Catalog used by the dealerships. It has a number of
hand-drawn illustrations (and a few part number errors).
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Click Here To Go To The DSAC Homepage www.superbirdclub.com
PAGE/SHEET 1 of the NASCAR Serial Number List
For those
of you who have not seen the list, here is the first page. You can see it contains 25 entries. The entries are
not in order by VIN code. They are, instead, in a seemingly random order. The only consistency is the "Date
Received". If there is an order to the list, this is it. This list is a chronological register of the date
a Superbird was received at the Clairpointe sub-assembly plant to be fitted with the nosecone, rear wing and decals.
For those of us who did not work the Lynch Road assembly line, we tend to picture a robot-perfect
mechanized situation where a perfect car with the VIN code of, say, 123456 was followed out the door by the next perfect car
123457. I am sure this vision would evoke gales of laughter from anyone who has actually worked in an assembly line
situation. It is a much more flowing, imperfect dance where only the end goal of "git-er-done" is focused
upon.
Although all Superbirds were assigned the assembly date of B30 or November
30th, 1969, they left the Lynch Road Plant for the Clairpointe Plant starting 10/17/69 and ending 12/16/69.
THE FORM ON WHICH THE LIST IS PRINTED
While this seems to fall in the "So What" category, it does provide some insight into the
list. The photo to the right is an enlargement of the form number found in the upper left corner of each sheet.
Also in the photo is the shadow of the three ring binder hole. The data on the sheets was typed onto a pre-printed spreadsheet
style form and put into a binder. This becomes a clue when one is trying to figure out how all the anomalies ended up
in the data.
SHEET/PAGE 54 CHANGE IN PHOTOCOPYING
For some reason, whomever was making the first photocopy of the list decided to change the settings
on their copy machine. That gives the remaining sheets the appearance of having larger print or using a different form
for recording the data. The form is the same.
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SHEET/PAGE 77
The
last page of Superbird serial numbers contains 20 entries. This brings the total number of entries in the list up to
the NASCAR required 1920. Some of the handwritten notes found on the list are original to the list. The handwritten
numbers next to VIN numbers and the box with totals were not on the original list. These were entered by someone attempting
to answer the often asked question: "How many Superbirds were built with each of the three engine options?"
Of course, the accuracy of their totals depends upon the accuracy of the list itself. And, the totals do not include
any Superbirds built that are not on the list. It records 1162 4-Barrel cars (U Code), 665 6-Barrel cars (V Code),
and 93 Hemi cars (R Code). I believe the list provides a reasonably accurate representation of the Percentages
of cars produced with each engine even if it does not answer exactly the question of quantity. Even with all the apparent
mistakes in the list, the NASCAR list accurately represents an overwhelming majority of the cars built.
So, the percentages are as follows:
U Code 440-4 Cars 60.52%
V
Code 440-6 Cars 34.64%
R Code Hemi Cars
04.84%
