1967 GMC RPO Codes

[mcca5773]

I'm trying to rebuild the RPO label on my 1967 GMC. I have the build sheet to go off of, but it's been a bear to get information.

[Steeveedee]

Look here-

http://outintheshop.com/options.html

[mcca5773]

Thank you. I've used that site previously to get where I'm at now. I'm looking specifically for 1967-1969 GMC SPID labels. I checked out the RPO forum and there's a lot of variance after 1970.

[special-K]

Let us know what you are stuck on and maybe we can help.

BTW, great truck you're working with!

[dagnabbitt]

I always find it interesting that you guys in Alaska have trucks built in Fremont instead of, say, Canada. Like you wouldn't need a block heater as badly as we do.

The RPOs seems quite legible to me, what do you need help with?

Lots of knowledgeable people on this site, just ask a question. Great looking truck.

[mcca5773]

A friend of mine has a clone from the same plant. I'm trying to recreate the RPO codes as they should have been. Some changes in verbiage from the build sheet to the SPID. I've got all of the 3 digit codes, but I'm trying to complete to 5 digits. Also found a 1967 GMC Suburban that the RPO to 7 digits. The areas that are highlighted are missing information or haven't been confirmed from a SPID.

['68OrangeSunshine]

Originally Posted by dagnabbitt

I always find it interesting that you guys in Alaska have trucks built in Fremont instead of, say, Canada. Like you wouldn't need a block heater as badly as we do.

The RPOs seems quite legible to me, what do you need help with?

Lots of knowledgeable people on this site, just ask a question. Great looking truck.

A truck built in Fremont, California only has to be shipped by sea north.
A truck built in Oshawa, Ontario has to be shipped west by rail to BC, then embarked north to Alaska.
When it arrives there it's an Import.
Block Heaters were not standard equipment out of Fremont, true. I imagine the Anchorage Chevy dealer did a land office business installing them.

I worked a few fishing boats in [and out of-] Cordova, AK in the summer of '88. [Halibut, Salmon.] I was surprised at the number of older Chevy trucks there. Mostly of the '67-'72 vintage, which stood out to me since I owned a '68 C/10 Stepside [and still have it.]
Most if not all had a cracked windshield.
I asked one of the Locals about it. Oh yeah, they get covered with snowdrifts all winter and people walk all over where the vehicles are, he said. Cordova, it should be noted is cut off from the interior by glaciers. Only access is by Sea or Air. There was a road over the glacier once, but since they had to rebuild it every summer due to spring run-off erosion, they quit bothering.
Any cars or trucks in or out of Cordova go by ferry.

Cordova is situated on the East end of the Prince William Sound. East by Southeast of Valdez, AK. When the tanker Exxon Valdez spilled her guts on the Sound in 1989, that killed the catchment area. I never went back.

[dagnabbitt]

This is a good thread to look through if you have not found it already.

A sampling of 1967-68 Fremont trucks in the thread all have seven digit RPO codes that started with "04", and might have looked like the below.

04D32AA LH SRT RV MIRROR
04Z52AA FOAM SEAT
04M20CJ 4 SPD TRANSMISSION
04C42AA DELUXE AIR HEATER
04D36AB NON GLARE MIRROR
04760BA HVY DTY BATT
04600AB BLACK VINYL TRIM

I'm not sure if this is helpful: for example, there are a couple distinct codes for the M20 transmission. Given that your GMC may have never had a SPID at all I am not sure how exact you want to be.

[special-K]

Originally Posted by mcca5773

A friend of mine has a clone from the same plant. I'm trying to recreate the RPO codes as they should have been. Some changes in verbiage from the build sheet to the SPID. I've got all of the 3 digit codes, but I'm trying to complete to 5 digits. Also found a 1967 GMC Suburban that the RPO to 7 digits. The areas that are highlighted are missing information or haven't been confirmed from a SPID.

That first SPID has got to be the most descriptive I've seen. Even the TH400 is specified. The five digit codes is a thing I'm not familiar with. I don't know if, but would assume, they are standardized. Always the same two additional digits. That "Show Us Your SPID" thread offered by Dagnabbit should help you

[mcca5773]

I guess as close to correct as I can be. All great resources. Thank you. Mine is really early. December 1966. I feel lucky for the low serial number and a lot of original parts. It’s been a scavenger hunt here in Alaska to put split rims together. So many repairs for mostly neglect and shady maintenance.
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[mcca5773]

Thank you. I’m really looking forward to making it more road worthy and having all the systems functional. I’ve had a lot of fix one thing and find a other problem. Just got the 305v6 running after two years down.
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[mcca5773]

These trucks just exist all over the place. So many classic cars too. On my shelf, I’ve got a 1967 speed warning cluster from a 1967 Chevy. Donor d445f. Extra transmission and Rockwell transfer case. I grab anything I can find that is 67-68 specific.

