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DavidG · 01-31-2019, 04:14 PM

Mike,

Like yourself, I like to keep things simple when it comes to documentation. But, life is not always simple. I've never looked at any Company letters to the assembly plants after the '39 model year, but in each of the eight preceding model years' letters there is normally a lengthy letter pertaining to paint for fleet customers. In those letters, depending on the size of the fleet, the sky was the limit when it came to paint colors available to fleets, including right down to complete chassis being painted other than black. (The fleet customer could even furnish their own paint subject to its approval for use by Ford engineering.) And those letters also cover cars as well as commercial vehicles and trucks. Further, a fleet was defined as a group of vehicles as low as six in number.

No doubt you've encountered some photos in the archives showing extreme examples of fleet vehicles' paint jobs with colors that in no way came from the list of standard commercial vehicles.

So perhaps we need to leave the door open just a tiny crack in case someone shows up on the concourse with documented proof that their '40 coupe or sedan was originally part of the XYZ Company fleet and painted in the documented company colors, none of which appear on the standard list.

01-31-2019, 04:14 PM	#13
DavidG Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: southeastern Michigan Posts: 10,101	Re: 12 colors available in 1940 Mike, Like yourself, I like to keep things simple when it comes to documentation. But, life is not always simple. I've never looked at any Company letters to the assembly plants after the '39 model year, but in each of the eight preceding model years' letters there is normally a lengthy letter pertaining to paint for fleet customers. In those letters, depending on the size of the fleet, the sky was the limit when it came to paint colors available to fleets, including right down to complete chassis being painted other than black. (The fleet customer could even furnish their own paint subject to its approval for use by Ford engineering.) And those letters also cover cars as well as commercial vehicles and trucks. Further, a fleet was defined as a group of vehicles as low as six in number. No doubt you've encountered some photos in the archives showing extreme examples of fleet vehicles' paint jobs with colors that in no way came from the list of standard commercial vehicles. So perhaps we need to leave the door open just a tiny crack in case someone shows up on the concourse with documented proof that their '40 coupe or sedan was originally part of the XYZ Company fleet and painted in the documented company colors, none of which appear on the standard list.