Patinaed Survivor: 1969 Plymouth Road Runner
The 1969 Plymouth Road Runner is the poster child of muscle cars. I think of these as loud, large and fun. After all, “Poor little Road Runner never bothers anyone, Just runnin’ down the road’s his idea of having fun!”… And these cars were/are a blast to drive and be seen in. Bright colors coupled with a big engine all at an affordable price, these were serious sellers for Plymouth. This was how muscle cars were meant to be. This B-body painted in special order #99 Petty Blue is one rare bird. As reported by Galen Govier registry, this is one of two accounted for Road Runner coupes done up in this color and options. Find it here on eBay where bidding is Fast and Furry-ous with 36 bids and 236 watchers who have pushed the price now to almost $31k. After NASCAR driver Richard Petty decided to leave Plymouth for Ford in late November 1968, many thought that this shade of blue would go with the King (along with his cowboy hat and sunglasses). But this car was built on November 7th, 1968 (per fender tag) just before Petty parted ways, so a few gallons of the trademarked color may still have been on the factory floor. I love these fender tags, as they can tell quite the story. It also has a partial broadcast sheet, along with the fender VIN decal and has stayed in the same family for the past 50 years.
Pushing all this down the road is the numbers matching 383/335 hp that has been rebuilt sometime in the ’80s. Looking very tidy here with even some of the original decals still hanging on. Nothing ACME Corporation as far as I can tell. Backing all this up is the original 4 speed and rear end. Some nice undercarriage shots from the ad shows as very clean and rust-free. Mileage is now sitting at 95,485. Here’s a YouTube link of the walk around and engine run. Original fan belt?
The bench seat is probably the roughest part here but that could easily be repaired/replaced. Look to Classic Industries as one source for many interior bits.
While the paint is mostly original possibly wearing some clear or a POR 15 coat, I would definitely leave it as is. The Arizona weather takes and giveth in its own unique way. Luckily it lived under a carport for most of its life. The bumper chrome, Road Wheels (one center cap is missing) and glass all look great and original. So, how high would you bid before you have to tap out on this one of very few left survivors?
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Comments
This car looks good and would only need a little work to really keep Wile E. Coyote at bay! MEEP! MEEP! GLWTS!! :-)
The very first time I drove one of these,I owned a real quick Nova.I was so surprised how that big car was almost just as nimble and quick as my Nova.There was hardly any difference in the way the two handled and the steering reaction was identical.So after that I owned me a super b and my deuce..
Am I wrong in thinking that this was an AC car?
Dash shows A/C vents but nothing else on the car suggests it has or had A/C. Either stripped entirely (bad idea) or they grabbed an A/C equipped dash to replace an older worn dash.
Also odd, Mopar paints of that era rarely, if ever, peeled like that.
Warning lights here…
A06 is the air code, and it’s not on the data plate. The paint looks buffed, badly and the clear coated.
You’re correct, warning Will Robertson Warning !
Nothing the plucky guys and gals of Graveyard Carz can’t fix in one episode of trials that are quickly overcome. Or so the buyer thought….
It has an A/C firewall.
It’s not on the data plate.
Nice car that just needs to have that ugly patina taken care of with fresh paint to really stand out.
There. I said it.
Can’t believe the prices they get these days for old muscle Mopars. These were bargain muscle cars when new with bench seat, big awkward tach on steering column, and typical Coronet / Belvedere dashboard. From there you had to fancy it up yourself if you wanted to.
Great writeup, Patrick. Yea these may have been lower end muscle cars but as you say, a pure blast to drive. The Petty blue is an interesting angle- Wish I had known about it as I saw the King yesterday at the SEMA show in las vegas. Good luck to the new owner, Little rant here- why would the seller put this car for sale on some old maypop tires- Why not spring a few bucks for a new set of skins?? Whining finished, thank you!
Cheers
GPC
Thanks GPC, appreciate that!
Patina sucks.
If I could afford this car, then I would buy and repaint it properly.
My two observations from riding in a number of fast Mopars owned by friends of mine in the late ’60’s and the ’70’s. Fast as all get out, but the body panels and interior fitments on all of them rattled enough that I always wondered what was going to fall off first.
Yup, my father’s wing window whistled from day one. But fast fun cars !
