Just purchased my 1968 442 and I will post pics tom, this is a real project but appears to have a unique color combo. Interior is 944 (Willow Gold Buckets) with C-C paint (Provential White). Appears stange.

My question is, having that I never owned a 68 the vin has a space between the year and factory and again between the factory and sequential vin. (See below)

344878 G xxxxxx

I have never seen this before and was wondering if it is anything to worry about or was it common, car also has the original broadcast sheet, which appears to match the vin, hard to see with oil stain.

Any help would be appreciated.

 

Does anyone know if the console was black or green with a willow green interior mine is black, but there is no rug in the car.

 

The console and carpet should match the light green interior. White with willow interior was common back then, just not often seen now because everybody thinks they have to have a black or pearl white interior. They also think they have to repaint the car to a more "muscle-car" color if it's not black, red or yellow, which proves to me their ignorance of the way things really were.

I really miss the days when car interiors were nice bright attractive colors instead of the dull uninspired gray and tan plastic and cheap fabric of today. Back then the interiors seemed as optimistic as the country itself.

I often wonder if the dull uninspired car interiors have affected the country negatively.

 

thanks this car has a partially hanging black headliner def original and the console is black. the code on the cowl is C-C so i assume white body and no vinyl top or does C mean white vinyl top. any idea on the spacing between the vin numbers.

 

The "C - C" indicates lower and upper body color which, as you state, is provincial white. If you had a vinyl top, the second figure would be a number as follows: 2 = black, 4 = blue, 5 = teal, 6 = parchment, 7 = buckskin, and 8 = gold.

There's nothing wrong with a provincial white car! However, I just seem to recall that most everyone had black vinyl interiors in the late 60s.

Randy C.

 

...and I don't think there's anything wrong with the VIN plate with the spaces, especially with the supporting documentation that you have. It might have been caused an assembly factory procedure. If you get opportunities, check out other '68 F85/Cutlass/442 cars built in Framingham around the time yours was built and see what their VIN plates look like. Also look real close at your VIN plate and check for anything that appears to you that it might have been tampered with. I've seen some with the "3" (at the front of the VIN) separated from the rest of the VIN.

I just looked at mine (a Lansing car) and there aren't any spaces. But, like I said, it just might be a permanent or temporary difference that existed at Framingham.

Randy C.

 

Thanks rcorrigan. I was a little worried since I got the vin and data plate in an envelope with the car but they do match the broadcast sheet. Also the car was painted professionally sometime in the late 70's to a shade of jade gold and then painted red in the 80's, upon close inspection with a buddy today we did find signs of the white but when they painted it green they def did a good job removing most of the paint. I am sure I am being a nervous nelly but the green interior with a black headliner, black dash/glovebox lid and black console seemed odd but then again to much green would have looked odd also. If you get any more info on the vin spacing please let me know. Thanks.

 

Thanks. I just looked at some ebay cars and I found another car and this was just a plain jane cutlass from location Z or G that also had a space in the vin. Prob just some worker or machine for a period of time during 68 or possibly they Olds, tried doing the vins like that for a small period of time.

 

I didn't know that your VIN plate was separated from your car. That throws some shade onto this discussion. I'd continue to look at other VIN plates in the vicinity of your VIN. As well, compare build dates on the cowl data tag of other cars with yours to make sure that your VIN coincides with when the car was built.

I don't know if those VIN plates can be reproduced or not - it seems to me it would be illegal to reproduced them, as well as cowl data tags.

Just sit tight and do comparisons. Over time, you should have a good feel if what you have is right or not.

Randy C.

 

'68 with a Willow Gold interior should have a Med. Gold Metallic console.

It should also have Willow Gold (Chevy called it Ivy Gold) carpet and headliner.

You should post some pics of your car. Sounds like a previous owner did some fixing up with easy to find parts.

BTW, a Provincial White car with a Willow Gold interior looks awesome.

Wait, what makes you think the black headliner is original?

Black dash pad is wrong also, but the Dash Control Panel, including the glove box door should be black. Dash pad and metal lower dash should be Dark Gold Metallic.

 

I am starting to think that someone dyed the console and dash pad or the dash pad was replaced with a black one. This car has def been in the hands of some oddball guys who used lots of filler. Again the headliner is falling and appeared orignal but that to may have been replaced or dyed, car is rough but considering what I paid and it does have a 455, turbo 400 and 12 bolt in it. Also having the broadcast sheet.build sheet is nice and the numbers match the vin and data plate build dates. Just has been in the hands of hackers and it makes the car so much harder to restore correctly.