VCCA Home Forums GENERAL DISCUSSION General Discussions What is the difference between a 1971 Chev and 1972 Chev Pickup

I have a 1971 Chev pi up and noticed they are similar to 1972. How can I find out the differences between those year.

Welcome to this site!

You maybe able to pick out the differences shown here on the GM Heritage site. Normally they explain what is new compared to the prior year but I did not find that in a quick look.

Dave

https://www.gmheritagecenter.com/do...hevrolet-Trucks/1972-Chevrolet-Truck.pdf

When new one obvious difference was the rear view mirror mounting. In ”˜71 they were mounted on the valance above the windshield. In ”˜72, the mirror was mounted on the windshield glass. There were differences in how the inside door handles were styled and mounted as well, but my recollection is too foggy to state what they were. As I recall there was a decal on the left rear top on the outside of the tailgate that was about 31/2” long and about 3/4 inches wide the said “Disc Brakes”. I think it was a light yellow color with black letters. There were other subtle differences as well, but memory fails me...again.

The 1971 and 1972 pick-up trucks look very similar because there was not a major model change between those 2 years. Chevy used the same body style from 1967 through 1972. The next new model was introduced 1973.

The key is what level of detail you are looking for when you compare the 2 years.

Each year there were differences as a result of such things as new features for marketing purposes, emission requirements, supplier changes, and cost reduction.

I expect that there are many parts that will fit between the years. From a service perspective I expect there are new for 1972 parts that will fit prior years. However earlier year parts might not work for a 1972.

The 1972 had no black paint on the borders of the grille, door panels had built-in arm rests,

To be a bit more specific about Gene's post, the door panels were molded to include the arm rests in '72. Prior years had metal door panels with the arm rest attached. The disk brake decal mentioned was a'71 item, I believe, as they were introduced in '71 as standard equipment.
The doors are different for '72 only. They have a dimple and phillips head screw just below the vent window divider on the interior upper sheet metal. The engine oil fill location was moved from drivers side to passenger side for '72.
I have '71 and '72 K10s. I have driven them about 250,000 miles, collectively. These are things I have observed in addition to the items mentioned in earlier posts.

Mike