Question for 54 Plymouth guru's

[BobT-47P15]

Wrote down the numbers on the engine, body tag on firewall and v i n tag on driver's door post. Can anyone tell me what they indicate??

Engine: P25 442397 (has a diamond before numbers....was told that indicates a 230)

Firewall body tag: 500-86485 Made in Detroit

V I N on doorpost: 138 29 311

Odometer shows 60,935 (don't know if it's correct)

Says "power steering" on center cap of steering wheel.

Savoy with tinted glass, windshield washers, power steering,

powerflite, factory style wire wheels.

[Young Ed]

Bob I don't know what the #s mean but that is a well optioned car. Got it running yet? I wonder if your power steering got you a unique wheel? Or if its just the center thats different?

[Plymouthy Adams]

54 was indeed a first year for Plymouth Power sterring..also was optional power brakes...look for the pump to be mounted behind the generator...the horn button is the only reference on the car indicating PS without looking under the hood. As the horn button is the push and twist off variety...changing this would be a few seconds job at max and could very well have been put on by a PO. Yes the diamond and the serial number of the engine states 230 but without the automatic tranny your gear ratio is more than not 3.9 and not the 3.73 By looking at the pictures of this car when posted on e-bay..I think the car had both of the appearance packages plus a few other trim options...the tail fins and the rocker trim were extras as I recall also..

Edit...just saw Powerflite in your list...you have the 3.73 rear gear..that is a very nicely optioned Savoy..

Edited August 27, 2012 by Tim Adams

[BobT-47P15]

Those wheels are just like the ones I had back in the 70s....painted with chrome center cap. Same cap as the chromed wire type.

Don't know if the power steering had any bearing on anything or not.

It also has radio and cigarette lighter.

The antenna appears to be original.....goes down real short like the one on the convert. (Might have to keep that and replace with a universal.)

They had saved the washer jar and holder which is good. Mounting screws are in the jar.

[Normspeed]

I think the power steering models had a different steering wheel. There was one on ebay recently. I couldn't tell from the photo what was different though.

[Plymouthy Adams]

There are three different wheel/horn rings for the 54...One three spoker with a very nice ornate horn ring that follow the spokes. The other is a two spoke that is roughly at 4 and 8 on the clock...there are two horn rings for this wheel...one is the common two bar that has no ring and the other has the two bars and full horn ring...I will take one of the later if you have it...

[Frank M.]

Hi Bob. The firewall no, 500 probably refers to a 4 dr. style. the nos. after would indicate its sequence in manuf. I also would bet the pillar VIN no. means the car was Detroit assembled. The diamond ahead of the eng. no. MAY mean a 230,but I honestly dont know about that. Darrell Davis is the Tech on 54s, and he-being a retired senior V.P. of Chrysler STILL has access to info that is hard to find. Frank

[Norm's Coupe]

Bob,

You're not parting that car are you? From the pictures, the rust just looks like surface rust. Nice straight body too. Since you didn't pay that much for the car, for about $4,000 or $5,000 spread out over a couple of years, you could have a nice looking and running driver. That's if you did all or most of the work yourself.

[Normspeed]

Being that it's so well optioned, it would be interesting to try and get the build sheet from Chrysler. I would also keep an eye out for any paperwork from the factory, like under the rear seat.

[Plymouthy Adams]

Hope he does not part this car out...it is a very nicely optioned car..Best part of the Savoy for 54 is the very few pieces of pot metal on the car..rear bezels, hood ornament and badge surround, headlight doors, fender nameplates, grille bumperettes, rear fins if equipted and rear plymouth nameplate..rest is stainless and boy is there a lot of stainless trim..this was the marketing ploy to boost sales, dress the car to the nines and still have it into the entry level of the line up...Plymouth being the entry level and Savoy being the mid line car..

Bob, does your car have the front vent glass shields, door glass rain sheilds and rocker trim? I have seen a couple of these car in the past few months with the contenential kits also...nt hot on those but a very rare option. Also is there a clock on your car? The original style radio in 54 is identical in appearance to the 53 except that a stock 54 radio has the CD indicators on the dial...53 did not..another 54 first...even if you have an aftermarket radio....the CD should be visable, Bill Willards Plaza wagon is complete with a period correct aftermarket radio..also two tone cars in the later part of 54 did in fact get 55 colors also in a bid to boost sales.

