64 Spyder numbers

[Swngaxl]

OK, would like some help. Have most of it decoded, but a couple of things confuse me a bit.

VIN is 263643, I believe this means it is the 163,643rd '64 model made of what appears to be 207,114 '64's total produced/ Correct?

05D means fourth week of May

What is the number after WR on the tag? Mine reads 4438. Is that number 4438 of 4761 Spyder convertibles made in '64?

It appears I have a very late car for a '64, if I am reading this right. Any idea when they stopped making '64's and switched over to '65's? I suppose May they would still be running out the last of that year's model, but most likely had stopped taking special orders by then.

Any help clarifying much appreciated!

PS: What does DD mean on the VIN tag? Thanks!

[bbodie52]

VIN is 263643, I believe this means it is the 163,643rd '64 model made of what appears to be 207,114 '64's total produced/ Correct?

05D means fourth week of May

Body build date
The first set of characters you see are a three character code on the top left corner of the bodytag. This represents the date code. The code consists of two digits and a letter*. The digits represent the month, and the letter represents the week. Example 11B means November 2nd week. The week began on a Monday. For the last week, if the week went through a Wednesday, it was that month’s week. If it only went through Tuesday, it was the next month’s week. This code represents the date the body was completed by Fisher body. The body would then be delivered to the Chevy side to install the drivetrain and complete the car. There is a definite time interval between when the body was completed and delivered and when the car was finished on the Chevy side and a VIN number assigned. This was usually within a week or two, but sometimes could be longer. This system gives rise to the possibility of a body built date at the end of one month and a final production date at the start of the subsequent month. Fisher would also deliver bodies in groups and was known to sometimes hold back bodies for one reason or another, so it is possible to have cars bodies that are out of sequence with the VIN numbers. (i.e. body 8 has a Vin # higher than body 12). * An exception to the 2 digit- one letter code is a 3 digit number code used on 1965 Los Angeles models built in Mid-September 1964. This is discussed later at the end of the Decoding section.

What is the number after WR on the tag? Mine reads 4438. Is that number 4438 of 4761 Spyder convertibles made in '64?

BODY
This line lists the plant code* and body number. The body number represents the number of that body style built. (i.e. if the car is a Monza convertible, then the body number represents the number of only Monza convertibles built, it would not include Corsa convertibles or Monza coupes or sedans.) The body number is specific and linked to the style number. So for example in 1966 there were 7 different styles (10137, 10139, 10537,10539,10567,10737,10767) and each style had its own series of body numbers for that plant.

It appears I have a very late car for a '64, if I am reading this right. Any idea when they stopped making '64's and switched over to '65's? I suppose May they would still be running out the last of that year's model, but most likely had stopped taking special orders by then.

In the United States, automobile model-year sales traditionally begin with the fourth quarter of the preceding year. So model year refers to the sales model year; for example, vehicles sold during the period from October 1 to September 30 of the following year belong to a single model year. In addition, the launch of the new model-year has long been coordinated to the launch of the traditional new television season (as defined by A.C. Nielsen) in late September, because of the heavy dependence between television to offer products from automakers to advertise, and the car companies to launch their new models at a high-profile time of year.

In other cases, products of a previous model year can continue production, especially if a newer model hasn't yet been released. In that case, the model year remains the same until a new model is introduced. This is to ensure that the model will be seen by the public, and will actually sell a number of vehicles before a new vehicle-model is produced, and people will look at the newer model rather than the previous one.

In the United States, for regulation purposes (such as VIN numbering and EPA emissions certification), government authorities allow cars of a given model year to be sold starting on January 1 of the previous calendar year. For example, this means that a 2019 model year vehicle can legally go on sale on January 1, 2018. This has resulted in a few cars in the following model year being introduced in advertisements during the NFL's Super Bowl in February. A notable example of an "early" model year launch would be the Ford Mustang, introduced as an early 1965 model (informally referred to as "1964½") in April 1964 at the World's Fair, several months before the usual start of the 1965 model year in August 1964.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Model_year

After doing some Google research, most did not know. This seems to be the most-plausible explanation...

DD = Delivery Date
Dealers were supposed to stamp the delivery date on it; few did.

Also found on the VIN plate is the wording "CHEVROLET DD" where the "DD" was meant to be used for Delivery Date when the vehicle was sold at the dealer. It's rare to find any additional stamping on the VIN as dealer's tended to not do this. The two examples below do exhibit these markings. Due to the differences, it's not certain whether there was a standard meaning to the stamping or if it was up to each dealer to stamp whatever information they deemed necessary for a delivery date.


The delivery date of "1 67" is clearly visible in this photo indicating the car was delivered in January of 1967. Dealers were not always consistent when they stamped the delivery dates. This car is a mid December, 1966 production (second week according to the body plate) so the "1 67" could be for January, 1967. Note the difference in the dating with the example below.


This stamping is not so obvious. The 103 could indicate January 3 since this is a first week of January-built Chevelle. The Fisher Body plate on this car indicates 01A body build date meaning the car was assembled at Kansas City sometime between January 1 and January 7. It is possible the car could have been delivered to the new owner on January 3.

Until further information comes to light about the procedure and what was supposed to be stamped on the VIN plate and with so few examples, the meaning described is speculation.

http://macswebs.com/cddemo/67cd/documen ... index.html