1969 · Plymouth · United States
1969 Plymouth Road Runner: The Peak Year, from Ronnie Sox's Hemi Pass to the Six Barrel
A convertible joined the coupe and hardtop, the 440 Six Barrel arrived at mid-year, and the Road Runner reached its production peak of 84,420.
United States · researched through 2026-09-22
Car Craft put a professional drag racer in its 1969 Hemi Road Runner. For the January 1969 issue, Ronnie Sox drove a factory press car with the 426 Hemi, TorqueFlite, a 4.10 Sure-Grip axle and the Coyote Duster cold-air hood at Irwindale, and in stock configuration it ran the quarter-mile in 13.35 seconds at 107.39 mph. Its sticker read $4,437. The magazine later modified the car with a different cam, headers and slicks, and those runs belong to a different machine. The stock pass is the fair one to remember, and it opened the Road Runner's best-selling year.1
The best-selling year is not a figure of speech. Over-Drive's production table gives 33,743 Road Runner coupes, 48,549 hardtops and 2,128 convertibles, 84,420 in all, the largest of the Road Runner's early years by a wide margin. The fact sheet divides the same total into 81,125 domestic cars and 3,295 built for Canada and other markets. Ate Up With Motor's history prints a sales figure of 82,109 without stating its basis, and it matches neither the table's total nor its domestic count. The accounting difference stays visible, but on any of these figures the Road Runner nearly doubled its first-year 44,599.2,3
The hardtop did the heavy lifting. In 1969 the hardtop's 48,549 cars outnumbered the pillared coupe's 33,743 by nearly 15,000, even though the hardtop listed at $3,083 against the coupe's $2,945. The new convertible, body RM27 at $3,313, found 2,128 buyers. The Road Runner still sold on the same premise, but most buyers were willing to pay $138 more for pillarless style on top of it. Plymouth's 1969 Belvedere brochure presented the Road Runner inside the Belvedere range, with the 383 standard and the Street Hemi as the option.2
The convertible count is small enough to break down completely. The fact sheet says 2,118 of the 2,128 convertibles had the standard 383 and 10 had the Hemi, which makes a Hemi Road Runner convertible one of ten in a body line of 2,128. The shipping weights show what the open body cost in mass: 3,790 pounds for the convertible, against 3,435 for the coupe and 3,450 for the hardtop, all factory figures rather than scale readings. For the coupe and hardtop, no documented Hemi count or transmission split has been found, so those numbers remain unknown rather than estimated, and the ten Hemi convertibles are the only 1969 Hemi Road Runners that the fact sheet actually counts.2
Plymouth kept adding to the order form. The standard engine stayed the 383 four-barrel rated 335 horsepower and 425 lb-ft gross, and the Street Hemi, rated 425 horsepower and 490 lb-ft, now cost $813 in the Road Runner. New for the Road Runner and GTX was the Air Grabber hood scoop, sales code N96, at $55. The Track Pak was $143, and the Super Track Pak, for Road Runners and GTXs with the 440 or 426 and a four-speed, was $256. Plymouth's full-line brochure lists the four-speed with a Hurst shifter as standard with the high-performance engines.2
The biggest addition arrived at mid-year. Option A12 put a 440 with three two-barrel carburetors, rated 390 horsepower at 4,700 rpm and 490 lb-ft, into the Road Runner for $350. Over-Drive notes that A12 cars used a Dana 60 axle with 4.10 gearing, and it puts production at approximately 1,432, calling the figure approximate itself. Against the table's 84,420 Road Runners, that is under two percent. It sat between the 383 and the Hemi in price as well as power, $463 less than the Hemi with the same 490 lb-ft torque rating, which made it the performance bargain of the lineup.2
The rest of the option list shows a car being dressed up as fast as it was being sped up. Performance hood paint was $18, sport stripes $27, a console with bucket seats $54, front disc brakes $49, a Sure-Grip axle $42, performance gauges $17 and a V8 tachometer $50. Air conditioning was $358, power steering $100, and 14-inch chrome styled wheels another $100. The distance between a $2,945 coupe and Car Craft's $4,437 Hemi press car was made of lines like these, together with the Hemi's own $813 and a TorqueFlite, which the press car also carried.2,1
