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I would like add a comment or two to Rolf Krueger's very informative posting on the '71 parking lamp lenses. I purchased an original and untouched '72 LT-1 coupe in 1976 and the magnesium die cast grilles that housed the amber parking lamp lenses did in fact have the provision for the fibre optic system. This was a very early '72, VIN 1Z37L2S500775.
In all likelyhood, the folks in St. Louis were using up the remaining '71 parts. The provision for the fibre optic system consisted of a transparent, amber coloured plastic nipple that entered the grille housing on the parking lamp's reflective surface.
As the chrome on the grilles was very poor quality I decided to have them re-chromed, along with the front and rear bumpers, plus any other chrome part I was able to remove over the winter. I was told that these grille assemblies were cast magnesium by a reputable chrome plating shop, Galaxy Grille in Toronto, ON. (Too bad they've been gone for years as their show chroming work, although very expensive, was definitely World Class) Due to the the nature of the cleaning chemicals that they used, they were unable to re-chrome these parts. The grilles would have "dissolved" in their cleaning tanks. Back in those days it was simply a matter of dropping by the local Chevy store and ordering two new replacements, which I did. When I received the replacements, I noticed that neither of the new ones had the fibre optic provision, which was fine. My '72 was a really great car and I enjoyed owning it for 10 years. The only thing I remember being disappointed on it when I bought it was the fact that it came with point ignition instead of TI. I had a friend who had a '71 LT-1 and his did come with TI. We figured the bean counters at GM decided to pull the plug on that useful option.
Last year I found out that my old car, which I sold in 1986 to buy a house (##??!!**), had been sitting in a garage, deteriorating, for several years. The owner had recently auctioned it in Toronto and it had been taken to the US. I was disappointed, as I had made up my mind to track the car down and buy it back for restoration. So any of you guys or gals out there that are thinking about tracking down and buying back your previously owned car, do it RIGHT NOW, before it's too late. I missed my old car by about 4 months...
Craig Jewett #28049 '67 L-79 A/C coupe.
In all likelyhood, the folks in St. Louis were using up the remaining '71 parts. The provision for the fibre optic system consisted of a transparent, amber coloured plastic nipple that entered the grille housing on the parking lamp's reflective surface.
As the chrome on the grilles was very poor quality I decided to have them re-chromed, along with the front and rear bumpers, plus any other chrome part I was able to remove over the winter. I was told that these grille assemblies were cast magnesium by a reputable chrome plating shop, Galaxy Grille in Toronto, ON. (Too bad they've been gone for years as their show chroming work, although very expensive, was definitely World Class) Due to the the nature of the cleaning chemicals that they used, they were unable to re-chrome these parts. The grilles would have "dissolved" in their cleaning tanks. Back in those days it was simply a matter of dropping by the local Chevy store and ordering two new replacements, which I did. When I received the replacements, I noticed that neither of the new ones had the fibre optic provision, which was fine. My '72 was a really great car and I enjoyed owning it for 10 years. The only thing I remember being disappointed on it when I bought it was the fact that it came with point ignition instead of TI. I had a friend who had a '71 LT-1 and his did come with TI. We figured the bean counters at GM decided to pull the plug on that useful option.
Last year I found out that my old car, which I sold in 1986 to buy a house (##??!!**), had been sitting in a garage, deteriorating, for several years. The owner had recently auctioned it in Toronto and it had been taken to the US. I was disappointed, as I had made up my mind to track the car down and buy it back for restoration. So any of you guys or gals out there that are thinking about tracking down and buying back your previously owned car, do it RIGHT NOW, before it's too late. I missed my old car by about 4 months...
Craig Jewett #28049 '67 L-79 A/C coupe.