1972 Chevy Cheyenne longbed L upside down

[Lavinia]

I currently own a 1972 Chevy Cheyenne long bed truck, it came from Macon Georgia, on the tailgate the L in Chevrolet is upside down, does this give the truck more value? It looks like a factory mistake, but I am not sure. I would appreciate any help with this, thanks.

[Overdriven]

This is pretty common. The really rare and valuable trucks have the "O" upside down.

[davepl]

Originally Posted by Overdriven

This is pretty common. The really rare and valuable trucks have the "O" upside down.

I have two of those, been hoarding them for years. I also have one with the two Es reversed.

[Keith Seymore]

I've seen a few "Ponitac"s in my day, too.

K

[Overdriven]

Originally Posted by davepl

I have two of those, been hoarding them for years. I also have one with the two Es reversed.

Two with the "O" upside down? I need to see pics of this! Are you serious about the "E"'s though?

Seriously though, I can't see the letters being in the wrong orientation doing anything more than being a source of ridicule. It's a mistake, and a stupid one that makes the assembly line worker and subsequent owners look bad for not correcting it. I mean who wouldn't take it back to the dealer when new to get it rectified?

I honestly can't think of any assembly line mistakes that would increase the value of a truck. Maybe an ordering mistake that allowed a combination of options that normally wouldn't have been allowed would increase value. But I'd think that an assembly mistake resulting in subpar quality would generally decrease value.

[jerry moss]

several years ago a friend bought a brand new F-150 that was two tone maroon and gray. it had maroon trim on one side and gray on the other. he never noticed it until i pointed it out and he had owned it for a few months already. he took it back to the dealer and they fixed it for him. guess anything is possible when quality control is hungover, LOL.

[Overdriven]

Originally Posted by davepl

I also have one with the two Es reversed.

Ignore my previous response to your post. I was reading this wrong and now realize you were making the same joke I was. Definite duh moment, just like the assembly line worker had!

[davepl]

Originally Posted by Overdriven

Ignore my previous response to your post. I was reading this wrong and now realize you were making the same joke I was. Definite duh moment, just like the assembly line worker had!

You made it first, it's your joke, I was just piling on at that point! :-)

[tommys72]

guess it could happen, that almost seems like something that shouldnt get dorked up though

[In The Ten Ring]

I'll give you $25K for the truck right now.

I have been told that such things happened on Monday's and Friday's of each work week. I know that US auto makers rather fell apart beginning in 1975 and that lasted into the 1980's (which is when Honda and Toyota really got a foothold here). The screw in the side of Pritch's heater box is a good example of the sort of crap quality control that led to your upside down "L."

[Lavinia]

Factory mistakes on other collectibles make them more valuable, like the beanie baby that was sewn without an eye so now is worth over 100,000 .....yes a beanie baby, and because this mistake was on the tailgate, I thought it may add some more value to it, but no one on this forum seems to know, I mean the truck was from Macon Georgia, even so, I highly doubt mistakes like that happen very often.. do any of you know a real expert or is this site just for smart asses and people who like difficult web-site experiences?

[see ten]

..

[bruceman1968]

Is that a Torx head screw holding the tailgate band on? Can't quite tell from the picture.

[tommys72]

Originally Posted by bruceman1968

Is that a Torx head screw holding the tailgate band on? Can't quite tell from the picture.

Looks like a torx head and being that it looks like someone colored the letters with a black permanent marker, id say someone was screwing around most likely. Doubt that came from the factory like that after looking more now

[72 tigger]

I believe the factory bands retained the letters with a smashed "pin" on the backside. The panel would have had the holes prepunched- I assume- making it impossible to install the L upside down at the factory. Please correct me if I'm wrong

[yuccales]

Originally Posted by Lavinia

do any of you know a real expert or is this site just for smart asses

OK, you found me!

[Overdriven]

Originally Posted by Lavinia

Factory mistakes on other collectibles make them more valuable, like the beanie baby that was sewn without an eye so now is worth over 100,000 .....yes a beanie baby, and because this mistake was on the tailgate, I thought it may add some more value to it, but no one on this forum seems to know, I mean the truck was from Macon Georgia, even so, I highly doubt mistakes like that happen very often.. do any of you know a real expert or is this site just for smart asses and people who like difficult web-site experiences?

You know this is a community. We do everything from share knowledge, show off our trucks, to joking around. Don't judge us just because you're not getting the exact answer you're looking for as fast as you want in the least amount of posts. If we were to judge you by your posts it looks like you're some sort of dealer looking for a pay day. You have no interest in being part of the community, just using us for info in your swindling and then berating us for not complying in a manner of your liking.

