CORVETTE COLORS
Yellow Corvette: Every Year, Code and How Many Were Built
Yellow on the Chevrolet Corvette, 1973, 1977–1981, 1984, 1986–1989, 1991–1992: 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 · C3 · C4 · Related · Paint Codes · More Yellow · Wallpapers · FAQs
The Basics
The Color: Solid yellow, the late-C3 and C4 yellow (1973–1992)
GM Codes: 953, 952, 52, 35
Years Offered: 1973, 1977–1981, 1984, 1986–1989, 1991–1992 (13 model years)
Generations: C3 (1968–82), C4 (1984–96)
Built: 11,209 with GM counts; no counts for 1973
Best Year: 1979, 2,357 cars (4.4% of the year)
Color Family: Yellow (every yellow Corvette color)
Also Called: Code 952 and Metallic Yellow 953 (1973), Corvette Yellow 52 (1977–81), 35 (1984–92)
Paint Codes: 1973: WA4466; 1974: WA3893; 1975–1977: WA4669; 1978–1981: WA8067
Pictures: 11 picture posts on the site, one per model year
The Overview
Yellow was offered on the Corvette in 1973, 1977–1981, 1984, 1986–1989, 1991–1992: 13 model years across the C3, C4 generations. GM’s color counts put 11,209 Yellow Corvettes on the road, 2,357 of them in 1979 alone; no per-color records survive for 1973.
Solid yellow, the late-C3 and C4 yellow (1973–1992). Its share of a year’s production ran from 0 to 5 percent. It was a no-cost color. The interiors most often paired with it were Black, Buckskin, 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 Yellow 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 Yellow Corvettes page lists every yellow the factory ever sprayed, and Corvette Colors by Year has the full chart for each model year.
The Story of Yellow
Plain Yellow is really three colors with one name. The 1973 chart had a Yellow and a Metallic Yellow; the 1977 Corvette Yellow was an early-year color replaced by Bright Yellow after 71 cars, then came back as the only yellow for 1978 to 1981; and the C4 Yellow (code 35) ran from 1984, where a single car was painted, to 1992.
The 1986 Yellow is the one with the story: the 1986 Indianapolis 500 pace car was yellow, every 1986 convertible was a pace-car replica, and 1,464 of them were ordered in the pace car’s color. The 1989 Yellow was not on the chart at all — eight coupes were built. Competition Yellow took over for 1993.
The Yellow Cars to Know
1986 Indy Pace Car convertibles in Yellow (1,464); The eight 1989 Yellow coupes; 1979 Corvette Yellow (2,357).
MORE: THE MOST POPULAR COLORS BY GENERATION / 70 YEARS OF LEAST & MOST POPULAR COLORS / ALL YELLOW CORVETTES
Yellow by Generation
Yellow 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 C3 HUB / THE C4 HUB
| GENERATION | YEARS | CODE(S) | BUILT | BEST YEAR | INTERIORS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C3 Corvette | 1973, 1977–1981 | 953, 952, 52 | 6,779 | 1979 (2,357) | Black |
| C4 Corvette | 1984, 1986–1989, 1991–1992 | 35 | 4,430 | 1986 (1,464) | Black, Buckskin, Graphite |
Yellow by Year: How Many Were Built
GM’s production counts for Yellow in every year it was offered, with the years GM kept no color records marked n/a. The peak was 1979 at 2,357 cars; the full table for each year, with codes, shares and interiors, is in the generation sections below.
