Sense and nonsense of fender tags

I looked at both the front and rear door edge of my 1974 model (see pics in post #36).
 
The doorframe of this car that came with A01 Light Package has only one push-button at the front of the doorframe, as far as I can see:

72-XXXXXX-doorjamb-and-fendermountedturnsignals.JPG


So, until somebody points out otherwise, I'm going to think that the L71 Lock Doors Warning Light was actuated by that same and lonely switch.
 
My Imperial (73) has only one door jamb switch per each door opening to operate both the ``lock doors`` warning light and interior courtesy lights. Wouldn´t it be impractical to change that system for 74 just because the styling would be different when not much mechanical parts were redesigned?

Interior 008.JPG
 
Thank you for this confirmation!

I'd like to think of it as a security measure. With the plastic push-button at the rear of the door jamb the door must really be closed tight to actuate the button.

The optional Door Ajar Lamp is a good example of the hole principle, then. Just because of the hole needed for the plastic push-button L81 made it on the majority of 1974-1978 fender tags.
 
Apart from my gripes with V5X Vinyl Side Protection, also the M25 Sill Moldings have some inconsistencies. Bright sill moldings were a standard feature of the 1974 Gran Sedan/Coupe aka 1975-1977 Gran Fury Brougham and the 1974-1976 Newport Custom. But only on Fury fender tags they are listed.

It is not very likely that only the Fury's sill moldings needed holes being drilled, whereas the Newport's did not.

The Newports were assembled at East Jefferson, Furys elsewhere. So it could well be an assembly-dependent thing, a bit like the case of the L25 Trunk Compartment Light.
 
It is not very likely that only the Fury's sill moldings needed holes being drilled, whereas the Newport's did not.

You can bet on that the trim on Newport´s´trim has a screw on the front or rear and other attaching points are steel tabs on the body panel, which are pushed into holes in the plastic clips, which have a couple protrusions to keep them intact and partially inside the trim.

Hope I could explain it somewhat understandably.:eek:
 
Apart from my gripes with V5X Vinyl Side Protection, also the M25 Sill Moldings have some inconsistencies. Bright sill moldings were a standard feature of the 1974 Gran Sedan/Coupe aka 1975-1977 Gran Fury Brougham and the 1974-1976 Newport Custom. But only on Fury fender tags they are listed.

It is not very likely that only the Fury's sill moldings needed holes being drilled, whereas the Newport's did not.

The Newports were assembled at East Jefferson, Furys elsewhere. So it could well be an assembly-dependent thing, a bit like the case of the L25 Trunk Compartment Light.

The fun part of being a fender tag geek is finding the weird stuff. Why do some, but not all, 70 B body convertibles code M21 drip rail molding?

What was coded, when it was coded and where it was coded changes year to year, plant to Plant and even during the year. The joy is in the discovery.
 
After nitpicking for a while, this stuff could be more serious: Belvidere uses two groups of 3-digits codes not seen elsewhere and for which the internet offers no easy answers.

In a slot following on the "Build For U-I-C" slot all 1977 tags have one of these:

000: PK41K7D
100: CP46T7D, DH23T7D, DH46N7D
101: PK41P7D
111: PM41J7D (2x), PK41T7D
222: PH41U7D, PK41U7D (3x)

And from 1975 on, right before the "END" code some tags may have another 3-digit code:

200: PK41U7D
231: PK41K7D
243: PH41U6D
262: PK41P7D
273: PH41U7D
281: PK41U5D

Here's an example showing both types of codes:

77-XXXXXX-PK41U7XXXXXXX-b.jpg
 
After nitpicking for a while, this stuff could be more serious: Belvidere uses two groups of 3-digits codes not seen elsewhere and for which the internet offers no easy answers.

In a slot following on the "Build For U-I-C" slot all 1977 tags have one of these:

000: PK41K7D
100: CP46T7D, DH23T7D, DH46N7D
101: PK41P7D
111: PM41J7D (2x), PK41T7D
222: PH41U7D, PK41U7D (3x)

And from 1975 on, right before the "END" code some tags may have another 3-digit code:

200: PK41U7D
231: PK41K7D
243: PH41U6D
262: PK41P7D
273: PH41U7D
281: PK41U5D

Here's an example showing both types of codes:

View attachment 271496

Run a correlation of your 75 and 76 codes to the paint code. LMK what you find.
 
For the first code type the fender tags contain these paint codes, here listed in the order 1st Paint - 2nd Paint - Interior Paint (- Vinyl Top)):

000: PK41K7D V09 V09 999
100: CP46T7D PF7 PF7 MF6
100: DH23T7D PX8 PX8 000 V5X
100: DH46N7D MF2 MF2 MF6
101: PK41P7D V02 V02 PB3
111: PM41J7D EW1 EW1 MF6 V1F
111: PM41J7D PB3 PB3 PB4
111: PK41T7D EW1 EW1 PB4
222: PH41U7D V02 V02 TX9
222: PK41U7D V02 V02 TX9 V02
222: PK41U7D V01 V01 PB4
222: PK41U7D PK6 PK6 KL2

Trailing the web I found two readable broadcast sheets from the second half of the 70s (for a Windsor-built 1977 Cordoba and a Belvidere-built 1979 Horizon) but I could not find this kind of code on those sheets.


