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I’ve been collecting information on 1971 cars built at Arlington, TX. The initial reason was to solve the mystery of the three-digit code after the build month and week on the Fisher tag. I’ve got a theory on those, but I will probably never have enough data to prove my theory.

In the meantime, I’ve found a lot of things that I found interesting and thought some others might, too.

While a hardtop coupe Cutlass, Cutlass S, and 442 would seem to be the same body, each model was numbered in a separate sequential series on the Fisher body plate. I’ll share those numbers in a separate post.

A nation-wide strike on GM began September 14, 1970. After national issues were resolved, strikes continued at some plants while local issues were negotiated. Production resumed at Arlington on November 24, 1970. I have record of one car with a pre-strike date on Fisher body plate, but a post-strike VIN.

A Chevrolet site lists monthly production for Chevelle/Malibu’s at Arlington. That shows production ramping up for months, leveling off to about 12,000 Chevrolets per month from December through April, then tailing off. Data I’ve collected shows Oldsmobile production steady throughout. Does anyone have any official Oldsmobile information to compare to?




Of the models that Arlington produced, they seemed to supply 20-30% of total Oldsmobile production for those models in 1971. For example, there were 6,285 total 442 hardtop coupes produced in 1971, with almost 2,000 coming from Arlington.

To continue to build the data set, I’d appreciate Fisher body tag information and VINs of 1971 (only) Arlington-built (only) cars. “Build sheet” (broadcast card) information would be a bonus. You don’t need to post the info; a PM is fine.