[BobT-47P15]

Tim, it does have power steering.....attached to rear of generator.

Here is a pic of the steering wheel, or what's left of it. You can see the radio in this pic. Looks to me like the factory original item.

Has the little chrome rain shields at top of the wing window.

Not going to part it out. Will try to get it to run, but will keep the wheels and maybe the antenna. Will probably just re-sell it as the wifey ain't too happy about it. Says the convert needs to be finished before any new projects. That means the interior needs re-done, mainly. I still want to put in the overdrive trans and some dual pipes.

The body is real straight, except some small dents in rockers. Rust is just surface stuff. The chrome is really in good shape for sitting outside all those

years. Some of the stainless, especially the piece coming off the grille on right side, is bent up or dinged. Some is OK.

Floors and trunk floor pretty good, too.

[Plymouthy Adams]

Hey Bob..that be the original PS set up for usre..the factory radio is dead on as it is a CD faceplate unit...the antennea is always nice and that looks like it telescopes nicely also...the trim appears to have taken a hit here and there...hard stuff to come by at times..some 4 door stuff not so hard..

You can see in ths above shot that the mirror base mounts in such a fashion that the flat of the mirror is aligned at the seam of the beltline moulding and forward trim final. You have the more common sterring wheel and horn ring..I would like to find one of them even as I think it is equally as nice as the 2 spoker with ring. The rain shields are properly affixed with rivets...have studied GM of that period and they look identical as the Plymouth..also riveted on.

The textured paint on the dash is sharp isn't it..faux vinyl appearance..there is a lot of stuff on the 54 that is just "refined" compared to earlier years...the more I study and read on these the more I like them. The one car at the POC meet threw me for a loop..it was a business coupe, Plaza series..had no back seat so no arm rests either...the floor mat was rubber and extended to the bottom of the divider panel..the rear croos hump for the axle had the spare mount bracket affixed for the spare tire and it mounted passenger side of the back panel. the Jack still stored in the trunk...no seat latches on the floor pan which is expected but what I saw and did not expect to see was that the spare tire well was still affixed to the car only covered and the spare tire bracket and upper brace was still in the trunk also....more like an after thought for a business coupe than actual seperate model. Of the couple Plaza cars i saw that weekend, I was amazed that Plymouth had plastic cast knobs and plastic gravel shields..would have though this would cost more to have two distinct lines of trim.

[Norm's Coupe]

Tim, do you know for sure that the textured paint on the dash is original? Reason I ask is because the 53 Belvidere my brother had in 1960 had nice smooth shinny paint on the dash. Actually, I like that better, think it looks sharp when shined up nice. My 57 Ford and 58 Chevy also had smooth shinny paint on them. Didn't get a textured paint job on the dash until my 64 Chevelle and 65 Dodge.

Bob,

My wife says the same thing every time I mention possibly picking up another car. Says, "Finish the one you have first". You know in your mind they ARE right. However, we seem to have flawed thinking. At any rate, you got that at a good price, so I'd hang onto it and slowly fix it up. After all, your convertible doesn't need that much, then what will you have to work on. Could point that out to the wife. Probably won't help though.

[Plymouthy Adams]

yessir..I read that somewhere and have made a point to verify in every car I come across...not that I am keeping a data base mind you..but reading a source is just a scource and field data helps to bear written statements true or not true..

[Young Ed]

99% sure dads 54 has the same color textured dash in it. Not surprised to hear chevy was way behind.

[greg g]

CD's on the radio dial!!!! Wow they were really ahead of the curve.....OH!! Wait back then CD meant civil defense and the lables lined up with where the Embergency Broadcasting stations were supposed to be. Sorry must been ducking and covering under my wooden desk a bit too long.

What were those frequencys???

[BobT-47P15]

This used 54 Plymouth 3 spoke steering wheel just sold on ebay for $267 plus whatever the shipping was. Had 14 bids on it.

