[buckskin52]

Hi all, I have a 71 SS that has the larger reverse lights on the back. I've seen several identification sites that say the smaller reverse lights are a 71 and the larger

reverse lights are a 72. I'm trying to find out when, in 71, did Van Nyes start using the larger reverse lights. I've included a pic of my build sheet, and could use a little help in decoding block 10. What is the build date and what is the significance of the hand written 4280? Thanks in advance!

 

[DaleM]

The early model year inner tail lamp has a smaller white lens area and does not extend to the inner trim ring, whereas the later tail lamp (second design) is much larger and extends to the inner trim ring. The size of the “bulge” area of the outer tail lamp also increased in the later version. Also note that the early lamps, both inner and outer, have a silver trim around the outside face of both lamps, where the later version did away with this. The Malibu and base Chevelle have different part numbers for these as well. First design Malibu are 917575 L.H. and 917576 R.H., and the second design is 911541 L.H. and 911542 R.H. The change appears to have happened around the middle of January 1971.

Block 10 was sometimes coded differently from plant to plant. In the case of Van Nuys, the first '24' is the 24th workday of that month. That month is 05, or May, and again followed by 24. This is the date that Fisher Body and Chevrolet were alerted to begin building the car.

1971 Baltimore Chevelles, the first 2-digit number just started with 01 and went to 99, then started over. Example 41 05-20 would be the 41st sequential number (in 99) and May 20th
1971 Kansas City Chevelles, the first 2-digit number is the workday of the month, while the last two digits are the day of the month. 05 01-08 would be the 5th workday and January 8th
1971 Arlington Chevelles have a totally different pair of numbers here that, logically, make no sense, such as 15-0375.

As to the handwritten '4280', it's just a guess, but looking at over 40 other 1971 Chevelle build sheets from Van Nuys, they appear sequential until 9999, then they appear to start over again. Could just be a running count (?) In any event, it's nothing significant unless one finds a fake sheet with a number that doesn't jive with the build date.

Hope this helps some.

See my site at the address below for info on the 71 taillamps.

© ChevelleWorld - Your online pro for 1964-1972 Chevelles

macswebs.com

 

[buckskin52]

Dale, thanks so much for all the information. Much appreciated!

 

[ForaFrank]

Hey @buckskin52, this is an incredible breakdown of the '71 build sheet codes. It’s fascinating how the plants like Baltimore and Kansas City had their own unique systems for dating. How did you manage to track down and confirm all these different variations?

 

[DaleM]

Hey @buckskin52, this is an incredible breakdown of the '71 build sheet codes. It’s fascinating how the plants like Baltimore and Kansas City had their own unique systems for dating. How did you manage to track down and confirm all these different variations?

I've been collecting build sheets for several years and have over 800 SS396/SS454 1970 examples and another over 170 non-SS 1970 sheets. And, I'm always on the lookout for more examples.

 

[LeoP]

ForaFrank is a bot!

 

[buckskin52]

Yep, conversation starter bot.