Some sad 69's
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Melting Slicks
Joined: Mar 2008
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From: Quincy IL
Some sad 69's
As a hobby I've been collecting VIN and Trim Tag build dates for the many years of Corvettes. As you know the VIN are in numberical order.. the build dates on the trim tag. I'm shocked at all the '69s that have trim tags swapped. I love the '69s but it's terrible how many have been make to look like a more desireable "original" color or rare color combo. I have heard horror stories about the C2 and the VIN/Trim Tag issues... but the 69's are much worse (from what I've found so far). Out of slightly over 200 VINs - trim tags collected I have 23 that are out of order (build date). That's a very high percentage if you ask me.. 
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From: Southbound
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How have you determined the tags have been swapped?
How many? How does your VIN/tag data support your findings?
Define "out of order." A sample of 200 out of 38762 total cars isn't much. I'm curious about what you've found.
...I love the '69s but it's terrible how many have been make to look like a more desireable "original" color or rare color combo...
...Out of slightly over 200 VINs - trim tags collected I have 23 that are out of order (build date)...
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Mar 2008
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From: Quincy IL
I have kept photos and notes of where I got the data from...
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Melting Slicks
Joined: Mar 2008
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From: Quincy IL
and Car #127 has a trim tag build date of C22
and car #129 has a trim tag build date of B21 that tells me that Car #127 is out of sync.
The above mentioned are made up.. not actual dates... examples only.
I hope that answers your question
I even found 2 cars trim tags that the paint code was not used in 1969.
Last edited by vette54728702; Nov 18, 2011 at 04:07 PM.
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From: Southbound
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Melting Slicks
Joined: Mar 2008
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From: Quincy IL
I have the data but I'm reluctant to post actual info.. current owners might not like that...
I don't think anyone would want to find out something like this about their car posted on the internet. I think the examples I posted are good enough example. If anyone was looking at a specific car and wanted to know what date their trim tag should be (approx in some cases) I will be happy to help them out.
I have found 1 '69 that has a J14 date.... obviously replaced since the factory was on strike then. It's probably a 68 trim tag since the colors are 68 and 69 only.
Last edited by vette54728702; Nov 18, 2011 at 04:40 PM.
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From: YANKEES UNIVERSE 70 454-LS5 500 ft-lbs Torque
As someone who follows 68-72 prices,sales,trim tags,build dates,etc,I am very curious also in theses 69's you refer to,especially the 2 with colors that dont exist.As a habit when i see a Black 68-69 i check the trim tag to see if it is a real 900 Tuxedo Black,but to no surprise 80 percent of the time they are not real,usually they were originally coded Fathom Green or Riverside Gold. I hope you reconsider and share your findings with us...Thanks Jerry
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Drifting
Joined: May 2011
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From: Boca Raton FL
As a '69 owner I can tell you that I would not be offended if you posted that info and my car was not correct (I doubt it though). Both buyer and seller should have accurate information and publicizing accurate information is fair to all. Obviously if the information isn't 100% accurate and you posted it that would be a different story. I appreciate your sensitivity to posting it but think about it a little bit - would you want someone to pay up for a '69 that wasn't correct and being represented as such?
n what was your point of this posting??
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Melting Slicks
Joined: Mar 2008
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From: Quincy IL
anyway...
At the very least, it is something that everyone should be aware of that does exist. Be very careful when purchasing any Corvette. If anyone questions if theirs is correct or not they can PM me and ask about a specific VIN and I will be happy to tell them what I have about that car or VIN's around theirs. Everyone should do their homework before buying a car if you care about it being original. I have spent a lot of time on this hobby and I have a lot of data... good and bad.
I will not post negative info about someones car.
Melting Slicks
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I'm not too surprised by this at all. I heard that it was a very common practice back in the late 60's early 70's to swap VIN tags on Corvettes. As it was described to me, salvage yards would remove the VIN tags on vettes that were being parted out only to use them on vettes that insurance companies have totaled (but was worth restoring to someone). In some cases, these restored cars end up wi clear titles!!
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jan 2007
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From: Concord Calif
There's no need to be rude (Manuel), and those kind of comments will NOT make me post anything...
anyway...
