Topic: Special paint invoice PTO?

[hopey]

The guys at Dreamcar giveaway are currently raffling off a special paint (Burnt Orange Poly paint - 1969 Lincoln production color) 0F02G136268 BOSS 302, and posted the invoice online.

I believe the PTO may be Paint & Tire Order, but any idea what the 55 and 1378 reference? I see the dealer ID is 55A 001. So maybe that is the same 55 dealer code perhaps the 1378 relates to a specific dealer order form or paint code reference?

Any insight into how the special paint ordering process worked is welcome!

[J_Speegle]

The guys at Dreamcar giveaway are currently raffling off a special paint (Burnt Orange Poly paint - 1969 Lincoln production color) 0F02G136268 BOSS 302, and posted the invoice online.

I believe the PTO may be Paint & Tire Order, but any idea what the 55 and 1378 reference?

Not sure that I'm convinced yet of that translation. Never seen or heard of a special tire order and why limit it to those two items when special ordered could cover so much more?

I see the dealer ID is 55A 001. So maybe that is the same 55 dealer code perhaps the 1378 relates to a specific dealer order form or paint code reference?

Looking at other special order paint shipping invoices from 69-71 almost all have the PTO with the district and another number following it in the line above the special paint or other notation.

On one they printed "DSO" instead. That was from a June 70 Dearborn built car. Odd but did include the same number pattern as the others.
The DSO marked one was a Cougar Eliminator where the rear spoiler was deleted and special paint color was notated
Have another with PTO where the side strip was deleted - 69 Mach I

Wish I had more big trucks and delivery sorts of vehicle shipping invoices to compare

Have no idea of what the following four digit numbers might be at this time. Can't be the specific dealer number, my first thought, since they don't match the dealer numbers as used in the Ford microfiche. Don't match the numbers below on the form in the dealer information or the "item number". Would have to compare it to the DSO on the door sticker or on the door tag on other examples to see if that is a match

Any insight into how the special paint ordering process worked is welcome!

The process has been covered a number of times in other threads. I also posted the instructions from Ford to the dealers for general special order items not just paint ones but they were basically all the same. You can find a copy of the instructions in the Library section of the site at the bottom of each year section under Factory Brochures

Not many real special order cars ordered or built as far as Mustang go. Most were commercial vehicle's like taxis, buses, trucks and so on.

[jwc66k]

I don't have the cars (they were wrecked). I don't have the Marti report (never had a need for it). I don't have the order sheet (I wish I did). But I have the door data plates, well 2 of them.
The back story is there was a special order that was made in district 72 for a non-standard paint color - "Salmon" for 1968 Mustangs (apparently Hardtops only). I got this information decades ago.
Here are two door data plates, the front, and the back - reversed (using my Photoshop software) so you can read it.
OK, what do you see?
Skip down to the DSO entry. It is a definite 72 - San Jose (that district still located in California). Then a four digit number, which has been defined as the order number FOR THAT DISTRICT. It is merely a sheet of paper that says to paint the cars "Salmon", maybe some other stuff too, but whatever was done to a Mustang, with DSO 72, and code 1191, is on that sheet of paper. That code, 1191, has been documented as Salmon paint, and you can see that Salmon paint on the back of the door data plate on the ends.
Don't try read anything else into a DSO with 6 characters (no special decoder ring was used) and there may be a letter in there somewhere.
PTO may mean PainT Order, don't try to read anything else into a DSO with 6 characters.
Jim

[J_Speegle]

Jim looks possibly like a couple of Color of the Month or Color of the Rainbow promotion cars.  Bunch of those built in San Jose in Feb 68

Since we've found PTO used in association with special orders not dealing with paint I don't think "PTO may mean PainT Order," will work

hopey Looks like your original "PTO may be Paint & Tire Order" idea may have validity I found some 68 special paint Mart reports with the term "Paint & Tire Order" as part of the DSO description. While others the wording is different. Fully understand that Kevin has changed and refined some of his wording over time. Other language used on other 68 special paint reports "...Ordering District Under Special Order" followed by the whole special order number

Still the Paint ...., does not make complete sense to me given the other documents I've found but not every thing makes sense 50 years later.

Did also confirm that the last for letters of the PTO numbers match the DSO numbers on the door tag or sticker based on some other examples found after looking at a bunch of car pictures

[jwc66k]

In the "Mustang Production Guide, Vol 2", page 211, which covers 1968 Mustangs built at San Jose, there are 8 entries that have no Ford paint code but have a six digit DSO. Four are DSO 71, Los Angeles (which covers Southern California), the other four are DSO 72, San Jose (which covers Northern California. I don't know the dividing line). Two of the San Jose DSO are 721190, and include a note "Pink", the color.

Jim looks possibly like a couple of Color of the Month or Color of the Rainbow promotion cars.  Bunch of those built in San Jose in Feb 68

The 8 listed were all scheduled in February, 68, from the 6th to the 23rd. (Dearborn and Metuchen in that month don't have any similar entries.) A Ford promotion is very possible.
Jim

[Mike_B_SVT]

Looking at other special order paint shipping invoices from 69-71 almost all have the PTO with the district and another number following it in the line above the special paint or other notation.

Here's another data point for you, showing that the digits under "PTO" on the invoice match the digits on the Marti Report for the DSO + Special Order Number

Invoice = PTO 22 2208
Marti = DSO 222208

All of my other examples say DSO on the invoice instead of PTO, but they otherwise follow the same layout, with the Invoice digits matching the Marti digits.

[specialed]

Back years ago someone told me PTO. means Paint To Order .

[hopey]

Found this note in a Sherwin Williams paint chart from 1979. It references Ford special colors PTO Paint Tire Order but does not explain what the numbers mean.

[J_Speegle]

Found this note in a Sherwin Williams paint chart from 1979. It references Ford special colors PTO Paint Tire Order but does not explain what the numbers mean.

Nice find with the Sherman William latter. Have some other paint supplier stuff I should look through that deals with special paint and promotion things


Going back to reply #3 (mine) in the few examples I have where I have multiple data points, Marti, door tag info and such the number matches so since we know that the door tag numbers match the paperwork or form number that should be the answer and it goes along with what is indicated in that Ford brochure on the DSO ordering description IMHO

[cobrajet_carl]

Just thought I'd add an interesting (to me at least) quirk in the 1970 special paint saga. When going through all the Eminger invoices I have copies of, both Metuchen special paint cars have the color identified on the invoice. Both Dearborn special paint cars that I have Eminger copies of do not. I was wondering if this was a huge coincidence or if all 1970 Metuchen special paint invoices identified the color. Obviously having only 2 invoices each from the two plants is a small sample size of the 1,805 total 1970 special paint mustangs.

[J_Speegle]

Just thought I'd add an interesting (to me at least) quirk in the 1970 special paint saga. When going through all the Eminger invoices I have copies of, both Metuchen special paint cars have the color identified on the invoice. Both Dearborn special paint cars that I have Eminger copies of do not. ...............

Thanks. Don't have any shipping invoices from NJ with special order paint jobs. The Dearborn invoices I have mirror your findings and have no paint color identified. This includes into 1973 production. 

Appears this is just another case of different plants doing things differently and why where a car was assembled is always something that needs to be included and known when we look at details and practices surrounding these cars.