Confirmed Differences
Below is a table of confirmed differences in late model Canadian cars from their U.S. counterparts. Many thanks to Stan East for his excellent article "Late Canadian Stock, Eh?" in the February, 1994 CORSA Communique. His article is the source for the bulk of these items and is based on car #4787, a '66 500 coupe. Other main sources, examined by James Hogarth, Rich Felzer, Bording Ostergaard, Rob Hall, & Kent Sullivan, are the following near-original cars:
1965
- #0011, a Corsa 180 HP convertible (Duane Wentlandt)
- #2635, a Corsa 180 HP coupe (Rob Hall)
- #3402, a Corsa 140 HP convertible (Rob Hall)
- #3920, a Monza 110 HP convertible (Joe MacMurchie)
- #5943, a Monza 110 HP convertible (James Hogarth)
- #7647, a 500 110 HP coupe (Rob Hall)
- #8703, a Corsa 180 HP coupe (Chris King)
- #9543, a Corsa 140 HP coupe (Bording Ostergaard)
1966
- #0053, a Corsa 180 HP coupe with 30,000 original miles (Bording Ostergaard)
- #0771, a Monza 110 HP coupe (David Robinson)
- #2673, a Monza 110 HP coupe with 2,500 original miles (Jim Albert)
- #5533, a Corsa 180 HP convertible (Bob Gilbert)
- #6049, a Monza 140 HP coupe (James Hogarth)
Recent additions are in purple.
Part / Feature |
Differences |
Sources |
Photos |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Air cleaner decal (non-turbo) |
Design unique to Canada and differs from 1965 to 1966 in terms of the content; font also differs slightly |
Exact repro available from James Hogarth (Bob Slusher had the decals reproduced and kept the camera-ready artwork) |
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Back-up light housing |
"Made in Canada" stamped on back side |
Not all Canadian cars had "Made in Canada" housings though, it depended on what source had delivered to the plant. <1/2 likely have Canadian ones |
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Battery cables |
Different part number stamped on negative cable; no part number stamped on positive cable Note: No research has been done yet on cables for RPO T60 (HD battery option) |
Negative cable:
Positive cable: no number stamped |
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Body build sheet |
Different size and format |
Many cars still have them because they were very often put inside the driver's seat upholstery, often in the seat back |
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Body tag |
Design unique to Canada; is painted body color; options are shown using standard RPO codes |
At least two options that appear on '66 U.S. body tags, tinted glass, all (A01) and deluxe seat belts (A39), do not appear on '66 Canadian body tags; At least two options that appear on '66 Canadian body tags, headrest front seats (A82) and 4-speed transmission (M20), do not appear on '66 U.S. body tags; Discrepancies like this were likely due to differences in production responsibilities between the body construction and final assembly lines in U.S. and Canada. |
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Convertible top rear window |
Different logo stamped into rear window |
Different manufacturer and therefore different company name in logo (PC Tri-Lite vs. Regalite). Other info is the same: date code format & care instructions. |
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Dash wiring harness |
Different wire colors; turn signal flasher mounts on fuse block; flasher is made by HCS Ltd. (#1264H) |
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Defroster duct |
No cardboard baffles stapled to the outlets |
Bording Ostergaard, Rob Hall, James Hogarth, Kent Sullivan, Duane Wentlandt |
None of the ducts examined have any traces of the baffles: no cardboard pieces and no stapes or staple holes. Who knows why these were not used in Canada! |
|
Differential case |
Code stamped on forward right side instead of lower left |
This is documented on page 2 of section 0 of the '65 Canadian shop manual but they kept the U.S. picture, which is pretty confusing! The picture has a red box around the code. It's quite hard to see. It runs vertically with the base of the characters pointing to the right (forward in the car). The code is AA0303. The letters look to have been stamped individually and the numbers in groups of two. |
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Distributor cap |
"Made in Canada" stamped on cap |
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Engine compartment interior color |
Painted same color as exterior (body) color |
Gloss level is the same as exterior but not polished |
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Exterior paint |
Was always acrylic enamel rather than acrylic lacquer 1966-specific differences: three more colors available in Canada (18 vs. 15): Blue Charcoal, Cypress Green (same as U.S. '65 color), & Plum Mist; three name differences: "Royal Mist", instead of "Danube Blue", "Laurel Mist", instead of "Willow Green", "Provincial" White, instead of "Ermine" White |
Stan East, Eric Starkey, John Gray, Kent Sullivan, Dave Newell |
