I'm in contact with a woman in the are who is willing to give me a '60 544. The catch is the car doesn't have a title and was last registered 20 years ago in alabama. The car was her deceased brothers and she doesn't know anything about the car. I've never had a 544 although I have 220 and used to have 142E.
I told her that the VIN was under the hood, on the driver side, on top of the brake and clutch pedal houseing, is this correct? Where is the VIN plate on this car?

Colin Spikes

The VIN for my '60 is on the passenger side also, top line of the plate.
The tag on the driver's side is the body number.
The two numbers are most likely close, but not the same.
My understanding is the body number should not be used as the VIN.
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'60 544, '68 220S, '70 145S, '72 144E, '86 745T

My experience is that the ID plate on the passenger side, that looks like it would be the VIN plate is actually just the chasis code, paint and upholstery codes.
The VIN is acually stamped into the body over on the driver's side, by the fuse block, and is usually hard to read as it was stamped before the body was painted, therefore filled with paint.

Hi All
My 67 Duett agrees with this. Number is stamped into the firewall(scuttle) just above the heater. It does have a star stamped in as well.

Attached plate on the carb/passenger side of the firewall has upholstery and original color codes.
Further, there is a body tag screwed to the firewall, prior to painting and is painted over in body color. Mine is near the aluminum and black plate on the firewall.

My Morgan is much earlier (1951) and uses the engine # as the VIN #. As was previously said, this was much more common "in the old days".

Bob

My VIN number is on a plate on the passenger side of the vehicle in the engine compartment, top left and it will be the chassis number that is the VIN number.

Passenger firewall.
BTW, there is no " brake and clutch pedal houseing" on a 544.

OK, usually I just read along, but now I have to jump in!! I just went through this on my 1957 444 model K, and also with several other PV544s. Sooner or later I'm going to have to do the DMV dance if I want to sell my Duett. Please correct me if someone knows for sure, BUT it's my belief that the PV444s (and Duetts) built before, say 1961 or 62 DID NOT HAVE STAMPED IN VIN's. The only readily identifiable number was on the aluminum tag, mounted with 4 small screws to the firewall in front of the passenger (i.e. the right side of the car). The number in question is the second one down, in the space marked "Chs. Nr.". This is a misnomer on a unibody PV sedan, but Volvos are curious cars. The number above it, "TYP" is the build specification; model (444/445/544/210, etc.), market (08 is the North America code). On B-16 PV544s, sometimes the series letter was used (A or B), followed by the year (1957/1958/1959, and so on).The metal tag which is screwed, with 2 screws, onto the left front longitudinal support member (AKA "frame rail"), in front of the driver, is the body number tag, and is usually about 300, or so numbers different than the "Chs. Nr.". I have never seen them be the same number. But, I have seen the body number used on a title as the VIN. WRONG!!!

To continue. On my California title is a number which does not match with the number on the second line of the aluminum plate. BIG PROBLEM. BUT, looking in the offical (crumbling) workshop manual, I see that sometimes the ENGINE number is used instead of the "Chs. Nr." on the aluminum plate. When I looked up under the exhaust manifold, there was an even smaller aluminum tag, secured with 2 tiny brass rivets, which had the 4 digit number found on my California title. BIG RELIEF!! (this is a B-14 engine, but the stamped in number on a B-16 should be used the same way). A friend who has been a classic car dealer for years told me that the DMV often did this with pre-war, and oddball cars, so it's not unheard of for the engine number to be the VIN. What happens should the
engine get swapped out is anyones guess.

Now, on the various B-18 PV544s, (1962 through 1966; models C through G beginning w/ VIN 330100), I seem to remember always finding a stamped-in number, ON THE LEFT (driver's) SIDE OF THE FIREWALL, (either near the coil, or near the fusebox, I forget exactly; don't have a PV544 nearby) which corresponded with the 6 digit "Chs. Nr." on the aluminum firewall plate. This stamped in number was flanked by a stamped in star(*). I guess so no shenanigans could occur. I'm not sure if the B-18 Duetts were any different, probably not. A possible urban myth tells me that on some PVs or Duetts, the actual VIN was also STAMPED on the front crossmember which supports the radiator. Any confirmations?

This all appears to be a matter of great confusion because for some reason Volvo didn't put those VIN permanently into the metal. Add to this the fact that N.American Volvo dealers and/or importers often titled the cars only as they were sold, not by when they were built. So a car built in, say May of 1958, but not sold to its first U.S. retail customer until February of 1959 would be titled by the dealer as a 1959, or even as a 1960 Volvo. So, in the end, the only real way to find out just when your PV was built is to check the VIN, AKA "Chs. Nr." with a serial number list. The Round Fender Register is a good organization to join for all these little secrets of PV ownership. All I can tell you all is that coming up against official scrutiny and doubt about your cars VIN will bring your Volvo fun to a SCREECHING HALT!! And if you are unlucky enough to be standing at the counter across from Homer Simpson's sisters-in-law (Selma and ?)then you're dead in the water. You can't go forwards, backwards, or sideways because there are no final authorities on this, and the DMV doesn't care. For all they know, you've been stealing old Volvos and swapping out the VINs. My local Volvo dealers are completely clueless. H@$#, they don't even recognize a carburator anymore!

I think that my next move is to contact a private registration service, one which can officially verify VINs , and only then go to the DMV. It's a serious pain in the ___ to get your titles, registrations, insurance stuff straightened out with the correct VIN, but it can really come back to bite you, believe me!! If anyone out there has stuck with me on this ramble, and has any clearer insight, please comment, because nothing, but nothing scares away a potential buyer than the whisper of shaky paperwork.