73 grill 'painted or Chrome'???

[corvetjerryd]

Hey guys,
I started striping my '73' for a new paint job and I noticed that the grills were painted flat black but when I scrapped the black paint off the top of the bars they were Chrome underneth.So I wonder if anybody out there knows what they are supposed to look like???? Or better yet a good pic. of a correct one.
Thanx for any help you can give,this is my 1st post.......

 

[Tom73]

The 73 grills are flat black with chrome leading edges. Same grill was also used for 74 but they were all flat black without any chrome.

tom...

 

[corvetjerryd]

Thanx for reply tom73,
I checked out the '73 spot' but couldn't find any real good pics. or info. on this subject ....I didn't think G.M. would hide their chrome on purpose. Thanx again for your help

 

[Tom73]

This is one of the best pics that I know of but it is still not that good. Link

I hate to say it but, personaly, I perfer the all black of 74. That all black is also easier to care for.

tom...

 

[corvetjerryd]

That is a pretty good picture of it .
I understand what its supposed to look like now. Your probally right about the black,thats why it is black now I'll bet ya'....
I need to strip it anyway, we'll see how good of shape the chrome is, then I'll decide what i'll do with it.

 

[Vettehead Mikey]

Hold everything! There were two versions of the grills in '73. If your car was built VERY late in the production year , (after approx. mid to late June 1973), your grills are supposed to be flat black all over.

Some versions in late '73, early '74 are painted black over chrome, later versions are painted black directly on the metal.

Though you would like to know.

 

[vettte_wings]

Painted or Chrome.....

The 1973 was a transitional model, in terms of appearance. Due to Federal mandate, front bumpers had to withstand a 5mph impact without damage to the lights and any safety equipment. Accordingly, the Corvette's front was lengthened and the bumper was painted body color. The rear bumpers were essentially unchanged from 1972.

Other visual changes included the elimination of the panel that hid the windshield wipers and the addition of a redesigned hood with cold air induction. Non visual changes included the addition of sound deadener material and new chassis mounts designed to reduce noise and vibration. The rear window was also not removable in 1973 but the change did yield extra interior room.

Other improvements included the use of radial tires for the first time.

On the other hand, engine availability was reduced to just three engines- the standard 350 c.i. V-8 was now rated at only 190hp. The optional L82 350 c.i. V-8 was rated at 250hp with the LS4 454 c.i. V-8 rated at 275hp.

New for 1973 was the Z07 Off Road Suspensuion and Brake Package. Available only with the two optional engines, it included heavy duty front and rear power brakes and firmer suspension components. The M21 close-ratio transmission was a required option.

The FE7 gymkhana suspension package, which was included with the Z07 package, comprised of firmer springs and front anti-sway bar.

The 1973 was supposed to have a new optional cast aluminum wheel but due sealing problems, only four Corvettes were so equipped. The wheel was eventually reintroduced on the 1976 Corvette.

Production of the LS4 454 c.i. V-8 amounted to 4,412 units.

 

[Tom73]

Hold everything! There were two versions of the grills in '73. If your car was built VERY late in the production year , (after approx. mid to late June 1973), your grills are supposed to be flat black all over.

Some versions in late '73, early '74 are painted black over chrome, later versions are painted black directly on the metal.

Though you would like to know.

The NCRS Judging Guide states "The grilles are painted a semi-gloss black with the leading edge paint removed in 1973 to expose the chrome. The grilles are completely semi-gloss black in 1974." No mention of any special exception for late 73's. So ALL 73s should have the chrome leading edges.

tom...

 

[TRW]

I have a late 73 (July) that I purchased with 9,600 miles and it has the chrome leading edge.

Terry

 

[corvetjerryd]

Hey Guys
I just went out and checked my numbers and the seq.serial number is 05371. So that should put it among the first half of the production run ???? The door plate code is C23.
My grills are chrome painted black and seem to be some kind of metal, aluminum or pot metal.

 

[Tom73]

I just went out and checked my numbers and the seq.serial number is 05371. So that should put it among the first half of the production run ???? The door plate code is C23.

Wow, yours came down the line only 283 ahead of my LS4 coupe. My trim plate is C25 (Oct 25, 1972). Ours are third month of production.

tom...