Don't know if you noticed but vehicles are not beanie babies. That beanie baby is valuable because it's different from the God knows how many others that were made. Sure we like our vehicles to stand out and be different but for the most part we want them to be right. Subpar quality is not right so assembly mistakes don't increase value. Otherwise the vehicles with body panels that are the most out of alignment would be worth more and restorations wouldn't correct those gaps the way they do. Desirable options, rare combinations of options are the things that increase value. Don't believe us throw your tailgate on eBay (or better yet pay for the privaledge of selling it on this site) and see what happens. If you think our comments are bad, I'd love to see the ones you get on eBay.

[tommys72]

Originally Posted by Overdriven

You know this is a community. We do everything from share knowledge, show off our trucks, to joking around. Don't judge us just because you're not getting the exact answer you're looking for as fast as you want in the least amount of posts. If we were to judge you by your posts it looks like you're some sort of dealer looking for a pay day. You have no interest in being part of the community, just using us for info in your swindling and then berating us for not complying in a manner of your liking.

Don't know if you noticed but vehicles are not beanie babies. That beanie baby is valuable because it's different from the God knows how many others that were made. Sure we like our vehicles to stand out and be different but for the most part we want them to be right. Subpar quality is not right so assembly mistakes don't increase value. Otherwise the vehicles with body panels that are the most out of alignment would be worth more and restorations wouldn't correct those gaps the way they do. Desirable options, rare combinations of options are the things that increase value. Don't believe us throw your tailgate on eBay (or better yet pay for the privaledge of selling it on this site) and see what happens. If you think our comments are bad, I'd love to see the ones you get on eBay.

Well said

[Leonard60]

I bumped into a ladie with a real nice GMC Sierra. I noticed the tailgate was spelled Ceirra I had to ask??? Turns out her name is Ceirra so she found the right letter and font and changed it. I thought pretty cool. And no it's not a factory thing just cool.

[Lavinia]

A mistake in the way the L was put on is cosmetic, that is why I was wondering if it gave the TAILGATE more value, obviously if the brakes were installed backwards or something that would make a vehicle dangerous and wouldn't add value, I am NOT an expert on this kind of thing, that is why I came here to ask, but I got nothing but smart ass responses....not nice!

[bruceman1968]

Originally Posted by Lavinia

A mistake in the way the L was put on is cosmetic, that is why I was wondering if it gave the TAILGATE more value, obviously if the brakes were installed backwards or something that would make a vehicle dangerous and wouldn't add value, I am NOT an expert on this kind of thing, that is why I came here to ask, but I got nothing but smart ass responses....not nice!

I asked you a serious question. Is that a Torx head screw holding the tailgate band on? The assembly plants used Philips head screws. If that is a Torx head screw then your tailgate band has been off and is most likely a repop as some of the repops included Torx head screws as fasteners. You said you got nothing but smart ass responces. Please explain to me what it is about my serious question that you found to be smart ass.

[Keith Seymore]

Originally Posted by Lavinia

, even so, I highly doubt mistakes like that happen very often.. do any of you know a real expert or is this site just for smart asses and people who like difficult web-site experiences?

I've been with GM truck for 38 years in product design/development and vehicle assembly. I've worked in about a dozen GM assembly plants; My first (real) job was as a supervisor on the assembly line in Flint.

No sarcasm here. I can probably sincerely answer any question you can think of.

Mistakes happen. Sometimes there just is no opportunity to error proof - or it's not worth the effort.

They don't add value in our world - if anything they detract. I've got a friend with an original, unrestored '65 GTO (4280 original miles) that was built with the wrong gage cluster bezel and the wrong tail lamp bezel. It has been a source of endless grief for him.

K

[Keith Seymore]

One other thought (relative to letters) -

I have a friend that used to work in a Ford assembly plant.

He installed the "R" and the "D" on the decklid; somebody else installed the "F" and the "O".

I told him "...it's a good thing you didn't work for Studebaker. You'd be wore out at the end of the day..."

K

[DT1]

Originally Posted by Keith Seymore

One other thought (relative to letters) -

I have a friend that used to work in a Ford assembly plant.

He installed the "R" and the "D" on the decklid; somebody else installed the "F" and the "O".

I told him "...it's a good thing you didn't work for Studebaker. You'd be wore out at the end of the day..."

K

That reminds me...In 1975 I bought a new Ford F-100. The hood had "F O R D" in 1 inch block letters across the front. This was about the time that the Carol Burnett show was in full swing. I switched the F and D in honor of Tim Conway's Dorf character.

[raggedjim]

As with any collectable, the value is determined by demand. I have never seen any one actively searching for trucks with improperly installed items. I do see people who believe they have "special" trucks, mostly due to rare options.

It is worth what you can sell it to the next owner, not a penny more. As far as "experts", we don't know much about beanie babies, but this site knows trucks, if anyone in the US (or maybe the world) is looking for the rare reversed L, they will contact you with an offer.

Good luck, Rg