Build moth

[TURBOV8R]

Is there a way to tell w/out the luxury of the door jamb tag being readable what the month of manufacture was?I recall reading that the T type production was ended earlier in '87 than the GN's.Was the same true for the WE4 cars?

 

[turbofish38]

Sure there is. Just look at the cowl tag. There is a build date stamped on it. Here is a tag from a 86 GN. In the upper left corner is the build date. This one reads G02B which translates to
G=1986(H=1987)
02=February
B=Second week

Everything is alphanumeric so it's easy to decipher.

Now there is also a build date on the frame and from what I've researched it is usually with in a couple of days of what the cowl tag says. It is stamped on the rear crossmember facing towards the rear bumper in the area of the upper rear control arm mounting hole. You will need to clean the undercoat and rust to read it. This one is frame a 83 T-Type and reads 7-20-82. The 14059167 is the part number and the JA is the frame code which is also found if you look in the rear wheel house. On the 86-87 TR this code will be HS.

 

["Turbo-T"]

Perhaps there's a hidden build sheet in the car somewhere?

 

[Yankee John]

Great info!

I just found out my '87 GN's code is H11B, which translates to the second week in November, 1987. One of the late-built GN's I guess.

John

 

[RobS]

Highjacked!!!!
My car's tag says G10D. I believe that means last week of October 1985 (1986 model). Yankee Johns code is H11B. Was his car made in November 1986 or 1987?

 

[salvageV6]

H means 1987 as Eric mentioned.

H03E for the GN, H06A for the WE4.

 

[TURBOV8R]

Cool thanks! Looks like the 4th week of February on mine.What are the other #'s for? 4GJ47 that one I know,then theres a small "p" imprint and then 6 number's afterward.Second line is the paint code then theres the 3rd line of 82B__AR9

 

[RobS]

H means 1987 as Eric mentioned.

I understand H refers to the 1987 model year. However, GM was making 1987 cars in 1986. SO for a 1987 GN, how do you tell if it was made 11/86 or 11/87? I thought the 1987's were made up to 1/88.

 

[RobS]

What are the other #'s for? 4GJ47

4= Buick G= G-body J= 2 door coupe 47= body vin code

 

[salvageV6]

The numbers on the cowl tell you when it was made.

What year model it was sold as would be on the window sticker I guess and title/sales paperwork.

H11 was built in Nov. 1987.

G11 would be built in Nov. 1986 and still be an 87 model.

 

[RobS]

Mr. Salvage, With all due respect sir. My cowl tag is on a 1986 grand national. It says G10D. 4th week October 1986. But, I bought it used with 12,000 miles in November 1986. It was the day after thanksgiving. I was told the car was a year old. I no longer have the door sticker but it said the build date was 11/85. It seems near impossible to put 12,000 miles on a car in 3 weeks. So I believe it is a 1986 model year built in 1985 and the G in my example would indicate MODEL year not BUILD year. Then, if the above is correct, 1987 model year would have 2 Decembers, 2 Novembers, 2Octobers etc. because 1987's were made all the way up to 1-88. So this leads me back to my orignal question, how do you tell a 1987 model built in late 1986 from a 1987 model built in late 1987?

What year model it was sold as would be on the window sticker I guess and title/sales paperwork

Or the 10th vin digit.

 

[salvageV6]

At that point you'd probably have to go by VIN sequence number to tell.

Low number 85 production, high number 86 production.

Shouldn't be too hard to figure out even if some of the documentation is missing

The late '87 built cars all had high VIN sequence numbers.

 

[turbofish38]

Cool thanks! Looks like the 4th week of February on mine.What are the other #'s for? 4GJ47 that one I know,then theres a small "p" imprint and then 6 number's afterward.Second line is the paint code then theres the 3rd line of 82B__AR9

The small "P" means it was assembled in Pontiac MI and the next six is the Fisher Body number which is always different than the VIN sequence.

The 82B is the interior trim code(gray cloth-non GN) and AR9 is the RPO for buckets seats.

If your tag has the letter G than it was built in 1986. Even if it is an 87 model. An early build 86 would have the letter F for 1985. I can't explain why your one month old car would have 12K as it would be almost impossible for the tag to have the wrong info stamped on it if you understand how these cars were built and how that information is used to make the tag. The tag was affixed after the body or tub was assembled at the Fisher Body plant in Flint and before it was loaded on a truck for the trip south down to Pontiac so the body could be easily identified by the line workers. At this point I would double check the info on the tag to make sure it is correct. The body number should jive with the number on the SPID label in the trunk. Are you sure you have an 86 GN? I would think with a build date of October you should have an 87 there. The 10th character would be the letter H if it is an 87 model year.

 

[salvageV6]

Actually on page 0A-2 of the service manual it states the first digit is simply model year of the car.

G for 1986 Regal

H for a 1987

So you simply go by VIN sequencing at that point to determine which october, nov. or dec. for the 87 cars it was built.

Damm Eric you had to post to make me correct myself.

Rob's car should be an '86 model built in '85 oct.

Other 3 digits are definately the date code.

 

[TURBOV8R]

The small "P" means it was assembled in Pontiac MI and the next six is the Fisher Body number which is always different than the VIN sequence.

PHHEEEWWW!Thought for a minute it was supposed to match the VIN sequence, was watching my #'s matching thoughts fade away

 

[RobS]

My info looks like its an 86 GN (I hope).

 

[TURBOV8R]

Wow,this really is strange!But if it helps any my WE4 build # starts in the 3's,far off from yours in the 2's.Another thought I worked at Edison assembly,we began building the next year model @Sept.-Oct the PREVIOUS year.The pilots were destroyed,but the regular builds were sold after December as the following year vehicles.Perhaps you do in fact have an '86 built early in '85.The only way I think you can verify this would be to compare build VIN #'s of cars around the same time frame to see if the sequence coincides with the month.If not perhaps they did designate the first digit as the model year under certain circumstances,but then again if a recall issue would occur they would need exact info on the month date and year of finished manufacture.This is driving me nuts,and sorry if it seems like I'm thinking out loud with this post but very interesting stuff and I'll bet theres a simple answer.

 

[RobS]

About 18 years ago, I removed my left door pannel and found my build sheet in the left door. I thought 'keep it stock' and reistalled it back in the left door. Shortly there after, somebody backed into my car. The left door was replaced. In one swoop, my build sheet and door stickers were gone. I wish I could go back in time and get that build sheet back. Since the car is used, I don't have a window sticker. I have owned my car for 22 years and I have very little data about my car. I guess its time to call GM of Canada and see what info they have.

 

[t3intercooled]

H06D Is mine Which means Built in the 4th week of June in 1987...

 

[54Rich]

I thought I had a dec 86 build on my 87, but looking at this thread I guess not:

H12C = 3rd Week of Dec 87? Yet the body number is 0517XX and the vin is 4235XX.

Does this sound right?