"How to decode your 1968 fendertag"


Okay, lets get started then. You are looking at the fendertag off from my 1968 Coronet R/T. These tags vary quite a bit from the 69 and newer tags. One nice thing about that is, it tells you the axle ratio, and tires your car came with. You will find this tag located under the hood on the inner fender apron, near the battery. Hopefully your car still has it? Sometimes they get tossed when the car is repainted. That's a big NO,NO! You can get a reproduced tag from a couple of sources, but you will need proof of ownership and an unrestored car, or a broadcast sheet. There are those dis-honest people who will add options to their car and then get a new tag made to match, naughty, naughty.

Tags are read from the bottom to the top, starting at the lower left corner. The first thing we see here, is "WS" .

W - stands for the Coronet model line

L - stands for low price class
M - stands for medium price class
H - stands for high price class
P - stands for premium price class
S - stands for special price class

Together they designate the model of your car.

WL - Coronet
WM - Coronet Superbee
WH - Coronet 440 (440 is just a model name, not the engine size)
WP - Coronet 500 (500 is the model name)
WS - Coronet R/T

So by looking at this, we see that so far we have a Coronet R/T.
Next is the two digit body type codes:

21 - 2 door coupe (rear window does not roll down)
23 - 3 door hardtop (rear window does roll down)
27 - 2 door convertible
29 - 2 door sports hardtop (fastback Barracuda, Charger or Challenger SE)
41 - 4 door sedan
43 - 4 door hardtop
45 - 6 passenger wagon
46 - 9 passenger wagon

Next we have an "83" , this is the engine code. Here are the codes for the designated engines.

11 - 170 slant six
21 - 225 slant six
31 - 273 2-bbl V8
32 - 273 4-bbl HP (1967)
41 - 318 2-bbl
52 - 340 4-bbl HP
61 - 383 2-bbl
62 - 383 4-bbl HP
73 - 426 Hemi (2) 4-bbl HP
81 - 440 4-bbl
83 - 440 4-bbl HP

So, we have a 440 HP engine, which is the standard engine in the R/T. The only option was the 426 Hemi. In a Superbee, the 383 HP engine was standard, and the 426 Hemi, the only option. Next we have a "5" , which is the transmission code. These are actually the last digit or two of the numeric sales code used these years. Here are the transmission codes.

1 - 3-speed manual column shift
2 - 3-speed manual column shift (heavy duty)
3 - 4-speed maunal floor shift (A833)
5 - 3-speed automatic (most applications)
6 - 3-speed automatic HD
9 - special order transmssion

My R/T has the 727 automatic transmission. All big block Mopars had a 727. They did use a 904 behind small blocks with lower horsepower. Hi-Perf. small blocks used a 727. Next is "44" , which is the tire code. There are a lot of different tires used or available. I will only list a few common ones here.

28 - D70x14 redlines nylon belted
38 - E70x14 redlines steel belted
42 - E70x14 redlines fiberglas belted
44 - F70x14 redlines steel belted
45 - F70x15 redlines nylon belted
46 - F70x14 whitewall steel belted
85 - G70x15 whitewall fiberglas belted
99 - special order tires

My R/T came with the standard redlines. The next three digits is the scheduled production build date for the car. "112" in this case stands for January 12, 1968. They used 1-9 for January - September, than they used A - October, B - November, and C- December. Production for the new model year generally started August 1st.

The next six digits are the vehicle shipping number. This is also the number that will be stamped on the body. One on the radiator support and one on the trunklid lip. 1967 had it up under the rear bumper. Okay, that takes care of the first line.

Now let's look at the second line up from the bottom. We are interested in the larger digits, but they are listed under headings on this line. You see a smaller 1-8, all codes listed under these set of smaller numbers are mouldings. Here they are:

Under
1 - 4 = sill mouldings
1 - 9 = wide sill mouldings
2 - 5 = drip rail mouldings
3 - 0 = body belt mouldings
4 - 7 = "B" pillar mouldings (for a coupe, rear window doesn't roll down)
5 - 5 = body side mouldings
7 - 8 = wheel lip mouldings

So, looking at my R/T tag, we see that it came with wide sill mouldings, drip rail mouldings, and wheel lip mouldings.
I think these were all standard equipment for this car.

