1966 El Camino Fisher Body Number Plate General Information

• Fremont is the only final assembly plant that coded the Fisher Body Number plate (aka trim tag) with the same style number as the series/model in the GM VIN. All other plants coded the style number with an even third digit so one cannot tell by the trim tag if the El Camino was an L6 or V8.

• There are more examples of trim tags on my 1966 Chevelle Reference CD.

   

• 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'.

• 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 website.

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

• When GM began production of the shoulder harness option, RPO A85, plants were directed that as of January 31, 1966 the trim tag should have a hole drilled/punched in the lower left corner to indicate the mounting provisions were being built into the bodies.

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• BAL ~ Baltimore, Maryland
  
  Click tag for more Baltimore examples...
  • 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.
  • All body plates from at least the 5th week of January (01E) have a small hole on the bottom of the plate just left of the 'BODY BY FISHER" stamping.
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• BF ~ Fremont, California
  
  Click tag for more Fremont examples...
  • Assembly month padded with leading zero where applicable after 1A.
  • 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.
  • All body plates from at least the 5th week of January (01E) have a small hole on the bottom of the plate just left of the 'BODY BY FISHER" stamping.
  • Many early tags have a small hole drilled/punched in the upper right quadrant. Its meaning is unknown. When GM began production of the shoulder harness option, plants were directed that as of January 31, 1966 the trim tag should have a hole drilled/punched in the lower left corner to indicate the mounting provisions were being built into the bodies and the hole in the upper right quadrant disappeared.
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• KAN ~ Kansas City, Missouri
  
  Click tag for more Kansas City examples...
  • 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".
  • Includes dash character (-) between upper and lower paint codes.
  • Includes group option codes.
  • All body plates from at least the 1st week of February (02A) have a small hole on the bottom of the plate just left of the 'BODY BY FISHER" stamping. Sometime between 03C and 04B this hole became smaller.
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This is a typical example of a 1966 El Camino trim/cowl tag for Kansas City, MO.  Assembly plant body number plates varied from plant to plant in how the information was presented.

Anyone having a clear picture of 1966 Chevelle Body Number Plates (trim tags) and/or Protect-O-Plates, please contact me here.

Want more information on 1966 Chevelles/El Caminos? Take a test drive of my 1966 Chevelle Reference CD.