Do all Fountain serial numbers under FGQ have the model size as the 1st 2 numeric characters and hull # as the next 3 numeric characters.
FGQ 36116XXXX would be a 36 production number 116

Yes. The five digits following the manufacture code, ie: FGQ, are Fountain's serial number which consists of the first 2 being the length, and the last 3 being their production number but doesn't necessarily mean that is how many boats were produced. For example, mine is FGQ47467xxxx. I do not think there were 467 47' Lightnings made.

Thanks for the feedback. I do marine surveys up here in Canada and currently reporting on a 1990. Serial # suggests its a 36'. The owner's had the boat for 23 yrs and has always believed it is a 38'. Some manufacturers use a model code and production number, then build date info. The boat is in pristine condition for its vintage. been upgraded to T x custom supercharged 875hp with Merc Racing #6 drives within last 8-10 yrs, virtually no hours on the set-up. Cheers

I presumed something along those lines. The integrated platform would make the difference with the extension over the transom wall. All good info and thanks. The registration documents state length as 11.2 M which translates 36' 9"... I'll go with that.

Is there a way to tell how many boats of a certain model were built in a certain year?

the serial number may indicate the hull number since 1st production, or for that model year. Only the manufacturer's archives could determine how many built total or in any given model year.

I know this post is old but had to try. Is the year of build in the HIN

Yes, the last two digits represent the year model.