export speedometer
 

My 69 vert was built in Baltimore and according to the PHS was then shipped directly to Oshawa, Ontario Canada. I've never ran the GM of Canada PHS equivalent to see which dealer it went to from there. Gto4evr and I have been debating whether my gauge cluster I had in the car was original or not (it has a US mph speedo)and I brought up the question if the speedo would have been converted at some point for use in Canada? It doesn't say anything on my PHS about converting it and I vaguely recall seeing someones PHS posted on here that did mention that. Was Oshawa a holding center for cars coming in from the USA plants before going out to the Canadian dealers? If so, would the speedo have been swapped out at Oshawa or should it have been done at the factory in Baltimore? Does anyone have documentation like a PHS to show that?

Thanks, Jeff

Canada started to change to the metric system around 1970 . Cars did not have speedometers that were in kilometers until 1974 .So your car would still have the same speedometer as an American car . GM did sell stickers that you could change your speedometer to km s per hour . This was done by taking the speedometer out of the dash and putting it on the speedometer face and it had both km s and mph on it . We did not change the road signs till 1975.

Hmmmm...I guess that answers why I've never seen a 69-72 Km cluster before. Dang, the search dead ends.

Anyone know the significance of the three digit number perpendicular to the date code on the printed circuit? (311)

I have a 69 GTO Baltimore built and there is a $5.00 Export Prep charge on the PHS. What would that have been for?

I'm totally guessing, but it could have been for extra export "shipping / mutilation protection".

Like extra shipping seat covers, paper floor mats, etc.

These days we also do plastic over the shifter and steering wheel, apply export specific labels and such.

K

Thanks for the info, that settles that

It is interesting comparing these GM Overseas Distributors Corp sheets.
My old 69 Firebird was shipped 11/22/68 and tagged as number 200733 (above the Amount for the first row of option prices), compare that to your one. My export prep is code 761 and cost $15. Also, the number up the LH side of the sheet is 085 0971.
I can't remember the exact numbers of your sheet as I type this, but IIRC it was a couple of hundred difference in less than one month. I don't know if this has any significance at all, just throwing it out there!:)

I know my old Firebird came to Australia, so maybe the difference in Export Prep code and cost to your GTO is possibly related to the fact that overseas U.S. Serviceman could order their new car whilst stationed abroad, ready to be picked up on their return to the States at the dealer of their choice?

A PY member (Hakansan?) has a 70 GTO with a metric speedo in it from new, shipped to Europe originally.

Here are a couple of pics of the GM conversion decal previously mentioned too.

Yes Your right, and it also is a safeguard but that I think was on all export speedometers.
On the built sheet it says "U18 KILO SPEEDO".
Here is a picture of it:

Very cool!