Factory Air firewall stampings. It is an air car.
Was in the Low Price Three category.
Chevy, Ford, Ply.
No frills for a lighter car.
Heard before that 100 pounds was a tenth of a second in 1/4 mile stuff.
Drag racing never interested me. Not enough driving involved
Seller ca_guy pulled it off eBay before sale ended.
Could it be that his tribute patina car was found out?
Warning Will Robertson Warning
Here’s what I see: LA built car which is unusual. Code 99 for special order paint. Scheduled production date is Jan 22 (1968). Built with white side stripes (now gone) and also performance hood paint (which remains) No A/C code on the fender tag but maybe LA did things differently? Cool RR. I’d prefer a black interior but I’d take it just the way it is!
“But this car was built on November 7th, 1968 (per fender tag) just before Petty parted ways, so a few gallons of the trademarked color may still have been on the factory floor. I love these fender tags, as they can tell quite the story.”
Would now love to have a road runner ,but back in the day as a teen my uncle had a yellow 68 or 69 can’t remember he took me for a ride and I thought this is cheapest car I’ve ever been in, no carpet and the door panels didn’t come all the way up over the door edge. But I missed the point of a road runner, all about putting a big block in a low priced mid size car , a super car for little money, wow ,I’ve seen old adds where you could get a 383 4 speed for 2,699$ new, like I said I missed the point. P.S. Don’t even get me going on a Hemi bird that could be bought for a few dollars more.
Nice car and it definitely needs paint!! I would also throw that shifter in the trash and get a pistol grip shifter for it!! I do like tha bench seat though!! That would stay along with that color with the black accents!!! Some wider tires in the back and away we go!!!
I made an error in my previous post. This car was scheduled for assembly on January 22, 1969, not January 22, 1968. That’s what the “122” on the second line from the bottom means. I have no idea why the writeup says November 7th of 1968. Were that the case the fender tag would have a “B07” entry.
Also, a discussion on a facebook page dedicated to Mopar fender tags revealed that the a/c system on this car was added by the seller decades ago. The guy who said this knows the seller and sold him the factory a/c parts back then. Not hard to believe that someone would do this in Arizona.
Pete- You are correct. The online decoder I used and entered 99 99 twice which shifted the boxes over one space. That makes the build date 122 or January 22 not November 8th.
Was fortunate to purchase a base 1968 Road Runner coupe in 1969.
First Florida owner traded it in for a new RR hardtop with A/C.
I was 16, thought I was at the top of the game.
Then the 1970 Chevelle SS appeared.
Now have a 1970 SS, wish it was proper to paint it Petty Blue!
Well, could find a ’70 Malibu, make it a “tribute” SS and paint it Petty Blue.
Where is that paint color available?
PPG has about every paint color imaginable!!!
Good looking ride, so much for the cheap factor. The color is right on the mark for me. Never was a fan of the more wild paint schemes, like purple or pink for example. I guess you had to have been from that groovy era to really appreciate the plumb craziness.
1969 Mopars didnt really have any wild paint schemes , that came about in 1970 , but they did have those crazy optional vinyl ‘mod tops” !
My Brother had one of these, and it was very fast. We had a LOT of fun with it in High School. However, IMO, this is not the kind of car to reserve “patina”. I would try to keep as much of the original paint as possible, as long it wouldn’t look “patched up”. If not possible, repaint the entire car. It deserves it. As far as it being an original A/C car…There seems to be a difference of opinions. Fender tag, -VS- firewall . As the car has the A/C controls and dash vents, I would call it an A/C original, regardless of the fender tag. I work in the automotive industry, and really, there are quite a few “one off’s” out there. But just adding A/C to a car that has no p/s or p/b just adds to the conundrum. Personally, I would replace the A/C, and add P/S & P/B. There’s no reason why a muscle car shouldn’t have a few personal comforts. It’s yours to drive & enjoy. Love the color. Hope that the new owner takes care of it.
This paint looks more like 1972 Mopar “Basin St. Blue” than “Petty” blue .Maybe its just the photos.
It’s the same color, TB3 by 1972 when it was available on A-bodies. By that time Dodge called it Super Blue; Plymouth called it Basin Street Blue.