TR2/3/3A question about 1958 TR3a engine number, body number, etc

[2billydavies]

Hi guys... silly question.
Rebuilding my TR3a engine and noticed a few things about the engine numbers.

Should the engine number and the number on the tag to the left of the battery be the same? My engine number is: TS37938E but the ID tag next to to the battery is: TS37514.
does this mean the engine in my car is not the original? This car has been in my family for 30+ years.... not sure who had it before that.

Thanks!

 

[tinman58]

TS 37154 is your vin number. TS37938 is the engine number and they won't match. They should be close to each other. I think within a few hundred. I may be wrong. I would bet that that is the original engine.
P.S. My vin number is TS37148 Our TR3's were made within a few days of each other.

 

[Geo Hahn]

Your numbers are pretty close, many original numbers are much farther apart.

I believe engine numbers were generally higher than commission numbers because Standard sold engines outright. For example, many went to Morgan.

 

[2billydavies]

oh wow.... makes sense now. thanks a ton guys... awesome.

 

[6TTR3A]

2billydavies,
TS37514 was built on or about 16 October 1958.
Engine numbers of that era were running about 400-450
ahead of Comm numbers, so a 414 difference would suggest
it's the original engine.
A British Heritage build certificate would confirm those numbers.
Frank

 

[Rayswt]

Hi Frank
cool information on build dates.
it is hard to read all of my engine number bug for sure ts82395 E or for Sure TS82xxx E
the commission number says TS 82346 L, with a body number Tsf1251 on the brass plate above battery

I know it is late in production, but why would tsf number be so very different?

any thoughts?

 

[Andrew Mace]

Hi Frank
cool information on build dates.
it is hard to read all of my engine number bug for sure ts82395 E or for Sure TS82xxx E
the commission number says TS 82346 L, with a body number Tsf1251 on the brass plate above battery

I know it is late in production, but why would tsf number be so very different?

any thoughts?

Yeah, but maybe not all good?

TS82346L is quite late in 3A production, and that just might explain(?) why your car has a 3B body number? Or it might not (hence the "not all good" comment)! Any evidence that either body number plate or commission number plate was changed? I've seen very few extremely late 3A cars, so I've little to go by. Years ago, someone in the local club had a purportedly original very, very late 3A with (again purportedly original and extremely low) TSF engine serial number! As they say, anything is possible!

 

[Rayswt]

Andrew,

I did read somewhere that later tr3's were "put together with spares were left over in the factory".
The commision plate is for sure orig, the brass plate could be, it had enough paint on it till I mistakenly cleaned it up.

Either way she is fun to drive!