1966 exhaust panel

[Joe D.]

Vendors list 1966 exhaust panel PM Gray and 1967 exhaust panel PM Black. Is that the only differance in the two? I though the original part numbers are the same for both years. Are the originals 66 gray and original 67 black? Thinking about putting sid exhaust oin my 66, trying to do some research. Thanks Joe

[Mike M.]

Re: 1966 exhaust panel

all 66 rear valence panels i've had or seen were light grey while all original 67 valence panels, as well as over the counter replacement panels sold in the 70's for the 66 and 67 vettes were dark grey(i refer to the color as charcoal).mike

[Michael M.]

Re: 1966 exhaust panel

Joe you are correct in saying the difference in the 1966 and the 1967 is the color of the fiberglass. Before you purchase a non-original rear valance make sure on the back side has this letter-number combo DT 40 1868. I think the judges look or feel with a finger for this raised letter-number combo which is on the back side of the rear valance.

[Ronald L.]

Re: 1966 exhaust panel

Michael, where is the DT number located?

[Michael M.]

Re: 1966 exhaust panel

Ronald if you had the panel in your hand and you turned it around to see the back the letter-number combo is below the area where you would mount the license plate.

[Jim D.]

Re: 1966 exhaust panel

Joe you are correct in saying the difference in the 1966 and the 1967 is the color of the fiberglass. Before you purchase a non-original rear valance make sure on the back side has this letter-number combo DT 40 1868. I think the judges look or feel with a finger for this raised letter-number combo which is on the back side of the rear valance.

What year/s are supposed to have this number? My 65 doesn't and it's the original panel.

[Wayne W.]

Re: 1966 exhaust panel

The panels are functionally the same, the colors are different. The 66 fiberglass changed colors constantly during the year. Early cars had a lighter gray color. Even the grays varied ,and ,as the year went on the glass color got generally darker. In late 66 the glass became very dark bordering on black like the 67s. We call it black, actually, like Mike says, more like charcoal. In 67 the panels were generally black (charcoal).

[Gary B.]

Exhaust panel; late '66

I can verify what Wayne says about the shade of gray on late '66s. My July 20 build date '66 has a dark gray color panel and it is original to the car.

Gary

[Ronald L.]

Re: 1966 exhaust panel

I have to say my panel has never been off the car - well crusted in place.

But as Jim has questioned about his '65, my 66 does not have this number either.

Second, technical clarification - when you say black glass, you are referring to the resin, the matrix that holds the glass in place. The glass fiber strand in all cases is white.

In this case all my panels have the same strand swirl appearance - very much unlike how the SMC (sheet molding compound) was manufactured in the late 70's.

Do we have more people with this part number missing or present and what is the difference in AOS or St Louis bodies???

[Jim S.]

Re: 1966 exhaust panel

Here are two pictures showing the lighter and darker glass as well as the numbers in question.

The lighter is from a known original 66 and the darker is off my current 66.

I am not sure, but I think the 70 at the end of the number on the darker one means a replacement part ???/ Anybody ??


Jim

Here is an even better picture of both colors and #s.

JIm

[Michael M.]

Re: 1966 exhaust panel

Jim all the original exhaust panels I have seen do not have any numbers after DT-40 1868. So you might have something about the 70 being a replacement.

[Wayne W.]

Re: 1966 exhaust panel

Here is an even better picture of both colors and #s.

JIm

Here are two pictures showing the lighter and darker glass as well as the numbers in question.

The lighter is from a known original 66 and the darker is off my current 66.

I am not sure, but I think the 70 at the end of the number on the darker one means a replacement part ???/ Anybody ??


Jim

Not only a later replacement, but a current reproduction of that replacement.

[Jim S.]

Re: 1966 exhaust panel

Here are two pictures showing the lighter and darker glass as well as the numbers in question.

The lighter is from a known original 66 and the darker is off my current 66.

I am not sure, but I think the 70 at the end of the number on the darker one means a replacement part ???/ Anybody ??


Jim

Not only a later replacement, but a current reproduction of that replacement.

Thanks Michael,

I thought so , but was not sure until now.

Wayne,

You mean a complete Fake !

Bummer, as it was the one I was going to use on the restoration . The other one being really messed up and redone badly . I didn't think a repo would go through the trouble to reproduce #s no one could see . So Speaking of that ,did the 7 at the end mean a replacement part, or was it standard on a 67 pannel and reproduced that way ever after ?

JIM



JIm

[Wayne W.]

Re: 1966 exhaust panel

Thanks Michael,

I thought so , but was not sure until now.

Wayne,

You mean a complete Fake !

Bummer, as it was the one I was going to use on the restoration . The other one being really messed up and redone badly . I didn't think a repo would go through the trouble to reproduce #s no one could see . So Speaking of that ,did the 7 at the end mean a replacement part, or was it standard on a 67 pannel and reproduced that way ever after ?

JIM



JIm

Well, lets put it this way, its a reproduction, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. It will probably pass. GM panels were made for many years after production ended. Sometimes these parts were made for service to fit all years. Sometimes the part numbers were changed, or one part to fit multiple years were offered. when these later runs were done, they often carry the dates of those runs. Some parts have multiple dates and other markings. Reproduction parts were simply cast off of an original part. In this case the part used was a GM over the counter, not an original assembly line part. Since the mold was cast, it reproduces all of the markings in the pattern piece.

[Ronald L.]

Re: 1966 exhaust panel

Thanks for the comparative pictures. The lower picture is taken to be the original, very distinct look to the glass.

Are there other examples of cars that do not have that number?

How could it be that in the 60's some do and some do not contain the number?