My 70 SS tail light lenses are all red with the exception of the back up light section. They have flat back up lenses by the way. Unfortunatly they are both chipped pretty bad. I recently bought a pair of used ones (perfect) at a swap meet but now I see they are different. These are gray around the inner lip, not just the edge but all the way in to the flat part of the lense. They also have the raised (bubbled?) back up light area.
Why are these different? Is it an SS thing or a mid year change or a different assembly plant thing?
Which would be correct for an SS built in Atlanta?
Could I just remove the gray paint around the inner lip?
I remember reading something about this before but when I did a search I couldnt find it.
Thanks.Ron

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70 Chevelle SS396, 71 Z28-RS, 95 Z28 Convertible. Aces 3081, TC #54 Gold

I have collected about 10 of these lenses at swap meets and like you say they are different. I don't think it had anything to do with model just different vendors. They should be silver all around the inner lip and have silver on the raised lines across the lens. THis gets washed off after 30yrs.

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Steve Strasemeier (70SS 396, Fathom Blue/White Stripes)

I just bought new ones for mine. The guy told me that they were painted using the original masks. It looks like it cause every one we looked at had silver overspray. He said the masks were getting old and thats why it was happening. They are just as Steve described Silver on the edges all the way to the back and silver on the horizontal trim. Also has a raised back up lens in the center section.

Wow! I'm not crazy. A couple of years back at a local show, I was standing like an idiot staring at a SS (1970) that had what appeared to be "bulging" back-up light lens. I couldn't figure it out. My '70's are original and they are flat. Does it have to do with where the cars are built at??? My car was built in Van Nuys, CA in Nov.1969.

Maybe this will be a "plastic/metal inner fender discussion"! Who has what?

Is this an SS thing??? Somebody else go look at their original lenses!

Hello,

Modern Chevrolet in North Carolina specializes in stocking and selling of original GM parts for classic muscle cars. The 70 taillight lenses are still available from GM as new parts. In their catalog description for the 70 lens it states w/diffuser.

This is just pure speculation but I would be willing to bet that the new lenses are built on a curve rather than flat to better disperse the light. Remember that by today's standards those little 70 taillights are pretty much a joke out on the night road. New design could be government mandated to sell the lens as new.

My original taillight lenses are flat and are 30 years old. Just an idea. Any confirmation out their?

My original 70 lenses are bubbled and have the silver around the sides. My car is not an SS. I think this is just a vendor thing.

Tom

I'm not sure about the bubbled backup lite thing, but the 70 SSs had the silver on the outside (ribbed areas) and on the raised lines that outline the contours of the lenses. The regular Chevelles and Malibus used taillights that didn't have any silver on them. Now I've got to look at the old taillights I've got to see about the bubbled area.

I think you may be making too much out of this. No where does it state in the SS equipment literture that the SS got special tail light lens. In 1970 they had 7 assembly plants building Chevelle's. I doubt that one vendor could have kept them all supplied. There were in excess of 400,000 Chevelle's built in 1970 according to The Chevrolet Buyer's Guide.

Many times parts over the counter are different than the assembly plant used. Lots of times they had design revisions etc. There is no way of knowing (unless you owned the car since new) that these have ever been replaced.

[This message has been edited by elcamino (edited 06-27-99).]

Jim-

I disagree. My ORIGINAL 1970 Malibu tail light lenses have the "argent" gray paint on the ribbed area and the contoured areas. This was not an SS only thing.

Interesting...bubbled or flat. I always figured new GM replacements would be flat, maybe I should call major suppliers and see what they say. It would be bad if everything was "bubbled" now for owners of cars that came with the flat lenses.

Is it possible that the bubbled thing had to do with the 300 Deluxe Chevelles?

[This message has been edited by Coppertop (edited 06-27-99).]

Ok, so it seems either tail lights would be OK. I just never noticed this before I bought this set. But its an interesting question isnt it? I wasnt trying to make a big deal out of it, just trying to see if there was a pattern of some kind as to which cars had which.
BTW, I went to the Hot Rod Power Fest in Bowling Green yesterday and saw several 70 Chevelles there, they all had the argent paint and the bubbled back up lights.
Ron

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70 Chevelle SS396, 71 Z28-RS, 95 Z28 Convertible. Aces 3081, TC #54 Gold