1972 Corvette Specifications

1972 Corvette dimensions and weights

These are the 1972 car's own figures, read off the factory specification manual further down this page rather than taken from a reference book. Curb weight is the car as it left the line, with fluids and no driver.

Where these figures come from

Page 12 = 'VEHICLE DIMENSIONS-CORVETTE' (GENERAL INFORMATION AND LUBRICATION 0-3); curb weights qualified 'with Base V-8'. Pages 143 and 152 are the bound-in AMA Specifications Form (dated 9/71). The 1972 curb weights are the odd ones in the run: 3292 / 3320 against 3210 / 3220 for 1969-1971, printed to the pound rather than rounded to ten. That is what the page says. Rim size for the standard tire is printed as 15 x 8.

1972 options, quantities and original prices

• A 350 cubic inch, 200 hp engine and a 4-speed manual transmission were included in the base price.
• 1972 is the first year horsepower was quoted in net figures only, which is why a 1972 looks so much weaker on paper than a mechanically similar 1971.
• The anti-theft alarm, an option in earlier years, was included in the base price for 1972.
• This was the only year the 1970 to 1972 LT-1 could be combined with air conditioning. Around 240 were built that way, and they used the base engine's 5600 rpm tachometer rather than the 6500 rpm unit.

1972 engine identification codes

The engine suffix code is stamped on the front of the block, on the pad ahead of the passenger-side cylinder head. Read it together with the VIN to confirm an engine belongs with the car.

Casting and component numbers

• Block: 3970010 (350ci 200 and 255 hp), 3970014 (350ci, late production), 3999289 (454ci 270 hp).
• Cylinder head: 3973487 (350ci 200 and 255 hp), 3998916 (350ci 255 hp), 3998993 (350ci 200 hp), 3999241 (454ci 270 hp).
• Alternator: 1100950 (350ci), 1100543 (454ci), 1100544 on all cars with air conditioning.

The full casting number breakdown per engine, including intake and exhaust manifolds, is on the casting number page, and the carburetor numbers are on the carburetor page.

1972 horsepower and torque

These are SAE net figures, measured with the engine installed and driving everything it has to drive in the car. They are lower than the gross figures quoted up to 1971 for the same engine, which is a change in how the measurement was taken as much as a change in the engines.

Where these figures come from

'ADVERTISED ENGINE RATING', PDF page 118. First year quoting net only. The figures did not fall because the engines changed; the way of measuring them did.

1972 VIN range

1972 Corvettes ran from 1Z37K2S500001 through 1Z37K2S527004, all built at St. Louis. 1972 is the first C3 year with the 1Z VIN format. For convertibles the third digit is a 6, giving 1Z67. The fifth digit is the engine: K for the 350 at 200 hp, L for the 350 at 255 hp, W for the 454 at 270 hp. The 1972 Corvette VIN decoder breaks down each position, and the trim tag decoder works out roughly when in the year a car was assembled.

1972 production by month

1972 colors

• Which interior trims went with which paint is set out in full on the exterior and interior combination page, along with the trim codes.

1972 axle ratios

The axle code is stamped on the differential carrier housing. The full list for every year is on the axle code page.

What changed for 1972

• Last Corvette with front and rear chrome bumpers, the bright egg-crate grille and the side fender grilles.
• Last year for the removable rear window offered since 1968.
• The fibre-optic light monitoring system was dropped.
• Last year for RPO LT1 and RPO ZR1 in this generation.

What the manual covers

The 1972 book runs 163 pages and includes the General Motors 1972 VIN system chart, which is useful well beyond the Corvette, along with the usual specification, lubrication and body sections.

For part numbers and exploded illustrations rather than specifications, the parts manuals are the companion set. Other model years are on the specification manuals page.