The paint chart grew louder as well. Over-Drive lists twenty regular colors, from Silver and Ice Blue to Limelight, Barracuda Orange, Scorch Red, Bronze Fire and Sunfire Yellow, plus special-order 999 colors including Bahama Yellow, an orange and Rallye Green. None of the paint choices has a documented production count, so the colors can be named but not ranked. Over-Drive also records that Motor Trend named the Road Runner its 1969 Car of the Year, and Ate Up With Motor's history says the same, a remarkable honor for a car that had been conceived as a cheap, plain supercar two years earlier.2,3
Car Craft's test also marks the line between a factory car and a prepared one. Its stock run came from a press car supplied by the factory and driven by one of the era's best-known drag racers, and the later runs came after a cam change, headers and slicks. Because the stock pass came in the hands of a professional, it reads best as a demonstration of what the car could do rather than as a promise to an ordinary owner. What remains is a single documented stock Hemi pass, a factory rating for each engine, and production counts that are strongest for body styles and weakest for engines.1,2
The peak did not hold. Ate Up With Motor records that Road Runner sales fell to 41,484 for 1970, the last year in the original body, and that the Road Runner lent its name and decals to the Superbird, a NASCAR homologation special. It also records the insurance premiums that pressed on performance cars in the years that followed. The 1969 car therefore sits at the top of the curve: the convertible, the Air Grabber, the Six Barrel, a Car of the Year title and 84,420 cars in the production table. By that count, the next year's Road Runner sold barely half as many.3,2
Fact sheet · 1969 · United States
The numbers
1969 Plymouth Road Runner — A convertible joined the coupe and hardtop, the 440 Six Barrel arrived at mid-year, and the Road Runner reached its production peak of 84,420.
Coverage: Partial — researched sections are shown; missing ones are not yet sourced. Researched through 2026-09-22.
Every figure is labeled with how sure we are. Reported means a manufacturer, registry, or reference figure we cite but have not reconciled against factory records ourselves. Disputed means credible sources disagree and both are shown. Rows are separately scoped; don't add them together unless the note says they make up a total.
Key facts
- The fact sheet notes the Road Runner was Motor Trend's 1969 Car of the Year.2
- The Air Grabber hood scoop (code N96, $55) was new for Road Runner and GTX.2
- The 1969 Belvedere catalogue lists Road Runner standard equipment as the 383 V-8, a four-speed manual with Hurst floor shift, heavy-duty suspension, Red Streak Wide Boot tires on Safety-Rim wheels, nylon carpeting, heavy-duty dual braking, dual exhaust, an all-vinyl interior, Road Runner cartoon emblems, a "Beep Beep" horn and simulated hood air scoops.
Production
| What was counted | Count | Basis | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Road Runner 2-door coupe (RM21)2 Road Runner · 2-door coupe · not stated | 33,743 | not stated (production table), model-year | Reported |
| Road Runner 2-door hardtop (RM23)2 Road Runner · 2-door hardtop · not stated | 48,549 | not stated (production table), model-year | Reported |
| Road Runner convertible (RM27)2 Road Runner · convertible · not stated | 2,128 | not stated (production table), model-year | Reported |
| What was counted | Count | Basis | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Road Runner model total2 Road Runner · all markets Stated total; equals the three body rows and the domestic plus Canada/other rows. | 84,420 | not stated (production table), model-year | Reported |
| What was counted | Count | Basis | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Road Runner, domestic (all bodies)2 Road Runner · United States | 81,125 | not stated, model-year | Reported |
| Road Runner, Canada and other markets2 Road Runner · Canada and other | 3,295 | not stated, model-year | Reported |
| What was counted | Count | Basis | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Road Runner convertible, 3832 Road Runner · convertible · 383 4-bbl · not stated | 2,118 | not stated, model-year | Reported |
| Road Runner convertible, 426 Hemi2 Road Runner · convertible · 426 Hemi · not stated | 10 | not stated, model-year | Reported |
| Road Runner 440 Six Barrel (A12)2 Road Runner · coupe and hardtop · 440 3x2-bbl (A12) · not stated The source itself calls this figure approximate. | 1,432 | not stated, model-year | Reported |
| Road Runner with 426 Hemi4 Road Runner · 426 Hemi · not stated Single secondary lineage (Chrysler/Govier figures as repeated by UltimateMuscleCar); scope not stated. | 788 | not stated, model-year | Reported |
Hemi coupe and hardtop counts and transmission splits were not found in an accessible documented source; see unpublished leads.
