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My 78 was sold off the lot with the radio delete option and I've always been curious about what the block off plate looked like or if one even existed in the first place. This looks like it would be very out of place mounted to the radio bezel. Not that I'm considering paying $400 for it, but can anyone positively confirm or deny that this is the correct part? Thanks.
Radio delete was not an option in 78 or 79. The UL5 RPO was available 80-82, and you could order a radio delete 68-77. Also some of the Corvette venders have a repop plate for $150. Or I could be wrong.
I have the list supplied from GM with all included options for my car which does include UL5. Perhaps radio delete was only an option in Canada in 78 & 79?
Last edited by SizzleChest; 08-14-2017 at 08:46 PM.
"Radio Delete" is often a misused term. Until the 1979 model year, all C3 radios\stereos were optional at extra cost. You had to order one and pay for it. If you did not order a unit, there was nothing to delete. For 79, AM/FM became standard equipment. If a buyer did not want the GM unit, it could be deleted and a credit given at the time the car was being ordered.
Google the part number on the eBay item. It might be genuine.
...I have a '68 originally ordered with no radio and my plate is smooth with a thin raised silver 'outline' near the edges...
For 68-76, the center clusters are metal and used the plate you describe. The clusters are plastic beginning with the 77s and might have a different plate.
I have a '68 originally ordered with no radio and my plate is smooth with a thin raised silver 'outline' near the edges.... also, that price is CRAZY
That same style would seem appropriate for the 77-82s. The one in the ebay link would look very out of place. I agree that the price is ridiculous, but also, it may sell - supply and demand. This is the first one I have seen since I bought my '78 in 2001 and since then, I have ebay searches pre-set to email me any listing with "corvette radio delete" and "corvette block off".
Last edited by SizzleChest; 08-15-2017 at 08:18 PM.
This is what the 77-82 radio block off plate looks like. Unlike the the 68-76 block off plate, that was die cast metal, the 77-82 plate is molded in black plastic. The image below was "stolen" from the NCRS 80-82 Judging Manual.
This was the same block off plate that was used on most other GM cars of the era. My brother bought a new 78 Z28, that had the radio prep package (windshield antenna, speakers, and radio harness), instead of a radio. It had the same block off plate, except it was molded in tan plastic, to match the dash color.
There are a few reasons why the 68-76 block off plate is $150. First off, it's die cast metal, it's chrome plated and it has to be masked off and painted. Secondly, it's made in Michigan, not overseas. Finally, how many of them can the actually sell, it's not exactly a high demand item? They have to charge more for it, because they have to recoup the costs of making the part, over fewer pieces.
Prior to 1980, radios were optional in Corvettes. In the late 70's, Corvette build sheets started showing "UL5 radio delete" on cars ordered without a radio, not because the radio was actually being deleted, but because the factory had to know that they were not installing a radio. UL5 told the plant to install the radio block off plate, and not to install an antenna or antenna cable, among other things.
It wasn't until 1980, when the U69 AM/FM Mono radio became standard, that UL5 actually deleted the radio, and included a $126.00 invoice credit for the deleted radio.
is it corvette specific? it doesnt even look good. barely covers the holes. and the texture doesnt match the car. it looks better suited on a c10 truck
08-14-2017, 08:30 PM
77-82 radio delete plate. Is this it?
