I am looking at buying a 1972 El Camino. I put money down on it but I would like to know exactly what I am getting. I have owned many Chevelles and Camaros but this is my first El Camino. The car has tags on it from '86 and hasn't been on the road since. It supposed to have 84,000 original miles. The guy that has it has contacted the original owner and that guy says that he bought it brand new as an SS car. The current owner doesn't have any proof of that and so he is not advertising or selling it as such. However, everything I see says it is. The trim tag is as follows;

72 13680 L 01205
704 A51 56 B DX

The interior is all brand new and looks excellent with the headliner still needing to be installed. I varified that it is #'s matching and looks to be never touched. The pollution control parts are all in the right spots and it is a factory A/C car. The car has front disc brakes and a 12 bolt in the rear. The guages are round with it also having the tach. The trim around the taillight are accented black and the grill is black. The car rolls over fine and all the gauges work but we haven't started it yet. The hood is a black GM replacement SS hood so that doesn't say anything positive. It also has the factory 5-spoke '72 SS style wheels. He has all the new GM replacement trim for the car in bags and I am getting the car for $6450. The body looks really straight and the bed looks great. Quick detail and paint and it will be ready to sell.

So what do you think? SS or ???

Welcome to ECC/NECOA Jason. Hope you find what you're looking for on this site.

The only 100% "VIN verified" way to tell a '72 SS is to have a "W" as the fifth digit in the VIN. This would indicate a 454 LS5 motor. The 454 was only available in the SS package. You could buy SS's with the other motors, but could not buy a "Custom" model with just the 454 and not purchase the SS package. That does NOT mean that yours is not a true SS, it just means that the VIN will not help us determine 100%.

Sometimes the build sheet is on top of the gas tank, in the headliner, under the dash, or sometimes in the door. They are usually long gone and are like the "holy grail" of documentation. A good source for info is this article by Dan Carr. Check it out at: http://www.chevelles.com/shop/ss_ident.html

Without seeing the vehicle and just going by your description, I'd say the price is in the "good to very good" range. Especially if you can detail and paint it yourself.

Just my 2 cents worth.

Let us know what you decide and post some pictures.