250,000th Serial Number?

[Jamie F.]

The 250,000 Corvette, a Riverside Gold '69 built on November 19, 1969. Does anyone know what the VIN is on that car?
Thanks!

[Wayne M.]

Re: 250,000th Serial Number?

The 250,000 Corvette, a Riverside Gold '69 built on November 19, 1969. Does anyone know what the VIN is on that car?
Thanks!

By adding each year from 1953 thru 1968, then subtracting from 250,000, you get 34,455.

Caveat: this is assuming 23,562 was the total production of 1965. Now known that 23,564 is the true #, making the 1/4 millionth Corvette VIN # ...34453.

[Jamie F.]

Re: 250,000th Serial Number?

Thanks Wayne, but I think the math is a couple thousand off. This car was built on 11/19 and my car has a trim tag date of 11/20 with vin 36168. So I don't think they made more than a couple hundred cars a day?

[Wayne M.]

Re: 250,000th Serial Number?

Thanks Wayne, but I think the math is a couple thousand off. This car was built on 11/19 and my car has a trim tag date of 11/20 with vin 36168. So I don't think they made more than a couple hundred cars a day?

Jamie -- unless someone can prove my math wrong (a simple exercise of adding 16 numbers then subracting that total from 250,000), then I would humbly suggest that the error is in the [once mentioned, oft reprinted ] date of 19th November 1969.

Open to others' math checks .

[Terry M.]

Re: 250,000th Serial Number?

I believe around the time of our National Convention in Warren MI, there was a brief mention of the 250,000 and other numerical "benchmarks" in The Restorer. The serial number was published there. There was also an article dealing with the issue of the count to get to those benchmarks. I think around the time of that convention the one-millionth Corvette was produced, and that was the trigger for those articles.

Implicit in your efforts to assign a date that car exited the assembly line is the assumption that ALL Corvettes exited the line in consecutive VIN order. For cars like these benchmark units that is not necessarily the case.

Note to Bloomington Gold lawyers: I use the term benchmark in lower case to denote those Corvettes marked as quarter-million, half-million, three-quarters million, one million, and so on. There is no attempt to infringe on your service mark.

[Wayne M.]

Re: 250,000th Serial Number?

I believe around the time of our National Convention in Warren MI, there was a brief mention of the 250,000 and other numerical "benchmarks" in The Restorer. The serial number was published there. There was also an article dealing with the issue of the count to get to those benchmarks. I think around the time of that convention the one-millionth Corvette was produced, and that was the trigger for those articles.

Implicit in your efforts to assign a date that car exited the assembly line is the assumption that ALL Corvettes exited the line in consecutive VIN order. For cars like these benchmark units that is not necessarily the case.

.

Terry & Jamie -- I went back to my pile of Restorers, and in the Fall 1991 issue (Vol 18 # 2) John Amgwert presents a table of yearly production in order to estimate the VIN of the upcoming millionth. His math indicated it would be the 19,614th 1977 model, and I believe he was correct. But I can't find anything within a year either way of that Restorer issue that mentions VIN # of the 250,000th or any other numerical milestones -- would appreciate if someone could pinpoint it for me. Warren MI Nat'nl was summer 1992, right ?

OK, bear with me as I use the same math method for the 1/2 millionth, which we know via GM press release on 15th March 1977 is VIN 1Z37X7S426583. This announcement was reproduced in Vette Vues April issue.

From SOP 1953 to EOP 1968 the total is 215,545 Corvettes, which subtracted from 250,000 equals 194679S734455, the Riverside Gold convertible. I don't really care if it came off the line November 7th or 19th.

Continue the addition of the numbers SOP 1969 thru EOP 1976 and add to the 215,545 above, and we get 473,417 (already corrected by J.A. for the block of 4000 missing VIN tags in 1973). subtract 473,417 from 500,000 and BINGO, we get 26,583, the EXACT VIN that Chevrolet provides. This car came off the line at around 2pm on the 15th March.

I really don't believe that Chevrolet thought the 1/4 millionth was such a big deal (ie. no birthday cake; no white on red colors).

Of course, all the above based on 2 fewer '65s being produced than in actual fact. But who's to quibble ?

[Terry M.]

Re: 250,000th Serial Number?

The 250,000 Corvette, a Riverside Gold '69 built on November 19, 1969. Does anyone know what the VIN is on that car?
Thanks!

My records show the 250,000 Corvette was off the end of the line on November 7, 1969. A Friday. I can't tell you where I got this info -- my listing doesn't tell me that, and I don't have a SN for it, but I could approximate it for you if you want.