Would ANY 68 Buick A-bodies have had red rectangular rear side marker lites? How about the possibility of a 69 plain red marker lite having a 68 date code on it?
that was part of a question of identification for my skylark, dave. it is reged as a 68, and has all the markings and options of a 68 except for the rear marker lights and the vinyl roof line
the most likely responce i got was that someone at some point replaced the rear quarters with aftermarket fenders of which only 69s are made, hence the 69 marker lights. i have the proper 68 markers and have never seen a legit 68 without the round lights.
alot if not all the '69 markers i've seen have '68 date codes on them. I've got a box full in the garage I'll check to verify this weekend. same goes for the fronts
What's the deal with the roof line? First I've heard of 68/69 being different. I believe mine looks the same as yours.... Alan, that seems odd about the 68 date code on 69 lenses, I haven't heard of that happening with any other parts like this.
Your bent on making me climb up into the garage rafters tommorw David .....uzzled: :laugh: I seem to remember ALL the exterior lenses being marked with '68 date codes meaning the front and rear markers as well as the rear lenses. What will be real interesting is if the '69 reverse bumper lense is also marked '68 :Brow: As for the tail light lenses and front markers its understandable - 68 / 69 are identicle wo why make a new mold ?? As to '69 specific lenses dated '68 maybe its when the molds were produced ?? o No: ?? Surely they crank out parts the previous year since next years models usually start production late the previous year Would be interesting to know about say '72 lenses......and if they're coded '71 As for Rtabish's anomoly, Id look for the weld line of a rear quarter replacement - since its got '69 lenses it shouldn't be too hard to find B/C its the weld would have to be ABOVE the marker position. Id also look at more specific 68 /69 things to determin this cars true identity like VIN, Dash style, Steering column / ignition lock (on the dash or in the column.....thick or thin column and coverplate), interior seat and door panel type....etc.etc. I think? by roofline he means the vinyl roof trim and size as 68 / 69 were significantly different
David, your vinyl roof line on the 68 is completely different than the 69 where the moldings contour behind the quarter glass. Yours cuts back in toward the quarter glass whereas the 69 sweeps right on back away from the glass. I do know that the tail light lenses all say 68 on them. The only thing I can say about the marker lenses, is that maybe they used the same mold as the front marker lenses which are common to both years and just changed the material and color. Just me guess.
Ken, thanks for 'splaining the vinyl roof difference. That is one 68 vs 69 diff I hadn't been aware of. It is obvious when you look at pics of both. No need Alan, wouldn't want you to hurt yourself! I wonder if Ken might be right about using the same mold, but I don't think the front marker lenses have the same surface design as the rears. BTW, my license plate light lens cover has an earlier date on it too. It says 64 if I recall, just looked at it last summer.
Too Late now Bud.....now I want to know for myself !!! BTW, did I ever tell you i found the long lost camshaft ?!?!?!?
Nah, but it doesn't sound like it's the way I will want to go with Jim's rebuild anyway. It's likely gonna be a lower-buck rebuild, that won't need much cam. The trick is going to be preventing JW from over-building it, or else I'll have to start saving to beef up the rest of the drivetrain!
I just checked my box of rear marker lights. All of them have 68 molded into the lenses, and there's a 64 on the plate light lens as well.
WoWoW.....I DO !! still have 2 memory-brain cells left after college :laugh: ou: :Brow: Now to check on the tail light lenses and the reverse / bumper lense !!! Please tell me you have them handy Jim.....I dont Wanna crawl up there Its SCARY up there !! I might find more grilles ou: ou:
That was a productive few minutes. I found the '400' side marker lights I've been looking for. 4 plain rear side marker lights - 68 3 '400' rear side markers - 69 2 front side markers - 68 4 tailight lenses - 68 center reverse light, housing and lens marked - 69 1 plate light - 64 1 plate light - 65
if you are interested in the responses i got, the posting i made was titled " what the heck, 68 or 69?" in the bench section back on 11/09/03. SO Dave, it looks like your GS has the proper rear marker lights, what prompted this question, anyway?
Ken, Is that your car or a "file photo"? I remember seeing it and bidding on it on ebay a while back I think? The picture sure looks familiar with that background.
The pic I posted is from an ebay listing, and the seller was calling them 68 marker lites, and said they came off a 68 Skylark. No, I'm not looking at another car, if you were wondering... not yet anyway
I have a 68 , as I notice the major diferences are the reverse light in the bumper for the 69 vs plain bumper for 68 , the front grill is diferent too , the 69's is "separate" in 2 by a horizontal line . That was the 1st time I notice about the vinyl top line . My rear side marker are round as all the 68 I saw , and all 69ers I saw were rectangle . In the inside the starter is on the dashboard for the 68 , in fact this was the only year they were like that (or the last ?)