At least two of the three colors unique to Canada in 1966 were used on Buicks, Oldsmobiles, and Pontiacs in 1966. That's why GM Canada had them in their paint operation, and went ahead and used them on Chevrolets. |
|
Fuel pump |
Stamped with "Made in Canada" |
Rob Hall found the pump in the pictures at left on a low mileage engine from a '65 Canadian-built Corsa that was wrecked. The engine is quite original; had original spark plug wires, for example. |
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Gas tank |
Where the two halves mate, the corners are rounded rather than right-angle |
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Glass |
Stamped with DCL insignia (regular and tinted) and does not have date code |
DCL stands for Duplate Canada Limited; On tinted glass, "DCL" is replaced with "Shadelite" |
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Headlights |
"Made in Canada" was stamped on back of bulb |
All cars examined had "U.S.A." molded in the glass (front) but some have "Made in Canada" stamped on the back |
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Ignition coil |
Made of aluminum; silver in color; "Made in Canada" in raised lettering |
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Ignition rotor |
Stamped with "Made in Canada" |
Rob Hall found the rotor in the picture at left on a low mileage engine from a '65 Canadian-built Corsa that was wrecked. The engine is quite original; had original spark plug wires, for example. |
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Horns |
Stamped with "Made in Canada" |
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Inner to outer fender support |
Welded on outboard side of flanges on US cars and on inboard side on Canadian cars |
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Jacking sheet |
Design unique to Canada |
Exact repro available from Bording Ostergaard |
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Limited slip differential warning decal |
Design unique to Canada |
Similar design to the polarity warning decal |
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Oil filter |
Bilingual label |
Discontinued by AC in Canada by 2000. James Hogarth ordered a case in 1994 and got only 8 white Canadian ones; rest were blue. |
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Owner's manual |
Many differences, starting with the cover; also available in French |
Check out Andrew's comparison of 1966 U.S. and Canadian manuals |
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Owner protection plan book |
Design unique to Canada—last six digits of VIN were stamped on cover of booklet |
One book was shared among all GM makes in Canada—marque name was stamped on cover |
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Parking light / turn signal housing |
"Made in Canada" stamped on back side |
The stamps are hard to see so they are enclosed in red boxes. |
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Polarity warning decal |
Unique to Canada—no U.S. equivalent |
Exact repro available from Bording Ostergaard |
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Radio |
"Made in Canada" tag affixed to passenger front corner or side |
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Rear view mirror (outside, non-remote) |
Does not have Chevy bowtie |
This is because there was no Chevy division in Canada! |
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Seat belts |
Design unique to Canada (regular and deluxe) |
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Shock absorbers |
"Delco Canada" stamp |
Front shock absorber from #5533 |
1965: "Delco Canada" is in the same size font as part number and date code 1966: "Delco Canada" is in a larger size font than part number and date code |
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Spark plug wires |
Cars 7647 and 2673 have their original wires. 7647's wires are stamped "G. M. Radio" while 2673's wires are stamped "Packard Radio" (identical to U.S. wires) |
It appears that U.S. and Canadian-sourced wires were used interchangeably, based on cars 7647, 2673, and various other 1960-66 Canadian Corvairs examined by Shaun McGarvey and Dave Binnie. |
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Tail light housing |
"Made in Canada" stamped on back side |
Not all Canadian cars had "Made in Canada" housings though, it depended on what source had delivered to the plant. <1/2 likely have Canadian ones |
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Tires, including spare |
Manufactured by Dominion Royal or B.F. Goodrich rather than U.S. Royal |
Car 2673 has its five original tires: B.F. Goodrich Silvertown 660 whitewalls |
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Trunk interior color |
Painted same color as exterior (body) color |
Gloss level is the same as exterior but not polished. Stan says that splatter paint could be ordered as an option—very rare |
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Trunk mat |
Sponge rubber backed coarse weave cloth; looks very similar to the U.S. mat pattern-wise |
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VIN tag |