The second code type is limited to police cars, but you can also have police cars without it. For some of these cars the destination is known:

200: PK41U7D Virginia State Police
214: DK41U5D Nevada Highway Patrol
214: PH41U7D North Carolina Highway Patrol
231: PK41K7D Royal Canadian Mounted Police
243: PH41U6D South Dakota Highway Patrol
262: PK41P7D unknown
273: PH41U7D Texas Highway Patrol
281: PK41U5D unknown
 
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Look at 75 and 76.

Forget 77 for now. That’s a different discussion.

What as coded, when it was coded changes year to year and plant to plant. What happened in 75 may be different than 77. Don’t try to lump three years together just yet.
 
Here you go: Body Paint - Upper Door Frame Color - Roof Paint/Style Top

1975
DK41U5D 999 999 999 (... 214 END)
PP29N5D LE9 000 V1E
PP43M5D KB8 000 V1X
PK41U5D 999 999 999 (... 281 END)

75-236715-PK41U5D236715.jpg


This car has been bluesmobiled.

1976
DP29T6D TX9 000 V3X
DK41U6D KB1 KB7 KB1
DP29N6D KB8 000 V3B
DP41K6D KG8 MF6 V1F
PK41U6D LY6 KY4 LY6
PH46T6D EW1 MF6 EW1
PH41U6D 999 EW1 V02 (... 243 END)
PH41U6D KT9 KL2 KT9

76-195579-PH41U6D195579.jpg


1976-custom-blue-police-c.jpg


This car has the South Dakota Highway Patrol color scheme: light blue with a white roof.

I think I see your point now. The 3-digit code right before the END appears with special paint jobs. You did it again!
 
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On closer scrutiny, I see a similar, though not eminently readable code for a 1974 car with special paint as well:

74-215212-DK41U4D215212-fendertag.jpg


Looks like 262 END to me.
 
This begs the question of the label to put on this optional slot. Something like "Customer Preferred Color Scheme" maybe? I guess there is no way of knowing what the single codes mean and that it is highly likely their meaning varied over the years, a bit like some package codes did.

It would be interesting to know if these codes also appeared on the broadcast sheet, at the bottom, for instance.
 
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I'm having my troubles with the Private Conversation function of this site. It seems I cannot start conversations myself, at least I never got a reaction on the five conversations I initiated.

But I did receive messages when other members started a conversation with me.
 
Yup, the meaning of the custom color codes varies over the years. Code 214 is used for two different schemes.

DK41U5D Nevada Highway Patrol - blue body, silver roof and stripe:
78NHPDodgeMonaco.jpg

(Wrong car, correct scheme)

PH41U7D North Carolina Highway Patrol - black upper body, silver roof and lower body:
NCHP1977fury.jpg

(Correct car, correct scheme)
 
No, I do not see any reference to a custom color code in the broadcast sheet. It only says "01 Special Order" at the bottom.

In fact, the broadcast sheet (version 1-74) does not even contain fields for Upper Doorframe Color and Paint Style, like the previous version did. This information does show up on the fender tag though, as TX9 and V02.

Probably at the paint shop they had other build instructions besides the tags and sheets we are looking at.
 
Looking at the original color of the tags alone, the custom color code's meaning could even change during the model year. 262 code tags are black from 1974 until February, 1975, but from May, 1975 (judging by SPD dates) they become greyish blue and stay that way right into 1977.

74-215212-DK41U4D215212-fendertag.jpg


77-240496-PK41P7D240496.jpg

(I mean the lower tag in this picture.)

For the black 262 code tag it is known that it belongs to an ex-CHP car. Does anyone know about a police squad that used the greyish blue color? They were all on Plymouths with the P code engine.

CHP switched from ordering C-body to B-body Dodges in 1976, that were assembled at Lynch Road. At the C-body building Belvidere plant code 262 was not needed any more for CHP orders, although on a corporate scale the CHP color scheme was still in active use. Here's an example for a 1977 B-body ex-CHP car:

77-WK41U7A256319.jpg


Were these custom color codes exclusively maintained by Belvidere then? From a corporate point of view such a thought seems like pure heresy to me.
 
There you have it: another 1977 Belvidere car with this 1977-only code in the third line from the bottom, in this case "111", just popped up on Ebay:

77-248188-PK41T7D248188-a.jpg

77-248188-PK41T7D248188-b.jpg


All in all, I now have four tags with this code:

PM41J7D111970:
23
END
G11 G53 H51 N21 N88 S61
EW1 V1F U 111 K5X G??
EW1 R2F6 MF6 816 077348
E56 D36 PM41 J7D 111970

PM41J7D134539:
17
H51 N21 END
PB3 U 111 K5X G11
PB3 P1B3 PB4 A01 076113
E56 D36 PM41 J7D 134539

PK41T7D248027:
21
N96 END
F43 F58 F72 G11 H51 N21
EW1 U 111 Y39 F36
EW1 A1B3 PB4 520 K37160
E85 D36 PK41 T7D 248027

PK41T7D248188:
216
H51 N21 N96 END
F37 F43 F49 F58 F72 G11
EW1 U 111 Y39 F36
EW1 99Y3 KY4 620 K3735?
E85 D36 PK41 T7D 248188

Now what do these four cars have in common, apart from the "111"?
 
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