 

[Vettehead Mikey]

The NCRS Judging Guide states "The grilles are painted a semi-gloss black with the leading edge paint removed in 1973 to expose the chrome. The grilles are completely semi-gloss black in 1974." No mention of any special exception for late 73's. So ALL 73s should have the chrome leading edges.

tom...

That's not the only mistake in the Judging guide Tom. First time I OJ'd on '73-74s at a National , one of the cars we did (late June '73) had the black grills. I was bowled over when the team leader confirmed that this was indeed correct. My own car was built on July 5th '73 and came with the black grills. I mistakenly replaced them with the chrome grills thinking this was the correct configuration.

Another mistake for the '73s in the judging manual is no mention of intake manifold 340261. This manifold has been seen on quite a few late cars, my own included. I believe Marvin will include this in the next revision.

Don't take what the guides say as gospel, anyone who judges will tell you that there are errors and omissions in all of them.

 

[waterboy1976]

All you NCRS guys, cover your ears (eyes)......I had my 73 grills totally chrome plated last year both sides and the middle one and they look absolutely Sweet.....just and idea.................

 

[corvetjerryd]

Hey Tom73 Those numbers are pretty close together as far as assembly line numbers go.How many cars do you think they built in a day/week? You got the 454 version huh....Sweeeeeet.... Thats one thing that would make mine a little better.
Hey waterboy76 Those soild chrome grills sound interesting ,do you have pic. you can post where I might have a look at that???
I striped the paint off my grills tonight and the chrome is in pretty bad shape. so i'm not sure what to do with them yet.

 

[Tom73]

How many cars do you think they built in a day/week?

In Oct 72 they built 2,515. So if you figure 22 work days, that would be about 114 a day.

tom...

 

[tx73vette]

Hey Tom73 what number would mine be if my vin # is 1z37js417379 was just wondering on my 73.

Thanks for the info

 

[Tom73]

Hey Tom73 what number would mine be if my vin # is 1z37js417379 was just wondering on my 73.

Yours was the 17,379 Vette in the 73 model year. It would have been built during March of 73.

By the way, you are missing one number in the VIN. Should be a "3" between the "J" and the "S".

tom...

 

[tx73vette]

You are right Tom73 Its too early in the morning for me ....
Thanks for the information

Daniel

PS By the way you have a pic of my Vette in your 73 Spot.

Thanks

Daniel

 

[Tom73]

Re: Exactly..

But just because some later cars came with black grills, it is faulty logic to assume some didn't. And this is a major problem with some NCRS judges.

This is an assembly line. The guy putting on the grills doesn't really care if he takes the first part or the last part in the bin. And if an old bin comes in after three new bins are used up, he doesn't say "SORRY WE'VE STOPPED USING THE OLD ONES", chuck 'em out. He grabs what's easiest at a particular moment. End of story. And what if the car is pulled off the line before completion, but after the grills are on....what.. this doesn't happen???... PLEASE! This is exactly why NCRS gives a six month leeway on date coded parts.

What usualy happened at the end of the model year was not an offical change in the part. They would run out of a current year part, so rather than reorder and slow down or stop the production line, they would just start to use the next year parts which was already in stock. My guess would be that that may have happened to the 73. Chevy did not officaly change the grill. Just that they ran out of the 73 grill towards the end of the model run. Then to make life easy they just tapped into the 74 grill supply since they were identical parts as far as fit and installation.

I have never seen or heard of a factory "change order" for the 73 grill so must assume that it was something the production line did on their own.

So let me throw this out, if there was no "change order" then any 73 with all black grills is incorrect as the factory grill had chrome leading edges. So all black is incorrect for 73, UNLESS the owner can prove that the car came from the factory with the incorrect grills. Just a thought. Flame suit on, just don't get personal, okay?

tom...

 

[Vettehead Mikey]

Won't be me getting personal or aggressive/borderline obnoxious, I see that position has already been filled by somebody else on this board. I guess every site has at least one.

My point in all of this is that late cars that are known to be untouched originals have been seen with black grills. The exact change over date is not yet known, so NCRS would accept either type.

I had thought that possibly the original poster had discovered a set of all blacks on his car and assumed that they were incorrect, same mistake I made.

I believe your theory of how and why the parts changed over is correct.