Mike Baker

Anyone around that has an early 68 with the small headlight doors? I have a question on the bezels.

I've never seen a unique part number for smaller bezels. There is a part number for the smaller headlamp housing (door) and matching hood surround, it seems like there should also be a smaller bezel.

When I purchased my car it had some previous repairs to the front end fiberglass and a couple cracked bezels. The bezels appear to have cracked from being flexed when attached to the headlight housing. The top of these bezels are about 1/8" wider than the door on both sides.

The bezels I have are GM #3911143-LH and GM #3911144-RH.

Thank you.

avalonjohn

Good question. I just checked my 68 bezels that are not yet installed. I bought them years ago and they have the same part numbers as yours.

gbvette62

My 1970 Corvette Parts Book list just one left and one right headlight bezel for 68-70 Corvettes. It does show different headlight housings for 68 first design, and second design 68 and up.

The part numbers in my 70 parts book are 3957045 left and 3957046 right. I don't have a 68 AIM at the house, but the 69 AIM shows the same two part numbers for 69 bezels. These would be die cast bezels, not the fiberglass bezels used in later years. Are your 3911143 and 44, die cast or pot metal.

I think I might have a 69 Parts Book at work. If I get a chance, I'll try to look for it tomorrow.

Mike Baker

Thank you for looking. I really appreciate it. If there is a Q4 '67 parts book I suspect it may have the answer if there is one. I don't know the aprox vin when the heallight housing changed. My car was built mid Oct '67.

The 68 AIM does not list an earlier part number for the bezel. In fact my AIM copy does not list the PN change for the hood surround or the headlamp housing.

I am going to list what I've learned. If someone else is ever trying to sort this out maybe this will save some time.

I've looked at the following resources:
Parts and Accessories catalog dated Oct 68
Parts and Accessories 30b dated 1974
Parts and Illustration catalog 14a dated 12/83
There is also a parts history book. The date of that book is not in my notes. The history book is useful to find a replacement part number but not finding an earlier part number.

I've summarized the part history for the bezel as:
1968------------GM #3911143-LH and GM #3911144-RH
1969-1971-------GM #3957045-LH and GM #3957046-RH (includes headlight squirters)
1972------------GM #3911143-LH and GM #3911144-RH (BOTH ARE SAME AS 1968)
1973-82---------GM #331817-LH and GM #331818-RH plastic

Headlamp housing:
The early 68 headlamp housings were GM #3932935-LH and GM #3932936-RH
The late 68 to 82 housings were GM #3938115-LH and GM #3938116-RH.
This change can be seen in the Parts and Illustration catalog 14a December 1983

Hood surround (AKA panel-Fender Upper)
The original 1968 front surround panel with the smaller headlamp openings was GM #3930491.
This was changed for production to GM #3941910 The service pn changed to GM #3938117. These are the 1968 surround panels with the larger headlamp openings.
In '71 GM #3977889 became the service pn for all 69-71 cars.

Everything I've looked at indicates that #3911143-LH and 3911144-RH were the earliest bezels. Unfortunately they don't fit.

Rescue Rogers

the early headlight bezels were metal and are rare. Havent seen many around. I have the plastic ones and they fit lousy on mine as well. First week Oct 67 build. And the AIM doesn't seem to cover the very early 68 parts well either. I'm following this thread for any further info as well

Easy Mike

AIMs were constantly updated. You can check the title block on an AIM page for drawing revision dates and get a guestimate of when a part might have changed.

Rescue Rogers

I need to find an early AIM then, thanks I didn't know that

Easy Mike

Never say never, but there isn't supposed to be an "early" AIM. As new AIM information and updates were received, the old AIM page was supposed to have been removed and destroyed and the new page inserted. If you followed GM instructions for AIM maintenance, the "early" information went into the trash can.

Mike Baker

The revision block is only 8 lines. When there were more changes than would fit in the block it appears the earlier detail is lost.

Assuming we all have the same 68 AIM. If you look at page UPC12 A3 the first revision is number 8 dated 2-23-68. Note that drawing on the page includes the late pn Housings. There is no detail for that change or the rest of changes 1-7. That page was trashed.

Page UPC12 A4 has 8 revisions between 4-14-67 and 3-26-68. Note that UPC12 A4 shows the 3911143-4 bezels and no note about a revision but they don't fit the early housing.

Someone once suggested to me that they may have changed the design of the part but kept the old pn. I have a hard time believing that .

I guess the early A3 page could be out there somewhere. Don't know how anyone would ever find it.

Easy Mike

I agree. I've read that if the design of a part changed, GM Engineering requested a new part number.

Rescue Rogers

BOOOO!!!!!!
That's bad news. Thanks for the insight though

twinpack

Reviving an old thread. I am running into this now. I have bought 2 different pair and neither fit. I will be selling them. Still looking.

gbozz

As an earlier post indicated, they did not throw the early sheets away. They just did not print them and sell them to the public.

Looking at an old, original, with all the old sheets, Assembly Instruction Manual (AIM), this is what I find:
The original Sheet UPC12, Sheet A3 was drawn 3-2-67. The original sheet listed 3911127-8 for the die-cast headlight housing. (Not the bezel)
The sheet was redrawn and revised 7-14-67 and shows a 3927677-8 for new numbers.
Change number 4 dated 10-8-67, says "Was 3932935-6"
The chart lists part number 3938115-6
So the sequence of the 4-different housing were:
3911127-8
3927677-8
3932935-6
3938115-6

The headlight bezel UPC12, Sht. A4, only shows one headlight bezel. 3911143-4. I have two sheets, changes #1 through #7, but none of those pertain to the bezel.

The top surround panel (the fiberglass panel) also lists 4-different part numbers. UPC 11-13, Sheet A2
3908136, originally drawn on 2-17-67. On 7-21-67, change #5 says "was 3908136"
3930491, is shown in the chart at the top of the page.
3936369, Change #14 says "was 3936369". I don't have a sheet that shows this part number, just change #14 shows it.
3938117 is shown in the chart for that page.

I cannot tell you what changed, what the dimensions are, or anything else. I can only tell you what the AIM has shown.

Typically when the changes were made, the new parts were released to production, had to be made, and blended into the assembly line. That could take anywhere from a few weeks to a few months. I have seen some of the changes 7-months later being started on the assembly line. I think they used all the old parts, and did not throw them away, before they used the new ones.

Gbozz

Rescue Rogers

any way we can get you to copy those sheets. No one else has published early 68 info like that. I would like to add them to my AIM