12-02-2012, 11:29 PM
Newell's are frequently recognized by their coach number. A little history:
Newell purchased The Streamline Travel Home division of Streamline Trailers in 1966 and moved the operation from California to Miami, Oklahoma. The first coaches Mr. Newell built still carried the Streamline name but during 1967 he began using the Newell name.
Between 1966 and 1982, Newell's were not numbered. By 1983 about 384 coaches had been built. Beginning in 1983, Newell began a new internal numbering system beginning with Coach 001. Finding the coach number on the 1983-1989 coaches can be a game of hide and seek. Sometimes it was on the bottom of the engine bay doors, sometimes on wooden pieces inside the interior only visible once you start disassembling things. The coach number was incorporated into the VIN with the first Series 2000, a 1990 model built in April of 1989, #214. In 2007, the coach numbering was adjusted to account for the unnumbered 384 early coaches so they skipped numbers 815-1199 and resumed with coach 1200. Numbers 1300-1399 were skipped for superstition reasons as Newell was concerned those might be an issue to some buyers. Newell is now in the late 1400's with coach 1475 advertised for sale recently.
As I am always trying to update my information, if anyone that finds a coach number on a 1983-1989, please post it so I can add it to my information. I best information is that 1983 was about 1-29, 1984 was about 30-59, 1985 was 60-89, 1986 was about 90-119, 1987 was about 120-155, 1988 was about 156-181 and 1989 was about 182-213. I know 007 was a 1983. Numbers 130,136, 139, 146 and 155 were 1987 models. Numbers 179 and 180 were 1988 models and, as mentioned earlier, 214 was the first 1990 model and the first Newell to carry the model number as the last three digits of the VIN (last four digits of the VIN since mid 2007 beginning with VIN 1200). Newell has reviewed this information and believes it is in the right ballpark.
As Paul Harvey used to say "And now you know the Rest of the Story".
Newell purchased The Streamline Travel Home division of Streamline Trailers in 1966 and moved the operation from California to Miami, Oklahoma. The first coaches Mr. Newell built still carried the Streamline name but during 1967 he began using the Newell name.
Between 1966 and 1982, Newell's were not numbered. By 1983 about 384 coaches had been built. Beginning in 1983, Newell began a new internal numbering system beginning with Coach 001. Finding the coach number on the 1983-1989 coaches can be a game of hide and seek. Sometimes it was on the bottom of the engine bay doors, sometimes on wooden pieces inside the interior only visible once you start disassembling things. The coach number was incorporated into the VIN with the first Series 2000, a 1990 model built in April of 1989, #214. In 2007, the coach numbering was adjusted to account for the unnumbered 384 early coaches so they skipped numbers 815-1199 and resumed with coach 1200. Numbers 1300-1399 were skipped for superstition reasons as Newell was concerned those might be an issue to some buyers. Newell is now in the late 1400's with coach 1475 advertised for sale recently.
As I am always trying to update my information, if anyone that finds a coach number on a 1983-1989, please post it so I can add it to my information. I best information is that 1983 was about 1-29, 1984 was about 30-59, 1985 was 60-89, 1986 was about 90-119, 1987 was about 120-155, 1988 was about 156-181 and 1989 was about 182-213. I know 007 was a 1983. Numbers 130,136, 139, 146 and 155 were 1987 models. Numbers 179 and 180 were 1988 models and, as mentioned earlier, 214 was the first 1990 model and the first Newell to carry the model number as the last three digits of the VIN (last four digits of the VIN since mid 2007 beginning with VIN 1200). Newell has reviewed this information and believes it is in the right ballpark.
As Paul Harvey used to say "And now you know the Rest of the Story".