Prices when new
| Model | Price | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Road Runner 2-door coupe2 | $2,945 | factory price (list, per production table), 1969 model year |
| Road Runner 2-door hardtop2 | $3,083 | factory price (list, per production table), 1969 model year |
| Road Runner convertible2 | $3,313 | factory price (list, per production table), 1969 model year |
| Hemi Road Runner press car, as stickered1 | $4,437 | sticker price of Car Craft test car with Hemi option, 1968-autumn |
Prices are the nominal dollars of the day, not adjusted for inflation.
Engines
| Engine | Factory rating | Availability | Built |
|---|---|---|---|
| 383 4-bbl (Road Runner Hi-Po)2 383 cu in · single 4-barrel | 335 hp @ 5,200, 425 lb-ft @ 3,400 (SAE gross) | standard | Not yet sourced |
| A12 · 440 Six Barrel (three 2-bbl)2 440 cu in · three 2-barrels | 390 hp @ 4,700, 490 lb-ft @ 3,200 (SAE gross) | optional (A12), $350; mid-year | 1,4322 Reported |
| 426 Street Hemi2 426 cu in · two 4-barrels | 425 hp @ 5,000, 490 lb-ft @ 4,000 (SAE gross) | optional, $813 in Road Runner | Not yet sourced |
Ratings are the manufacturer's advertised figures under the standard shown (SAE gross before 1972, SAE net after). They are not dyno results, and gross and net ratings can't be compared directly.
Transmissions
| Transmission | Availability | Built |
|---|---|---|
| Four-speed manual, Hurst floor shift2 | standard with 383 Hi-Po, 440 and 426; listed at $188-$197 where not standard | Not yet sourced |
| TorqueFlite automatic2 | optional, $191-$227 with V-8s (range price) | Not yet sourced |
Options and packages
| Code | Option | Price | Installed |
|---|---|---|---|
A12order code |
440 Six Barrel 390-hp V-8 package2 | $350 | Not yet sourced |
|
426 Street Hemi (Road Runner)2 | $813 | Not yet sourced |
N96sales code |
Air Grabber hood scoop (Road Runner, GTX)2 | $55 | Not yet sourced |
|
Track Pack (Road Runner, GTX)2 | $143 | Not yet sourced |
|
Super Track Pack (Road Runner, GTX with 440 or 426 and four-speed)2 | $256 | Not yet sourced |
|
Performance hood paint (Road Runner, GTX)2 | $18 | Not yet sourced |
|
Sport stripes paint treatment (Road Runner)2 | $27 | Not yet sourced |
|
Console with bucket seats (Road Runner, Sport Satellite)2 | $54 | Not yet sourced |
|
Disc front brakes2 | $49 | Not yet sourced |
|
Sure-Grip positive traction rear axle2 | $42 | Not yet sourced |
|
Performance gauges2 | $17 | Not yet sourced |
|
Tachometer (V-8 only)2 | $50 | Not yet sourced |
|
Air conditioning2 | $358 | Not yet sourced |
|
Power steering2 | $100 | Not yet sourced |
|
Chrome styled wheels, 14-inch2 | $100 | Not yet sourced |
|
Four-speed manual floor shift (383 Hi-Po, 440, 426; price varies 188-197)2 | $188 | Not yet sourced |
|
Heavy-duty 70-ampere battery2 | $13 | Not yet sourced |
|
Optional rear axle ratio (2.76-4.10 where available)2 | $10 | Not yet sourced |
|
Auto speed control2 | $58 | Not yet sourced |
|
Bumper guards, front and rear2 | $32 | Not yet sourced |
|
Colour-keyed carpet mats2 | $14 | Not yet sourced |
|
Dual head rests (standard after January 1, 1969)2 | $27 | Not yet sourced |
|
Headlights-on signal2 | $7 | Not yet sourced |
|
Power brakes2 | $43 | Not yet sourced |
|
Solid-state AM radio2 | $62 | Not yet sourced |
|
