CORVETTE COLORS
Copper Corvette: Every Year, Code and How Many Were Built
Copper Metallic (new on the Chevrolet Corvette, 1955, 1986–1987, 1994: what the color is, the GM paint code in every year, how many were built and what share of the year that was, the interiors it came with, a picture gallery for each year, the chart of its run and the colors that came before and after it.
Quick Nav: The Story · By Generation · Chart · C1 · C4 · Related · Paint Codes · More Orange · FAQs
The Basics
The Color: Copper metallic, four rare years
GM Codes: 66
Years Offered: 1955, 1986–1987, 1994 (4 model years)
Generations: C1 (1953–62), C4 (1984–96)
Built: 222 with GM counts
Best Year: 1994, 116 cars (0.5% of the year)
Color Family: Orange (every orange Corvette color)
Also Called: Corvette Copper (1955), Copper Metallic 66 (1986–87, 1994)
Paint Codes: 1986: WA8754 / PPG 3896 / DuPont B8626; 1994: WA136A / PPG 4808 / DuPont B9421
Pictures: 4 picture posts on the site, one per model year
The Overview
Copper Metallic (new was offered on the Corvette in 1955, 1986–1987, 1994: 4 model years across the C1, C4 generations. GM’s color counts put 222 Copper Corvettes on the road, 116 of them in 1994 alone.
Copper metallic, four rare years. Its share of a year’s production ran from 0 to 0 percent. It was a no-cost color. The interiors most often paired with it were Black, Dark Beige, Graphite. The chart below shows the run year by year; the generation sections carry every year’s code, count, share, interiors and picture.
This page has every year Copper was offered with its GM code, how many were built, its share of the year and the interiors it came with, the site’s picture gallery for each year, a chart of the run, the related colors, and the FAQs. It is one of 77 color pages on CorvSport; the Orange Corvettes page lists every orange the factory ever sprayed, and Corvette Colors by Year has the full chart for each model year.
The Story of Copper
Copper is the rarest named Corvette color with more than one year. The 1955 Corvette Copper was about 15 cars of 700, the least-built C1 color. The 1986 Copper Metallic was four cars, the least-built C4 color; 1987 managed 87. It came back once more for 1994, one year only, 116 cars.
The 1956–57 Aztec Copper is a different, browner paint and is on the Brown family page.
The Copper Cars to Know
The 15 1955 Corvette Copper cars; The four 1986 Copper Metallic cars; 1994 Copper Metallic (116).
MORE: THE MOST POPULAR COLORS BY GENERATION / 70 YEARS OF LEAST & MOST POPULAR COLORS / ALL ORANGE CORVETTES
Copper by Generation
Copper across the 2 generations it was offered on: the years, the GM paint code each generation used, how many were built with GM’s counts, the biggest year and the interiors most often paired with it. Each generation has its own section below with every year.
MORE: THE C1 HUB / THE C4 HUB
| GENERATION | YEARS | CODE(S) | BUILT | BEST YEAR | INTERIORS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C1 Corvette | 1955 | none on the early charts | 15 | 1955 (15) | Dark Beige |
| C4 Corvette | 1986–1987, 1994 | 66 | 207 | 1994 (116) | Black, Graphite |
Copper by Year: How Many Were Built
GM’s production counts for Copper in every year it was offered. The peak was 1994 at 116 cars; the full table for each year, with codes, shares and interiors, is in the generation sections below.
Copper on the C1 Corvette (1953–62)
Copper on the C1 (1953–62): offered 1955. 15 cars by GM’s count. Every year links to its research page (the full color chart, options and prices for that year) and to the site’s picture post for the color.
MORE: THE C1 HUB / THE 1955 RESEARCH PAGE / ALL C1 COLOR POSTS / ALL C1 COLORS
Copper C1 Corvettes: The Pictures
The site’s picture post for each year Copper was offered on the C1: real cars in the real color, which no swatch shows properly.
Copper on the C4 Corvette (1984–96)
Copper on the C4 (1984–96): offered 1986–1987, 1994 as code 66. 207 cars by GM’s count, the best year 1994 with 116. Every year links to its research page (the full color chart, options and prices for that year) and to the site’s picture post for the color.
MORE: THE C4 HUB / THE 1994 RESEARCH PAGE / ALL C4 COLOR POSTS / ALL C4 COLORS
Colors Related to Copper
The colors that came before and after Copper, the ones it is confused with and the ones that shared its slot on the chart. Each has its own page or a line on its family page.
MORE: EVERY ORANGE CORVETTE COLOR / ALL CORVETTE COLORS / COLORS BY YEAR
| COLOR | YEARS | BUILT | FAMILY | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aztec Copper | 1956–1957 | 452 | Brown | On the Brown Corvettes page |
| Dark Bronze | 1981, 1984–1985 | 2,833 | Brown | See the Dark Bronze page |
| Zeus Bronze | 2020–2021 | 1,057 | Brown | On the Brown Corvettes page |
| Orange | 1973–1974, 1977 | 4,012 | Orange | See the Orange page |
Copper Paint Codes: GM, WA, PPG and DuPont
The codes a body shop or a judge needs for Copper: the GM order code on the trim tag or service parts label, GM’s WA formula number and the PPG / Ditzler and DuPont mixing codes where they are documented. Where a code is blank the sources did not list one; the notes say where a source disagreed.
MORE: THE RPO CODES LIBRARY / THE VIN DECODER
| YEARS | GM CODE | WA | PPG / DITZLER | DUPONT | NOTES |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | 66 | WA8754 | 3896 | B8626 | Copper metallic; only 4 built. |
| 1994 | 66U | WA136A | 4808 | B9421 | Copper metallic; automotivetouchup lists as 'Melon Metallic'. |
FAQs
What years was the Corvette offered in Copper?
1955, 1986–1987, 1994: 4 model years on the C1, C4. Copper is the rarest named Corvette color with more than one year.
What is the GM paint code for Copper?
Code 66. The paint-shop codes are 1986: WA8754 / PPG 3896 / DuPont B8626; 1994: WA136A / PPG 4808 / DuPont B9421.
How many Copper Corvettes were built?
222 by GM’s counts (116 in 1994, the biggest year).
Which Corvette models and editions came in Copper?
The 15 1955 Corvette Copper cars; The four 1986 Copper Metallic cars; 1994 Copper Metallic (116). In its years it was available on every body style and model unless the year’s note says otherwise; the year tables above say which.
Is Copper a metallic, a tintcoat or a solid color?
Copper metallic, four rare years. It was a no-cost color in every year it was offered.
What was the most popular year for Copper?
1994, with 116 cars, 0.5% of that year’s production.
What colors are similar to Copper?
Aztec Copper, Dark Bronze, Zeus Bronze, Orange. The Orange Corvettes page has every orange the factory offered, with the years and counts side by side.
Where can I see pictures of Copper Corvettes?
The site has a picture post for each year Copper was offered — real cars photographed in the real color — linked from the year tables above and in the picture grids on this page; the Orange Corvettes page and the wallpaper collection have more.
How does the Copper page fit with the rest of the Corvette colors research?
Every model year has a research page with the full color chart (codes, counts, interiors and soft tops), the Colors by Year page indexes them, every color with three or more years has a page like this one, and the twelve family pages (Red, Blue, Black, White, Silver, Yellow, Gray, Green, Orange, Purple, Gold, Brown) list every shade ever offered.
