1966 Chevelle Fisher Body Number Plate General Information

  • It is a proven fact that for 1966 the series/model designation is a trim level and not an indication of the engine type installed in the vehicle as Fisher Body didn't care what engine type was to be installed. For 1966,  I have one Fremont example with 13335 series/model designation, one Fremont example with 13111 series/model designation, one Framingham 13617 body plate with VIN of 13517 along with other reported and documented examples of even-numbered model body plates with odd-numbered VIN and 6-cylinder engine proving there are indeed odd-numbered (3rd digit) body plates and the body plate is not an indication of engine type installed.

  • 1966 was the first of three years, 1966-1967-1968, the Chevelle SS396 was a separate series (138xx) and not an option on the Malibu.

  • The Sport Coupe model designation was changed from "37" to "17" for 1966 and 1967 only to denote the new 'Strut Back' hardtop styling.

  • Indications are the body numbers are sequential for the particular series/model per plant even though some body styles numbers have been noticed 'out-of-sequence'.

  • Numbers in parentheses after the STYLE are number of units produced and are for total production of the series/model depicted on the body plate except where noted. Unless otherwise noted, this production number assumes the trim tag STYLE to match the VIN series/model number. This is not always the case as noted in the first bulleted item.

  • A popular publication states, "On all 1965 through 1971 trim tags, the engine identification portion of the model identification number always indicates a V-8 engine. No 6-cylinder engine identification numbers are stamped on any trim tag." This is an incorrect statement for not only 1965 through 1971 but includes 1972 as well. There are numerous examples of trim tags with an odd 3rd-digit style on this web site.

  • Links to Fisher Body Number Plates (a.k.a., trim tag, cowl tag, firewall tag, etc.)

  • ATL ~ Atlanta, Georgia
    • Assembly month padded with leading zero where applicable.
    • May or may NOT have a dash character (-) after interior trim color. Bench seat trim codes include "-A" and bucket seat trim codes include "B" or "-B".
    • Does separate lower-upper body colors with a dash character (-).
    • Includes dash character (-) between upper and lower paint codes.
    • Includes group option codes.
  • BAL ~ Baltimore, Maryland ~ El Camino
    • Assembly month padded with leading zero where applicable.
    • No dash character (-) after interior trim code and no "-A" or "-B" to designate bench/bucket seats.
    • No dash character (-) between upper and lower paint codes.
  • BF ~ Fremont, California ~ El Camino
    • Assembly month padded with leading zero where applicable.
    • No dash character (-) after interior trim code and no "-A" or "-B" to designate bench/bucket seats.
    • No dash character (-) between upper and lower paint codes.
    • Early 1966 body plates (pre January) retained 1965 style of presenting information. Beginning sometime between 12A and 01E, "BODY" and "PAINT" were moved to appearing after the body number and paint code, wording on the top of the plate simply said 'GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION", and the wording at the bottom of the plate "THIS CAR FINISHED WITH Magic Mirror ACRYLIC LACQUER" was deleted.
  • FL1 ~ Flint, Michigan
    • Assembly month padded with leading zero where applicable.
    • Does separate lower-upper body colors with a dash character (-). Bench seat trim codes include "-A" and bucket seat trim codes include "B" or "-B".
    • Includes dash character (-) between upper and lower paint codes.
    • Includes group option codes.
  • FRA ~ Framingham, Massachusetts
    • Assembly month padded with leading zero where applicable.
    • Does separate lower-upper body colors with a dash character (-). Bench seat trim codes include "-A" and bucket seat trim codes include "B" or "-B".
    • Includes dash character (-) between upper and lower paint codes.
    • Includes group option codes.
  • KAN ~ Kansas City, Missouri ~ El Camino
    • Assembly month padded with leading zero where applicable.
    • Does separate lower-upper body colors with a dash character (-). Bench seat trim codes include "-A" and bucket seat trim codes include "B" or "-B".
    • Includes dash character (-) between upper and lower paint codes.
    • Includes group option codes.
  • OS ~ Oshawa, Ontario, Canada
    • Paint code is single letter and although RPO D99 (two-toned paint) is shown, paint code does not indicate what the second color was and does not indicate whether the second color is upper or lower body.

File Photo

This is a typical example of a 1966 Chevelle trim/cowl tag for a Kansas City, MO. assembled Malibu convertible. Assembly plant body number plates varied from plant to plant in how the information was presented.

Anyone having a clear picture of 1965 Chevelle Body Number Plates (trim tags) and/or Protect-O-Plates, please contact me here.

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