Solid-state AM radio with tape2 | $196 | Not yet sourced |
|
Solid-state AM/FM radio2 | $135 | Not yet sourced |
|
Tinted glass2 | $41 | Not yet sourced |
|
Tinted windshield2 | $26 | Not yet sourced |
|
Floral interior2 | $113 | Not yet sourced |
|
Floral roof treatment2 | $96 | Not yet sourced |
Paint
| Code | Color | Built |
|---|---|---|
A4 |
Silver2 | Not yet sourced |
B3 |
Ice Blue2 | Not yet sourced |
B5 |
Blue Fire2 | Not yet sourced |
B7 |
Jamaica Blue2 | Not yet sourced |
F3 |
Frost Green2 | Not yet sourced |
F5 |
Limelight2 | Not yet sourced |
F8 |
Ivy Green2 | Not yet sourced |
L1 |
Sand Pebble Beige2 | Not yet sourced |
Q5 |
Seafoam Turquoise2 | Not yet sourced |
R4 |
Barracuda Orange2 | Not yet sourced |
R6 |
Scorch Red2 | Not yet sourced |
T3 |
Honey Bronze2 | Not yet sourced |
T5 |
Bronze Fire2 | Not yet sourced |
T7 |
Saddle Bronze2 | Not yet sourced |
W1 |
Alpine White2 | Not yet sourced |
X9 |
Black Velvet2 | Not yet sourced |
Y2 |
Sunfire Yellow2 | Not yet sourced |
Y3 |
Yellow Gold2 | Not yet sourced |
Y4 |
Spanish Gold2 | Not yet sourced |
Y6 |
Citron Gold2 | Not yet sourced |
999 |
Bahama Yellow (special-order 999 color)2 | Not yet sourced |
999 |
Orange (special-order 999 color)2 | Not yet sourced |
999 |
Rallye Green (special-order 999 color)2 | Not yet sourced |
Color names are the factory's. We don't show color swatches, because a screen color is no guide for a restoration.
Interiors
| Code | Trim | Built |
|---|---|---|
|
All-vinyl interior with nylon carpeting (standard Road Runner) | Not yet sourced |
Specifications
| Measure | Value | Applies to |
|---|---|---|
| Wheelbase2 | 116 in | all Road Runner bodies |
| Overall length2 | 204 in | non-wagon bodies |
| Overall width2 | 76.4 in | non-wagon bodies |
| Shipping weight, coupe2 | 3,435 lb | RM21 |
| Shipping weight, hardtop2 | 3,450 lb | RM23 |
| Shipping weight, convertible2 | 3,790 lb | RM27 |
| Front brakes (Road Runner and GTX) | 11 x 3 in | drum; rear 11 x 2-1/2 in. |
Period road tests
| Test | Car tested | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Car Craft, 1969-011standing quarter mile | 426 Hemi, TorqueFlite automatic, 4.10 Sure-Grip, 2-door coupe press car, stock tuneat 107.39 mph; driven by professional drag racer Ronnie Sox at Irwindale; later modified runs excluded | 13.35 s |
A road test result belongs to the one car that was tested, with its engine, gearing, tires, and conditions. It is not a figure for every car of the year.
Identification
- Series and body numbers
- Series ER2; body RM21 = coupe, RM23 = hardtop, RM27 = convertible.2
Identification
Read a 1969 Plymouth VIN
The VIN decoder runs in your browser and never sends the VIN anywhere. How the factory numbered this year's cars:
Same model year
Also in 1969
- AMC AMX The two-seat AMX's biggest year: 8,293 cars by the enthusiast production table, with a mid-year run of Big Bad colors and 52 Hurst-built Super Stock AMXs for NHRA drag racing.
- AMC Javelin Production fell to 40,675, but the 1969 Javelin added the Big Bad colors, with 2,282 cars painted blue, green or orange, plus the Mod package.
- AMC Rebel and Rebel Machine A base and SST Rebel with no convertible. The Big Bad colors were test-marketed through the New York–New Jersey 'Raider' hardtop. This is host-car context for the 1970 Machine.