[Plymouthy Adams]

There are about three serious 54 parts buyers on the bay right now...driving prices through the ceiling but hey...its a free world..I need to go back and look closer at the the two parts car I have found...when I was there last was nbot looking for these items...

[JerseyHarold]

From what I've seen, postwar Mopar into the fifties seem to be 'waking up' as far as popularity is concerned.

Alos, I saw a nice original '54 Savoy in original light green rolling down the highway today. Looked pretty good!

[BobT-47P15]

After our company for supper left, I took the flashlight out to the Plym to look at the radio dial for the CD markings, and at the dash finish.

It has two CD triangles....one between 6 and 7, closer to the 7; and another just after the 12. Don't know what stations those represent. There is also a tone control marked Voice, Music, and Mellow....the words show in a

vertical window.

The dash does have a fine grain finish on it.

Also looked at the rockers......do not appear to have ever had trim pieces on them.

The hood ornament is in real good condition, as are the chrome fins on rear fenders, and trunk handle. Tail lights have pitting.

The door handles greatly resemble those on a P15.

[BobT-47P15]

[BobT-47P15]

1954 MODEL P-25

Black 206

Modesto Blue (Light) 22-7513

Avalon Blue Metallic (Dark) 22-7514

Berkeley Green (Light) 22-7515

Shasta Green Metallic (Dark) 22-7517

Pasadena Grey (Light) 22-7518

Cascade Gray (Medium) 22-7519

Pomona Beige (Light) 22-7520

Mohave Brown Metallic (Med.) 22-7521

San Diego Gold (light) 22-7523

San Pedro Blue (Light) 22-7524

San Leandro Ivory 22-7525

San Gabriel Green 22-7526

Santa Rosa Coal (Light) 22-7527

So.....mine must be Berkeley Green top with Shasta Green Metallic body.

(I think it probably was metallic when new)

No clue what San Gabriel Green is.

[BobT-47P15]

Link to a spec sheet for 1954 Plymouth Savoys.

http://www.conceptcarz.com/vehicle/z2069/Plymouth_Savoy/default.aspx

Contents of that list below:

1954 Plymouth Savoy

Year 1954

Make Plymouth

Model Savoy

Engine Location Front

Drive Type Rear Wheel

Weight 3000 lbs | 1360.8 kg

Engine

Engine Configuration S

Cylinders 6

Aspiration/Induction Normal

Displacement 3773.00 cc | 230.2 cu in. | 3.8 L.

Valves 12 valves.

2 valves per cylinder.

Horsepower 110.00 BHP (81 KW) @ 3600.00 RPM

Torque 190.00 Ft-Lbs (257.6 NM) @ 1600.00 RPM

HP to Weight Ratio 27.3 LB / HP (Vehicles with similar ratio)

HP / Liter 28.9 BHP / Liter

Bore 3.25 in | 82.6 mm.

Stroke 4.63 in | 117.6 mm.

Compression Ratio 7.25:1

Vehicles with similar horsepower and weight

Transmission Information

Gears 3

Transmission Manual

Final Drive 3.90:1

Dimensions

Seating Capacity 6

Exterior

Length 193.501 in | 4914.9 mm.

Width 73.501 in | 1866.9 mm.

Height 61.701 in | 1567.2 mm.

Wheelbase 114.001 in | 2895.6 mm.

Vehicles with similar dimensions

Link to an ad for a 54 Savoy parts car. Seems to have the paint worn off about like mine. Click on pics to enlarge.

http://ads.seriouswheels.com/listing/2437/PARTS_1954_PLYMOUTH_SAVOY_4DR_SEDAN.html

They apparently make reproduction front floor pans for a 54 Plymouth

Link to the ad. http://www.rcarfabrications.com/catalog.aspx?storename=rcar&DeptID=212923&ItemID=9430955&detail=1

There was quite a bit of difference between the production sedan and the concept car, the 1954 Plymouth Belmont.....

[vanbuskirk]

It had one option - the heater. I have added the hubcaps, radio, and overdrive. Bob

http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v136/vanbuskirk/?action=view&current=54front2.jpg

[greg g]

Here are the color chops from the autro color library.

http://www.tcpglobal.com/aclchip.aspx?image=1954-plymouth-pg01.jpg