<VV> Dealer installed options - non-Corvair Chevy story

[Mark Corbin]

In '84 I ordered my third (and present) Sub, with power locks but without
power windows. On the order, the salesman had to QuickSpec the order, which
had the power windows and locks as a one-item "Convienience package". Then
he had to order a power windows delete, which had either a "Q" or "O" in
the code (I forget which). He got those two letters crossed, and ordered
the truck. The factory computer ignored the non-recognizable code, and went
ahead and built it WITH power windows. When it came in, I could have
refused the order. But as it was too late in the year to reorder it, I
negotiated a discount on the windows option.

To this day, I STILL wish the truck had manual windows. It sits most of the
time, so the power windows get slow when they aren't excercised, and can
often quit working altogether. That's just one reason why I also ordered it
with a manual crank tailgate window, even though I had to forgo a rear
defrost window (it was tied together with the power tailgate window option.)

-Mark

----- Original Message ----- 
Subject: Dealer installed options - non-Corvair Chevy story

In 1962, my parents traded in their Batmobile - 59 Impala 4-door -for a
sleek 62 Impala Sport Sedan - that is a 4-door to me. Anyway, the autumn
gold car had everything thing they wanted - which wasn't much 283 PG -
except power brakes, which they had before on the 59 and the 57 before
that. So the dealer told them "Of course we will install those", and they
dropped the car off for a two day period for the install. I drove the car
as my first (legal) car, but it was my mothers primary driver and our
family car.  In 1965, I noticed a little smell down under the dash, and I
pulled away the carpet to see a seepage of brake fluid dripping in around
the brake push rod through the firewall. I told my dad it needed a rebuilt
master cylinder and I picked one up and replaced it. I was a car guy by
then, mostly 55 Chevys. As I finished up the replacement and bled the
brakes, I asked my dad why he hadn't had the power brakes installed. We
both stood there looking at the firewall - No power brakes. Hmm. Well, my
father was just about to make the last of 36 payments on the car, so he
brought all the paperwork on the sale -including the printed promise for
the Power brake install- back to the Chevy dealer - in the Impala. They
sheepishly refunded the cost. I guess those archaic drums had worked pretty
well since neither of my parents - nor their hot-rodder son had noticed the
lack of assist!

Seth Emerson