The spring time and cracked windshields is no joke. Using gravel instead of salt on the road is part of the issue. I’ve gotten 4 chips that were able to be repaired in the last 3 months. The wife’s windshield looks like a spider web.
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[special-K]

What they called 'bug deflectors', they used to sell for trucks, were called gravel shields when they first came out as I recall. I guess most of the population lives where roads are paved so they figured they'd sell more calling them bug deflectors.

[Keith Seymore]

A few clarifications:

The RPO code is the three digit code. ie - "M20" is the code for the transmission. These codes are still in use today.

The "leading" characters or digits are just dummy placeholders and can be disregarded. ie "04M20" doesn't mean anything and doesn't change anything.
So basically there is no such thing as a "7 digit" RPO code.

The following characters are the "Exception Control Letter". They modify the RPO and provide additional detail, but not down to part number level. Think of them as a "bridge" between the RPO and the specific part number required.

https://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/...hlight=corvair

https://chapters.corvair.org/corvana...ndTrimECLs.php

So, for example, you might have an engine code with a suffix like LS9AA, which distinguishes between a particular engine with a standard clutch vs an optional HD clutch.

Or, for a transmission, M20AB might be a different speedo gear than M20AC, for use with a different rear axle.

Apparently this extra definition wasn't worth the effort, since by the time I started in 1979 the ECL had fallen into disuse. SPIDs from that timeframe carry another set of dummy placeholders in those spots or are not printed at all.

Unfortunately, these codes were not saved for posterity and so it is not likely that they can be replicated accurately. If you can find another SPID with the same content you can use those, or you can make something up because there won't be anyone or any way to prove differently.

K

[mcca5773]

Thanks for filling in the gaps. It makes perfect sense. What I'm seeing is that the numbers evolved as the production line advanced. 04 or any other early 1967 number for GMC would be the Freemont Plant. Later in the year they dropped off the 0 and in the successive years dropped off the plant number altogether.

I think you're onto something in going from a 5 to a 3 digit code and the part number correlation. The 1967 suburban above had a Z61RH for the Custom Appearance and pickup a Z61DG. You think that might have been in 1969-1970 when GMC and Chevy started to standardize their products more?

[Keith Seymore]

Originally Posted by mcca5773

Thanks for filling in the gaps. It makes perfect sense. What I'm seeing is that the numbers evolved as the production line advanced. 04 or any other early 1967 number for GMC would be the Freemont Plant. Later in the year they dropped off the 0 and in the successive years dropped off the plant number altogether.

I think you're onto something in going from a 5 to a 3 digit code and the part number correlation. The 1967 suburban above had a Z61RH for the Custom Appearance and pickup a Z61DG. You think that might have been in 1969-1970 when GMC and Chevy started to standardize their products more?

Yes - by 1973 Chevrolet and GMC were the same.

X88 = Chevrolet Nameplate identification

Z88 = GMC Nameplate Identification.

So - a GMC was a Chevy with RPO Z88 (or vice versa, depending on your preference).

K

[MJN]

Originally Posted by mcca5773

I'm trying to rebuild the RPO label on my 1967 GMC. I have the build sheet to go off of, but it's been a bear to get information.

Its hard for me to see but in the bottom left corner is that the 'delivered to' or 'charged to' dealer address? It looks like it was originally a Maine truck?

[mcca5773]

The dealer that bought it is a little bit of a mystery. The state abbreviation looks like it ends with an N, but a city named Kent with an 11** block of what looks like W. Meeker Street finds me in Kent Washington. That's a proximity of Fremont, California. I'm definitely interested if anyone can find out anything else.

[HO455]

Since the days of the Klondike gold rush the transportation of goods to Alaska has been required to pass through the Port of Seattle/Tacoma. A legalized form of taxes levied on Alaska that the city of Seattle got the federal government to make into law back then.

So for the most part all vehicles came from the main land US factories and passed through the Ports of Seattle/Tacoma before heading to their final destination in Alaska.

Another way vehicles made their way to Alaska was via fishing boats. The majority of Alaskan fishing vessels spend the off season in Puget Sound where they get maintenance performed. To help offset those costs fishermen will load their boat up with all new vehicles they can fit then sell them for a profit. And sell them for less than a local Alaskan dealership could sell it for.

I've seen boats depart for Alaska with a dozen or more new trucks lashed down on deck.

Finding a truck coming from a Kent Washington dealership in Alaska is perfectly logical. I'd bet it was probably sold as part of a package deal with 3 or more trucks.