1975 Corvette Specifications

1975 options, quantities and original prices

• A 350 cubic inch, 165 hp engine and a 4-speed manual transmission were included in the base price.
• The last 1975 convertible was built during the last week of July 1975, and for eleven years it was thought to be the last Corvette convertible of all.
• 1975 offered the smallest choice of optional engines since 1955, and it was the first year since 1964 that only one displacement was available.

1975 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, used for both the 165 hp and 205 hp 350.
• Cylinder head: 333882, used for both the 165 hp and 205 hp 350.
• Carburetor: Rochester Quadrajet 7045222 and 7045223 (165 hp), 7045210 and 7045211 (205 hp).
• Alternator: 1100544 with air conditioning and 1100950 without, replaced in late production by 1102474 and 1102484.

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.

1975 VIN range

1975 Corvettes ran from 1Z37J5S400001 through 1Z37J5S438465, all built at St. Louis. For convertibles the third digit is a 6. The fifth digit is the engine: J for the 350 at 165 hp, T for the 350 at 205 hp. The VIN decoder breaks down each position, and the build date decoder works out roughly when in the year a car was assembled.

1975 production by month

1975 colors

• Paint quantities do not always add up to total production, because some cars were built with non-standard paint or left in primer only.
• Which interior trims went with which paint is set out in full on the exterior and interior combination page, along with the trim codes.

1975 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 1975

• Catalytic converters appeared for the first time. The dual exhausts were routed into a single converter, then split again for a dual exit.
• The soft bumpers were restructured. The front gained an inner honeycomb core and simulated pads on the exterior, and the rear became a one-piece skin with inner shock absorbers, where 1974 used a two-piece unit.
• High Energy Ignition arrived, the first Corvette distributor without points. It required an electronically driven tachometer.
• Hood emblems designating the L82 engine appeared for the first time.
• Speedometers gained kilometre-per-hour subfaces, and 1975 was the first year with a headlight-warning buzzer.
• The headlight washer system was dropped.

What the manual covers

The 1975 book runs 105 pages and carries the specification sections, the vehicle dimensional drawings, the complete vehicle maintenance schedule, the lubrication chapter and a full emission controls section, which had grown considerably by this point.

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.