Hi Paolo,
Thanks for your relpy! I agree with you that RI most certainly stands for Rootes Italia. All Sunbeam Alpines have RI 39 while all Sunbeam Venezia's have RI 40. So probably the Hillman Super Minxes will have RI 38. I have no idea why this particular numbers (39 and 40) were chosen.
It is a fact the Touring entered in an agreement with Rootes on the 23th of October 1961 for the assembly of a maximum of four Alpines and ten Hillman Super Minxes a day to supply the Italian market. This agreement was to remain in force until the demise of the Touring company. The Super minxes were built between October 1962 and December 1966. Alpines were built from June 1963 until December 1966. Venezia's were built in the period 1963-1966, but this cars never got the changes, like the full synchromes gearbox and the 1725 cc engine, which the Super Minxes and the Alpines got. The Touring body numbers were not following the timeline of the Rootes numbers and the Touring numbers were also not given in a logical order. So, as you already discovered, the list of bodynumbers as given by the Touring register are from a rather later date then the actual production date.
So we have only one code to decifer left and that is, as an example, RTS 110.
I guess that RTS stand for Rootes Touring Superleggera and that 110 is a colour code because the place were this acronym is placed is exactly the place were the Rootes colour code is placed.
Does your car have the same indications as mentioned in one of the books which is issued by Registro Internazionale Touring Superleggera) namely: the Touring insigna above the name SUNBEAM on the trunk, the Euro style sidelights on the front wings?). This book, number 9, states accordingly to Robert Jaarsma also that all Alpines kept the Series III grill which contradicts with other Touring Alpines (series IV and series V) that have showned up in the meantime.
Best regards,
Peter