- Buick Riviera Another record at 52,872 Rivieras; 5,272 had the GS handling option.
- Buick Skylark Gran Sport, GS and GSX GS production fell to 12,465, and the GS 400's Stage 1 package became a factory option while Stage 2 stayed a dealer item.
- Buick Wildcat 67,453 Wildcats; the last year of the 430.
- Chevrolet Chevelle and Malibu SS Super Sport became RPO Z25 option equipment, available for 1969 only on the 300 Deluxe coupes as well as Malibu sport coupe, convertible and El Camino.
- Chevrolet Chevy II and Nova SS is RPO Z26 per the source, with L48, L34 and L78 engines. Enthusiast-compiled production: 251,849 cars; Super Sport 17,564.
- Chevrolet El Camino SS SS 396 became RPO Z25 option equipment, orderable on the V8 Malibu El Camino (13680); the El Camino share of the 86,307 Z25s is not separately published.
- Chevrolet Impala SS Only the SS427 (RPO Z24) remains; the reported count ranges from 2,425 to about 2,455.
- Dodge Charger The second-generation Charger's peak-sales year added the SE package and the aero-bodied Charger 500 and Charger Daytona homologation cars, whose production totals are still disputed.
- Dodge Coronet R/T and Super Bee The Super Bee added a hardtop body and the 440 Six Pack, while the 440-powered Coronet R/T continued as the upscale hardtop and convertible.
- Dodge Dart GTS, Swinger and Demon The low-priced Swinger 340 arrived and outsold the GTS by more than two to one (16,637 against about 6,700), while a 375 hp 440 joined the GTS options.
- Ford Fairlane The Fairlane hardtop was the intermediate line's volume leader, while the Fairlane 500 SportsRoof shared its body with the Torino GT, Cobra and Talladega.
- Ford Ranchero GT The Ranchero GT carried Torino GT trim; 1,658 GTs were built, per reference-site counts in the Standard Catalog lineage.
- Ford Thunderbird Fifth-generation Thunderbird; only the whole-line production total was found.
- Ford Torino The Torino GT carried most of the line's volume, the 428 Cobra Jet was in its first full year, and the Talladega aero fastback was built in a short run at Atlanta to homologate a NASCAR nose.
- Mercury Comet and Cyclone The Cyclone fastback came as Cyclone and Cyclone CJ, mid-year Spoilers carried Dan Gurney and Cale Yarborough graphics, and the extended-nose Cyclone Spoiler II was built at Lorain for NASCAR homologation.
- Mercury Cougar A longer, restyled Cougar added a convertible, the Boss 302 arrived in April, and the Eliminator replaced the GT as the performance Cougar.
- Mercury Marauder and S-55 The Marauder name returned on a full-size hardtop, and the X-100 carried the 360 hp 429 four-barrel as its only engine.
- Oldsmobile Cutlass, 4-4-2 and Hurst/Olds The 4-4-2 kept its 400 while the second Hurst/Olds, in white and gold with a 380 hp 455, went into production at about 900 cars.
- Plymouth Barracuda and 'Cuda The last A-body Barracuda introduced the 'Cuda name as a stripped performance package with a standard 340, alongside Formula S and a midyear 440.
- Plymouth GTX, Belvedere and Satellite The GTX shared the Road Runner's new Air Grabber scoop and Super Track Pack but sold 15,602 cars, fewer than a fifth of the cheaper Road Runner.
- Pontiac Firebird and Trans Am The last first-generation Firebird, and the mid-year debut of the Trans Am package: 697 cars by the commonly published count, eight of them convertibles.
- Pontiac GTO Three four-barrel 400s under one nameplate, and the first year of the Judge package built around Ram Air power.
- Pontiac Grand Prix A new 118-inch Grand Prix with the SJ and a 390 hp 428 HO: production more than tripled to 112,486.
- Pontiac Tempest and LeMans The last year of the OHC Sprint six and the 350 HO.
- Rambler American and SC/Rambler AMC and Hurst put the 315-hp 390 V8 and a close-ratio four-speed into the compact Rambler hardtop for NHRA F/Stock. 1,512 were built, and the split between the two paint schemes is disputed.