Next you see two digits under "AX" , which is the axle ratio, and whether it is a sure grip unit, or not. Here are the codes:

A - 1 = 2.76 ratio
A - 2 = 2.94 ratio
A - 4 = 3.23 ratio
A - 6 = 3.54/3.55 ratio (Dana/8 3/4 axle)
A - 7 = 3.91 ratio
X - blank = non sure grip (single spin)
X - 8 = sure grip (both rear wheels have power)

My 68 R/T has the 3.23 ratio in an 8 3/4 rear axle and it is a sure grip unit. Pretty much standard equipment. Okay, next we have the "TRM" code which is short for trim. It is the interior codes for the trim, seats, and color. There are a bunch of variations here, I won't list all of them. I recommend Galen Govier's little white books, if you want a good reference for all the codes. Here are some common ones:

Under T (this is the trim grade)
C - Charger
H - High
D - Deluxe
P - Premium
S - Sport

Under R (this is the seat code)
4 - vinyl split bench seats
6 - vinyl bucket seats
7 - vinyl & cloth bucket seats

Under M (this is the interior colors)
A - gray
B - light blue
C - white & blue
D - white & green
E - white & gold
F - green
H - white & tan
L - tan
N - gold & black
Q - turqoise
R - red
S - silver & black
V - white & red
W - white & black
X - black
Y - gold

So, looking at this, we see my R/T has the sport grade, vinyl bucket seat, white & blue interior. Next is "PNT" , which is short for paint. This tells us the color of the car and if it is two tone paint or monotone. The letter or number under "P" designates the color of the roof. The second letter/number under "N" is the body color. And you will either see a 1 or a 2 under the "T" . The 1 designates monotone paint and the 2 designates two tone paint. Here are some of the color codes:

A - Silver Metallic
B - Black
E - Dark Blue Metallic
F - Light Green Metallic
G - Racing Green metallic
J - Medium Gold Metallic
L - Dark Turquoise Metallic
M - Bronze Metallic
P - Red
Q - Bright Blue Metallic
R - Burgundy Metallic
S - Yellow
T - Medium Green Metallic
U - Light Blue Metallic
W - White
Y - Medium Tan Metallic
X - Biege
3 - Charger Red
6 - Dark Green Metallic
9 - Special Order

Next up is "UBS" . The first one is the interior upper door frame color. It will have a letter/number under it same as the paint codes, to designate your color. The next item is to designate buffed paint, which was only for Silver Metallic. The last item here, is the stripe designator. Here are some of the codes:

Numbers are sport stripes, and letters are accent (pin) stripes. The sport stripes are tape, and the accent stripes are painted. The standard black sport stripes have been found to not be coded on the fendertag.

0 - Black Transverse (Bumble-Bee)
1/B - Black Horizontal
2/H - Red Horizontal
3/W - White Horizontal
4 - Red Transverse (Bumble-Bee)
5/C - Blue Horizontal
6/P - Green Horizontal
7 - White Transverse (Bumble-Bee)
8 - stripe deleted
9 - stripe deleted

The next rows above, have the last digit of the sales code for optional equipment. Here are some of them:

A - 1 = 26" radiator diameter
B - 3 = cruise control
D - 9 = front disc brakes
F - 0 = decor package
F - 7 = Formula S package (Barracuda)
H - 1 = power brakes
K - 8 = power windows
N - 8 = rear window defogger
P - 6 = rear seat speaker
R - 0 = AM radio with stereo 8-track tape player
R - 1 = AM radio
R - 8 = AM/FM radio
S - 1 = air conditioning
T - 7 = tachometer
X - 1 = tinted glass (all)
X - 2 = tinted windshield only
Y - 0 = green convertible top
Y - 1 = black convertible top
Y - 2 = white convertible top
Y - 4 = green vinyl top
Y - 6 = black vinyl top
Y - 7 = white vinyl top
Z - 8 = performance hood treatment (Roadrunner/GTX)

a - 5 = center front seat
a - 6 = console
b - 4 = bucket seats
h - 7 = fender/hood mounted turn signal indicators
k - 7 = passenger outside manual mirror
m - 6 = driver's outside remote operated mirror
u - 1 = sold car when built (somebody ordered it)
w - 6 = build to spec's for Canada
w - 7 = build to spec's for Export
Y - 9 = special order

Now you should be able to decode the fendertag of just about any 1968 Dodge or Plymouth. Some of these codes are the same for 1967, but some are not. Click the tag for my 1969 Superbee decode.