Number stamped on front bodywork

[Qldelsie]

I have my VIN no on both the chassis under the rear seat and on the metal plate - 310 210 5131. I have my engine number T0725532. I even have the gearbox cases numbers, but they aren't relevant here. But in the front spare wheel well, up by the washer bottle, the following letters are stamped - 312 0764. See photo.
What does this number signify / refer to ?
I have searched the archives but can't find any reference to this, although I am certain I have seen something previously.
Tx

[Qldelsie]

Really ? No one knows what this number is ???
I am surprised !
G

[RedSquare]

Sorry - no help from me. But at least you know someone read this...

[Qldelsie]

[74westy]

It maybe an Australian only number. My fasty has a similar one and it's originally from Aus.

Craig
_________________
1974 Westfalia 1800 AW Stock, Twin 34PDSIT
1970 Type 3 Fastback 1600TL Automatic

[Bobnotch]

[Qldelsie]

Here's a photo of my VIN plate, which is located on the RH side, in the same place as that stamping but on the opposite side.
Interestingly you can see that the manufacturer is listed as Motor Producers Limited. MPL was an Australian company formed to handle the import / completion of CKD cars / sale of not only VW's but also Datsun and Volvo cars, and in 1976 the site was sold to Nissan.
What I find interesting it that my VIN plate shows a production date of "4/70", but the stamped number of "312 0764" doesn't really match that - 3rd December ? March 12th ? ??? Does 0764 mean this car was number 764 of Fastbacks sold in Australia ?
All part of the wonderful mystery of a 50 year old VW that we may never know the answer to !!
G

[t3kg]

312 is just the designation for a RHD fastback.

The "312 0764" stamped plate is typical of Australian assembled Type 3s.
Here's are some Australian panel van assembly number plates:

_________________
5/62 343
I WAS THERE! The 2017 Type 3 Rally / September 29–October 1 / Cayucos, CA
2014: The 2014 Type 3 Rally / October 3–5 / Cayucos, CA
2011: 50 Years of the VW Type 3 / September 29–October 1 / California Central Coast

[DQDan]

My 69 SB has one too, left of my ID tag.

[KTPhil]

That's a different plate, for the body paint and date codes:

[Qldelsie]

[t3kg]

I think probably so.
_________________
5/62 343
I WAS THERE! The 2017 Type 3 Rally / September 29–October 1 / Cayucos, CA
2014: The 2014 Type 3 Rally / October 3–5 / Cayucos, CA
2011: 50 Years of the VW Type 3 / September 29–October 1 / California Central Coast

[Qldelsie]

I made an enquiry to Club VeeBub in Sydney, and today received the following extremely helpful reply from their Editor, and I paste it below because it may be of interest to those who like to know these things :-
Quote :-

"The additional number on the scuttle panel is a body number, and doesn't mean anything.

From 1960 to 1968, Volkswagens were fully manufactured in the Melbourne factory, stamped from Australian steel and, from 1966, even having the engines cast locally. This includes the Type 3 range from 1963. However VW Australasia lost money on this level of Australian content, as their local sales were never enough to cover the set-up and production costs. Especially after Japanese competition increased from the early '60s and VW sales halved from 1964 to 1967.

So in 1968 local manufacturing ended and the factory was converted back to CKD assembly only - putting cars together from German kits, and adding only locally-made tyres, batteries, paint etc.

Your Type 3 was welded together in Melbourne from German-made panels, and the number you've spotted would have been part of the assembly kit. The way it worked was not one crate of parts for one car - but rather around 12 crates of parts to make 10 cars. One container might have contained 10 roof panels, 10 left doors, 10 bonnets etc. So the parts had numbers on them to allow tracking during the assembly process.

I suspect the '312' or '31' segment denotes the body panels as Type 3, while the rest is just a number. Maybe the 764th kit shipped to Australia that year? or the 20,764th kit made in Germany that year? Who knows.

Only 2,938 VW 1600s were sold in Australia in 1970, and 16,545 VWs of all types in total. All these annual sales figures are on our website, on the history pages, if you're interested.

Kombis of that time have a similar body number - they are on a bit of steel ribbon tack-welded onto the engine support panel, right next to the actual chassis number. This causes endless confusion for new enthusiasts - and sometimes the authorities too.

Anyway, it's an interesting historical footnote, but nothing more."
Unquote.