At the very least, it is something that everyone should be aware of that does exist. Be very careful when purchasing any Corvette. If anyone questions if theirs is correct or not they can PM me and ask about a specific VIN and I will be happy to tell them what I have about that car or VIN's around theirs. Everyone should do their homework before buying a car if you care about it being original. I have spent a lot of time on this hobby and I have a lot of data... good and bad.
I will not post negative info about someones car.
anyway...
At the very least, it is something that everyone should be aware of that does exist. Be very careful when purchasing any Corvette. If anyone questions if theirs is correct or not they can PM me and ask about a specific VIN and I will be happy to tell them what I have about that car or VIN's around theirs. Everyone should do their homework before buying a car if you care about it being original. I have spent a lot of time on this hobby and I have a lot of data... good and bad.
I will not post negative info about someones car.
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From: Southbound
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Drifting
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From: Boca Raton FL
Kind of curious, if I give you my vin and trim tag build date, what are you going to give me back? Just two data points of the surrounding build cars. Can't one just go to the C3 Registry (http://www.c3registry.org/index.php?uid=3631) and figure that out?
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Melting Slicks
Joined: Mar 2008
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From: Quincy IL
Pick-apart my posts all you want. I gave examples of what to look for and what my finds were in the research I have done. I've even offerd to help anyone that has a concern about a car they own or are possibly buying.. I don't think that's "lame".
I still will not post anything negative about anyones car... If anyone wants to be insulting about this, then maybe you should start your own research... it's easy to do but very time consuming.
I'm definately not posting anything negative about any Corvette just to satisfy anyone curiosity... again, if it were a specific car - I am more than happy to help anyone.
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 2,300
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From: Quincy IL
Kind of curious, if I give you my vin and trim tag build date, what are you going to give me back? Just two data points of the surrounding build cars. Can't one just go to the C3 Registry (http://www.c3registry.org/index.php?uid=3631) and figure that out?
I'm not asking for anyones info. I will need the last few digits fo your VIN but I don't require your trim tag data to help you out. Yes, what I will give to you is the cars I have data on closest to your VIN that I have trim tag dates for... if there is a possible problem found, I will give you other close-to-your-car examples. That's the best way I know how to help.
Burning Brakes
Joined: Apr 2007
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From: Pinecrest FL
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The C3 registry shows vin numbers of lots of vettes. If dates are visible on trim plates on ebay cars etc the info is avail for anyone to see.
If you have added your own car to the registry, you also input your build date.
You can scroll down the list to see approx build date ranges by vin.
Nothing new here. Who knows,the trim tag in question might not be real.
If you have added your own car to the registry, you also input your build date.
You can scroll down the list to see approx build date ranges by vin.
Nothing new here. Who knows,the trim tag in question might not be real.
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 2,300
Likes: 1
From: Quincy IL
The C3 registry shows vin numbers of lots of vettes. If dates are visible on trim plates on ebay cars etc the info is avail for anyone to see.
If you have added your own car to the registry, you also input your build date.
You can scroll down the list to see approx build date ranges by vin.
Nothing new here. Who knows,the trim tag in question might not be real.
If you have added your own car to the registry, you also input your build date.
You can scroll down the list to see approx build date ranges by vin.
Nothing new here. Who knows,the trim tag in question might not be real.
Very well stated!
"If you added your own car" though, are you putting in the date from the trim tag or the date on the sticker of the drivers door? The data I collect is the VIN, Trim Tag, and if available the door sticker also.
Exactly my point of this thread... Trim tags are terrible on a lot of 1969 Corvettes that I have found in this research.
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From: Southbound
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I'm not picking apart your post. Several of us have asked for you to post the data you say you have. You choose not to do that.
You have not been insulted. You have been asked to prove what you say and you have not done that.
If your data has come largely from internet searches, you are possibly putting too much credibility into what you have found.
Post the VIN of the J14 car you found.
...If anyone wants to be insulting about this...
If your data has come largely from internet searches, you are possibly putting too much credibility into what you have found.
Post the VIN of the J14 car you found.