[59plymouth] RE: "Tiffany-touch" medallions

Thanks, Bernie, I enjoyed your comments -- and took the liberty of posting them to the list. I like the idea of "trivia contest". Who else can identify two other differences on California built cars?

Dan

P.S. Faulkner was also from the "left coast"

-----Original Message-----
From: Bernie & Carol [mailto:autumn@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]
Sent: Saturday, April 10, 2004 10:38 AM
To: dan@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: "Tiffany-touch" medallions

Good morning, Dan

See you were up bright and early by your posting time on this topic (Tiffany-touch is how these medallions were referred to in early advertising if I correctly remember my notes.)

One quick way to verify correct side of vehicle placement is by the last digit of the part number, which is embossed on the back side of these medallions. Even numbers go on the right (passenger side) while odd numbers go on the left, driver's side - Chrysler had really simple to understand coding on a lot of things back in the good old days. Now that you mention it your problem is most likely easily solved with a reversal. There wasn't any weather stripping under these as I remember... took mine off and put them in storage 30 years ago, but they were already lightly pitted then. Bought more pitted ones since.

As you well know these medallions tended to pit real fast - perhaps this could be a good restoration topic for the forum, who's got the magic touch (or a real good supply of un-pitted medallions?)

... Thought I'd point out that certain assembly plants did some things different than the others. Sometime the differences are called out in the service manual or parts books, but sometimes its plain old observations, getting several different cars to show the same feature for confirmation.

In this case I'm referring to the design of the driver's pedals, clutch, brake, and accelerator - All California built cars that I've seen, in pictures and in person, have a different style to these pedals - a horizontal series of lines or grooves or whatever they should be called. All other locations have the dots or "mini suction cup" design. Must have been due to local sourcing of certain parts.

Two quick examples show in links on your site - The black car currently on eBay has the California gas pedal and the other style brake and clutch. The red (museum or showroom located) car from Matthew Keij's post also has California pedals - boy, that one is sharp, but looks like a recent resto.

Your site is doing a good job of ferreting out heretofore unknown cars, at least not known to me, and I thought I had a good idea where most were. Learning more and more everyday.

Thanks again, hope all my blurbs aren't too boring or lecturing, I find these differences interesting. PS there are at least two other differences on Cal-built cars, maybe we should do a trivia contest.