Re: This is NOT a 72 Chevy
 

From what I've gathered owning the Chevelle for the last 38 years GM did a lot of cost cutting across the board. . The SS cars stayed SS396 because of the investment in the moniker. The 402bb and 400 sb got the same badging again to keep cost down and to keep customer confusion down .I would think this would carry over to the trucks also

They did this for other items also . In 66 the very early SS Chevelles had a blacked out deck filler panel . By the time mine went down the line it was dropped. My car was 100% original Aztec Bronze (eeeewww) when I purchased it and no blackout . Now some were painted by the dealers because people complained . The way to tell is by production date and the way it was taped off. This has been confirmed by members of a Chevelle board I used to belong to by original owners and by guys that worked at the Atlanta plant where my car was made and others that worked or owned dealerships

Re: This is NOT a 72 Chevy
 

That's funny. I remember the days when it seemed like half the used Chevys and hot rods for sale had "Corvette" engines! Never mind that you could order most of the same engines in the Biscayne, Bel Air, and Impala. And later in Novas, Chevelles, and Camaros. Notables are the fuel-injected 283hp/283, 350hp/327, and 425hp/427.

I also remember when lots of the cars for sale had engines that were "ported and polished", even though the owners had no idea what that meant