Yellow on the C3 Corvette (1968–82)
Yellow on the C3 (1968–82): offered 1973, 1977–1981 as code 953, 952, 52. 6,779 cars by GM’s count, the best year 1979 with 2,357. No per-color counts survive for 1973. 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 1979 RESEARCH PAGE / ALL C3 COLOR POSTS / ALL C3 COLORS
| YEAR | CODE | BUILT | SHARE | INTERIORS | PICTURES | NOTES |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1973 | 953 | no record | — | Black, Midnight Blue | Pictures | — |
| 1973 | 952 | no record | — | Black, Midnight Blue, Dark Saddle | Pictures | — |
| 1977 | 52 | 71 | 0.1%, #11 of 12 | Black, Brown | Pictures | early, replaced by Bright Yellow |
| 1978 | 52 | 1,243 | 2.7%, #12 of 12 | Black, Dark Brown, Oyster | Pictures | — |
| 1979 | 52 | 2,357 | 4.4%, #10 of 10 | Black, Light Beige, Oyster | Pictures | — |
| 1980 | 52 | 2,077 | 5.1%, #9 of 10 | Black, Oyster | Pictures | — |
| 1981 | 52 | 1,031 | 2.5%, #13 of 18 | Black, Charcoal, Camel | Pictures | St. Louis |
Yellow on the C4 Corvette (1984–96)
Yellow on the C4 (1984–96): offered 1984, 1986–1989, 1991–1992 as code 35. 4,430 cars by GM’s count, the best year 1986 with 1,464. 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 1986 RESEARCH PAGE / ALL C4 COLOR POSTS / ALL C4 COLORS
| YEAR | CODE | BUILT | SHARE | INTERIORS | PICTURES | NOTES |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | 35 | 1 | 0.0%, #11 of 11 | Graphite | — | — |
| 1986 | 35 | 1,464 | 4.2%, #6 of 13 | Graphite | Pictures | the Indy Pace Car color |
| 1987 | 35 | 1,051 | 3.4%, #6 of 12 | Graphite | Pictures | — |
| 1988 | 35 | 578 | 2.5%, #10 of 12 | Black, Saddle | Pictures | — |
| 1989 | 35 | 8 | 0.0%, #10 of 10 | Buckskin | — | not on the color chart; 8 coupes |
| 1991 | 35 | 650 | 3.1%, #9 of 10 | Black, Gray, Saddle | Pictures | — |
| 1992 | 35 | 678 | 3.3%, #9 of 9 | Black, Light Beige, Light Gray, White | Pictures | — |
Colors Related to Yellow
The colors that came before and after Yellow, 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 YELLOW CORVETTE COLOR / ALL CORVETTE COLORS / COLORS BY YEAR
| COLOR | YEARS | BUILT | FAMILY | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bright Yellow | 1974–1977 | 8,214 | Yellow | See the Bright Yellow page |
| Competition Yellow | 1990, 1993–1996, 2025–2027 | 4,795 | Yellow | See the Competition Yellow page |
| Millennium Yellow | 2000–2005 | 20,048 | Yellow | See the Millennium Yellow page |
| Velocity Yellow | 2005–2015 | 20,290 | Yellow | See the Velocity Yellow page |
Yellow Paint Codes: GM, WA, PPG and DuPont
The codes a body shop or a judge needs for Yellow: 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1973 | 952 | WA4466 | — | — | Bright Yellow (solid). A Metallic Yellow (953, WA4465) was also offered in 1973. (confidence: medium) |
| 1974 | 56 | WA3893 | — | — | Bright Yellow (solid); same WA as 1969 Daytona Yellow. (confidence: medium) |
| 1975–1977 | 56 (Bright Yellow) / 52 (1977 Corvette Yellow) | WA4669 | — | — | Bright yellow, solid. (confidence: medium) |
| 1978–1981 | 52 | WA8067 | — | — | Solid yellow. (confidence: medium) |
| 1986–1988, 1991–1992 | 35U | WA8769 | 3886 | B8627 | Solid yellow. |
Yellow Corvette Wallpapers
Desktop and phone wallpapers of yellow Corvettes from the site’s wallpaper collections.
Yellow Corvette Wallpapers — the color collection
All Corvette Wallpapers — by generation and by color
FAQs
What years was the Corvette offered in Yellow?
1973, 1977–1981, 1984, 1986–1989, 1991–1992: 13 model years on the C3, C4. Plain Yellow is really three colors with one name.
What is the GM paint code for Yellow?
GM used 953, 952, 52, 35 across the years; the code changed when GM changed its coding system, not the paint. The paint-shop codes are 1973: WA4466; 1974: WA3893; 1975–1977: WA4669.
How many Yellow Corvettes were built?
11,209 by GM’s counts (2,357 in 1979, the biggest year); GM kept no color records for 1973, so the true figure is higher.
Which Corvette models and editions came in Yellow?
1986 Indy Pace Car convertibles in Yellow (1,464); The eight 1989 Yellow coupes; 1979 Corvette Yellow (2,357). 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 Yellow a metallic, a tintcoat or a solid color?
Solid yellow, the late-C3 and C4 yellow (1973–1992). It was a no-cost color in every year it was offered.
What was the most popular year for Yellow?
1979, with 2,357 cars, 4.4% of that year’s production.
What colors are similar to Yellow?
Bright Yellow, Competition Yellow, Millennium Yellow, Velocity Yellow. The Yellow Corvettes page has every yellow the factory offered, with the years and counts side by side.
Where can I see pictures of Yellow Corvettes?
The site has a picture post for each year Yellow was offered — real cars photographed in the real color — linked from the year tables above and in the picture grids on this page; the Yellow Corvettes page and the wallpaper collection have more.
How does the Yellow 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.