Number format unique to Canada; "G.M. Canada" stamped on tag, "D.D." stamped on tag |
"D.D." indicated where the dealer was supposed to stamp the date delivered to the customer. No examples exist of this actually being done though. |
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VIN stamp (hidden) |
Has different location: driver's side frame rail on the vertical portion; The numbers are stamped between the gas tank hold down strap mount and the second cage nut area |
N/A |
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Voltage regulator |
"Made in Canada" stamped on lid |
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Wheels |
They were stamped "CANAD" on the inside lip (and also "KELS") |
Note that all Corvair wheels (steel and wire) were made by Kelsey-Hayes. K-H had plants in both the U.S. and Canada. The Canadian plant was in Windsor, ON. Thanks to Dave Newell for this information. |
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Windshield washer refill bottle label |
Different design and part number for both the factory-installed bottle and dealer-installed bottle |
Factory-installed washer bottle label from #3920 |
Part number of factory-installed bottle is 5772464; dealer-installed bottle is 5772465. As in the U.S., the factory-installed bottle and bracket were discontinued for 1966. Exact repro of the dealer-installed bottle label available from Bob Slusher. |
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Unconfirmed Possibilities
Below is a table of unconfirmed possibilities in late model Canadian cars from their U.S. counterparts. Recent additions are in purple.
Part / Feature |
Differences |
Source |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Back-up light bulbs |
They were probably stamped "Made in Canada" |
Bulbs removed from car 1602 had Canadian designation but are probably not original |
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Parking light / turn signal bulbs |
They were probably stamped "Made in Canada" |
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Tail light bulbs |
They were probably stamped "Made in Canada" |
Bulbs removed from car 1602 had Canadian designation but are probably not original |
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Upholstery and carpet |
Cardboard tag that hung off a bucket seat—looks like upholstery was made in Windsor—no exterior difference |
Colors available varied slightly from the U.S. |
Confirmed non-Differences
Below is a table of confirmed non-differences in late model Canadian cars from their U.S. counterparts. Recent additions are in purple.
Part / Feature |
Source |
Notes |
|---|---|---|
Air filter |
Car 2673 has its original filter but nowhere is there a stamp indicating place of manufacture |
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Alternator |
Cars 0053 & 2673 have their original alternators but nowhere is there a stamp indicating place of manufacture |
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Battery |
Canadian parts books indicate same Delco part #s ("555" and "569" [HD]) |
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Fan belt |
Car 2673 has its original belt and it does not include the place of manufacture; Bording and Stan have some G.M. replacement belts that include "Canada" in verbiage written on package and have "GM 3780981", then a "1" inside a circle, followed by "28" or a "97" stenciled on the belts |
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Glovebox stickers (tire pressure & engine warning) |
Cars 0053 & 2673 have their original stickers and they both say "U.S.A." |
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Horn relay |
Cars 0053 & 2673 have their original relays and they both say "U.S.A." |
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Rear view mirror (inside, day/night) |
After examining several cars, there do not appear to be any differences |
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Speedometer |
Stan's research did not turn up any Canadian speedos. Rob Hall looked at 50 or so that he has for parts and none are marked Canada. |
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Speedometer cable |
Bording has a replacement cable that indicates Canada on the package but the place of manufacture is not indicated anywhere on the part |
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Turbo carburetor automatic choke cover |
Car 0053 has this part but all turbo carb auto choke covers say "Made in Canada" (Steve checked several at his shop) |
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Windshield washer refill bottle |
All U.S. and Canadian cars surveyed (about 12) have bottles stamped "Canada 1961" on the bottom and most also say Adell Chemical Corp. Detroit, Mich." |
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Wiper arms and blades |
Car 2673 has its original wipers but nowhere is there a stamp indicating place of manufacture |
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Wiper motor |
Cars 0053 & 2673 have their original motors and they both say "U.S.A." |