Hi all, after a bit of info please if somebody can help. I have an HK81837 which i purchased in pieces about 20 years ago. Im wondering where all the date codes are that i can check to see how original the car is. I have found the numbers on the steering box and x-member out rigger. The car was sand blasted under the bonnet when i got it, so the date on the end of the steering column is long gone. I have several diffs, and gear boxes that i have collected over the years and have moved and shifted from place to place. I think i know which one of each was with the car originally but 20 years is a long time ago so not 100% certain anymore. Thanks in advance for any help. Cheers

Ok, thanks. I have a collection of parts that includes a few dash's a couple of booster set ups, 3 or 4 heater boxes as well. It didnt have the original wheels on it when i got it. Underneath the firewall paint??? So the gearbox date is on the side cover where the linkages go on??
Does the diff have a date on it? What sort of dates should i be looking for anyway, ie how far apart and what date comes first. steering box or gearbox or??? The date on the steering box is 9M8 and on the x member outrigger it looks like 4 m 8.

Ok thanks. What dates should i be looking for on the dash and heater box etc?

The gearbox stamp is a 4 character date code. It is stamped on the main case below the reverse shift linkage point, and not the shift plate. As it was almost certainly done in the US it could pre date the car build date by up to 6 months.
The model code and other build information was written on the bare metal firewall in texta and the xylene from the texta survives etch prime, red oxide and body colour painting and baking. It can often be seen after the paint is stripped, although sandblasting may have removed it. The build date may also be there.
You may find a light date stamp on the axle tubes, but not always. The HK differential is different from HT and HG in several ways.
As Terry and Byron have said, the actual build date may differ by several weeks from the parts dates and the engine number will be the best indication of build date, as will the information from the body tags.

Edited by user Sunday, 2 October 2016 9:48:31 AM(UTC)  | Reason: Not specified

Yes.

You can, there is no secrets in them. You can always take the numbers away later by editing the post.

Initially I can tell you (assuming this is the original engine for the car) that you have a Dandenong assembled car that has a Canadian (McKinnon Industries) 327ci Chevrolet design small block engine (not a true Chevrolet engine as not built in a Chevrolet engine factory). Engine was assembled and completed on 22nd October 1968. It may be a full "type 2" engine car, or it may be (for want of a better expression) one of the so called "type 1.5" engine installations that were a bit of a hybrid of "type1" engine and "type2" engine installations. I'll have to defer to the guru on this one, so give me a few days and i'll find out where it sits. Normally after VIN 81837KJ15083x you'll find full type 2 engine installations.

Your glass will also be date coded.
Look for the dot above the 8TH letter in the word ARMOURGLAS, 8th letter is 1968
The dot under the word SAFETY will indicate the 1/4 of that year.
S = 1st quarter and F = 3rd quarter etc.

Ben says this engine number is right at the first appearance of the Canadian 327 V8 in GTS327, somewhere probably in the first 5 or so of them at Dandenong. Which means it is a hybrid car with some first type engine stuff and some second type stuff. Do you have a carby with it?

Guess for chassis number is between HK40500MM and HK40700MM, could easily be HK4058xMM. Nailing the PSN is a lot harder.

The steering box date aligns perfectly with the engine number for HK GTS327 fitment in late December 1968.

My 327 car was built at Dandenong a few days after yours I think.

My car is firewall chassis number HK41102MM and thats late December into early January apparently.

My gearbox dosent have a date code stamped on it but the build dates cast into the gearbox is E228 and on the extension housing is E238.
Gearbox is unpainted bare metal.

Brake booster is inline I think only the very early ones were offset werent they?

I can help you out with alot of the details my car was 95% untouched.