CORVETTE COLORS
Medium Red Corvette: Every Year, Code and How Many Were Built
Medium Red on the Chevrolet Corvette, 1974, 1977: 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 · C3 · Related · Paint Codes · More Red · Wallpapers · FAQs
The Basics
The Color: Solid medium red, 1974 and 1977
GM Codes: 974, 72
Years Offered: 1974, 1977 (2 model years)
Generations: C3 (1968–82)
Built: 4,057 with GM counts; no counts for 1974
Best Year: 1977, 4,057 cars (8.2% of the year)
Color Family: Red (every red Corvette color)
Also Called: Code 974 (1974), 72 (1977); the 1978 picture post titled Medium Red is the 1978 Corvette Red, on the Red page
Paint Codes: 1974–1975: WA4533; 1977–1978: WA4998
Pictures: 2 picture posts on the site, one per model year
By Generation: C3
The Overview
Medium Red was offered on the Corvette in 1974, 1977: 2 model years across the C3 generation. GM’s color counts put 4,057 Medium Red Corvettes on the road; no per-color records survive for 1974.
Solid medium red, 1974 and 1977. Its share of a year’s production ran from 8 to 8 percent. It was a no-cost color. The interiors most often paired with it were Black. 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 Medium Red 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 Red Corvettes page lists every red the factory ever sprayed, and Corvette Colors by Year has the full chart for each model year.
The Story of Medium Red
Medium Red was on the 1974 chart (no counts survive) and the 1977 chart, where it was the year’s red at 4,057 cars. Code 72 was Red in 1976 and Corvette Red in 1978 and 1979, so the 1977 Medium Red is the same paint as its neighbors with a different name.
The Red page carries 1976 and 1978 to 1982.
The Medium Red Cars to Know
1977 Medium Red (4,057); 1974 Medium Red; 1977 L82 coupes in Medium Red.
MORE: THE MOST POPULAR COLORS BY GENERATION / 70 YEARS OF LEAST & MOST POPULAR COLORS / ALL RED CORVETTES
Medium Red by Generation
Medium Red across the 1 generation 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 C3 HUB
| GENERATION | YEARS | CODE(S) | BUILT | BEST YEAR | INTERIORS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C3 Corvette | 1974, 1977 | 974, 72 | 4,057 | 1977 (4,057) | Black |
Medium Red on the C3 Corvette (1968–82)
Medium Red on the C3 (1968–82): offered 1974, 1977 as code 974, 72. 4,057 cars by GM’s count. No per-color counts survive for 1974. 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 C3 HUB / THE 1977 RESEARCH PAGE / ALL C3 COLOR POSTS / ALL C3 COLORS
Colors Related to Medium Red
The colors that came before and after Medium Red, 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 RED CORVETTE COLOR / ALL CORVETTE COLORS / COLORS BY YEAR
| COLOR | YEARS | BUILT | FAMILY | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red | 1976, 1978–1982 | 25,550 | Red | See the Red page |
| Mille Miglia Red | 1971–1975 | 8,013 | Red | See the Mille Miglia Red page |
| Dark Red | 1975, 1977, 1979, 1986–1995 | 31,728 | Red | See the Dark Red page |
| Bright Red | 1984–1992 | 70,860 | Red | See the Bright Red page |
Medium Red Paint Codes: GM, WA, PPG and DuPont
The codes a body shop or a judge needs for Medium Red: 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974–1975 | 74 | WA4533 | — | — | Medium red metallic (listed as Dark Red in 1975). (confidence: medium) |
| 1977–1978 | 72 | WA4998 | — | — | Medium red (solid). (confidence: medium) |
Red Corvette Wallpapers
Desktop and phone wallpapers of red Corvettes from the site’s wallpaper collections.
Red Corvette Wallpapers — the color collection
All Corvette Wallpapers — by generation and by color
FAQs
What years was the Corvette offered in Medium Red?
1974, 1977: 2 model years on the C3. Medium Red was on the 1974 chart (no counts survive) and the 1977 chart, where it was the year’s red at 4,057 cars.
What is the GM paint code for Medium Red?
GM used 974, 72 across the years; the code changed when GM changed its coding system, not the paint. The paint-shop codes are 1974–1975: WA4533; 1977–1978: WA4998.
How many Medium Red Corvettes were built?
4,057 by GM’s counts; GM kept no color records for 1974, so the true figure is higher.
Which Corvette models and editions came in Medium Red?
1977 Medium Red (4,057); 1974 Medium Red; 1977 L82 coupes in Medium Red. 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 Medium Red a metallic, a tintcoat or a solid color?
Solid medium red, 1974 and 1977. It was a no-cost color in every year it was offered.
What was the most popular year for Medium Red?
1977, with 4,057 cars, 8.2% of that year’s production.
What colors are similar to Medium Red?
Red, Mille Miglia Red, Dark Red, Bright Red. The Red Corvettes page has every red the factory offered, with the years and counts side by side.
Where can I see pictures of Medium Red Corvettes?
The site has a picture post for each year Medium Red was offered — real cars photographed in the real color — linked from the year tables above and in the picture grids on this page; the Red Corvettes page and the wallpaper collection have more.
How does the Medium Red 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.
