when was my caravan built?

serial number and their allocation
You can determine the age of the caravan from the serial numbers, as we have used various methods of allocating serial numbers to the caravans over the years, this section gives details of these and explains how the build number and approximate date of manufacture can be derived from a serial number.

from 1932 to 1959 inclusive
A 2 to 6 digit serial number was allocated to each caravan. The first 1 or 2 digits being the build number, these ran from 1 up to 99 before starting again at 1.

The build numbers originally ran through one model i.e. Continentals ran through from 1 - 99 and Coronets the same, so it was possible to have two different models but both with the same serial number in the factory at the same time i.e. Coronet number 3 and Continental number 3. So this system was changed in the 1960 and build numbers ran from 1 - 99 irrespective of model type.

Build numbers are not related to any particular time period i.e. caravan number 1 is not necessarily the first caravan built in a particular year. The build numbers are simply to help distinguish each caravan whilst it is being built. For the first few years of production this build number was the only form of identification.

However, for the late 1940’s another 2-4 digits were added, of these extra digits, the second 1 and 2 digits provide the month of manufacture and the last 2 digits provide the year of manufacture.

So, for instance caravan number 1249 would be van number 1, built in February 1949, and number 721158 would be van number 72 built in November 1958. To save confusion, from the late 1950’s the months upto and including September were prefixed with a "0" and the build numbers from 1 - 9 were prefixed with a "0" i.e. 020959 would be van number 2 built in September 1959.

from 1960 to 1991 inclusive
In 1960 the numbering system changed slightly to give a coded year of manufacture.

For caravans built from 1960 - 1991 inclusive, the build number is shown as the last two digits and the month of manufacture is given by the centre two digits. The year of manufacture is coded, but can be quickly worked out by deducting the last digit of the serial number from the number which is made up of the first two digits at the front of the serial number.

Take for instance number 860979. This would be build number 79 (last two digits) built in September (middle two digits) 1977 (first two digits 86 minus the last digit 9 = 77).

It is important to stress this gives the approximate date of manufacture and not necessarily the model year.

From the mid 1980’s Model years ran from August /September so a 1988 model caravan could have been built anytime between August/September 1987 through to August/September 1988 (caravans built for shows, exhibitions or publicity purposes - brochure photography etc., may have been built earlier and therefore have an earlier date of manufacture, but these caravans would not be released from the factory until the new model year officially started).

Upto the mid 1980’s model years tended to coincide with calendar years. To prevent confusion over model years from 1988 a new Alpha numeric 4 figure prefix was added to the usual 6 figure serial number, this included a manufacturers code (CL) together with the model year, for instance CL90960827 would be build number 27, built in August 1989, and it would be a 1990 model. This alpha numeric prefix was stamped with either letters or numbers leading the code i.e. CL90 or 90CL.

from 1992 onwards
As almost every manufacturer had a different numbering system, and to try to combat the growing number of caravan thefts, the Caravan Industry decided to adopt a universal numbering system . The VIN (Vehicle Identification Numbers) System has been employed from 1992 onwards.

The VIN system is a 17 character International Standard that specifies the content and structure of a vehicle identification number in order to establish, on a world-wide basis, a uniform identification numbering system for road vehicles and their trailers.

This 17 alpha-numeric code provides the following information:

• Manufacturer & Country of origin
• Single or Twin axle
• Model year
• Build number

The first part of a VIN is known as the WMI code (World Manufacturer Identifier) and comprises of three characters. The first two characters designate the country of origin and the type of product. The third character identifies the manufacturer and has been allocated by the National Caravan Council.

The WMI code for Carlight is SGC. The next character is either "S" or "T" which denotes either single (S) or twin (T) axle. The next three characters are all zeros on any Carlight Model. The next two characters are the N.C.C. manufacturers codes for Carlight which is CL. The next character shows the model year in accordance with the following VIN code:

The next four characters comprise of a number allocated by the factory; 2356, and then the build number makes up the last three characters. So for instance a VIN number of SGCS000CLT2356010 would show the caravan as a single axle 1996 model build number 10.

where to find the serial / VIN number
Serial numbers are normally found stamped on the caravan (and later models the VIN number is etched on the caravan windows) in the following positions:

From 1932 - 1991 the serial number was stamped on a small plate fixed to the exterior side panel immediately behind the main entrance door, (on two door caravans behind the nearside door).

From 1960 - 1986 the number was also often (but not always) stamped on the A frame beneath the A frame cover, the usual position was either on the nearside leg (on the outside face) of the A frame or at the head of the A frame where the two legs were joined by a flat steel plate.

From 1987 UNTIL 1991 the serial number was stamped on the nearside leg of the A frame (on the outside face) immediately to the rear of the A frame cover. (So it was visible with the A frame cover still in place, unlike the earlier numbers that required the A frame cover to be removed).

From 1992 onwards the VIN number was etched on the bottom right (when viewed externally) corner of all of the windows and stamped on the offside of the A frame and a window was cut into the A frame cover to highlight the position of the number. (on 1992 models the number was stamped immediately to the rear of the A frame cover). The VIN number is not stamped on the plate behind the entrance door.