1971 Roadrunner Production Number /// Mopar Production Info?

I know that Galen Govier would be able to help me out with this, but just wondering in this day and age of fingertip data, is there anywhere online (even in book form) that has the production data on our cars with the different options and colors offered? I'm looking at what appears to be a 1971 Plymouth Roadrunner sassy grass 4 speed 383 with an air grabber. Build sheet, body VIN stamps, & FT are all there - seems legit, but now I'm wondering how rare is this car? I know you never see these kinds of cars for sale, so I know off the bat it's super rare. Is there no other sources of information other than getting on a list and hoping a verification of your car occurs within one's lifetime? Besides, how good is his information anyway - where did he get it? Who's going to question his appraisal when there seems to be very little out there to begin with so as to say that your car is 1 of 337 because of this or that? I'm not bashing the guy, I'm just asking the question - how good is the information that he brings to the table when it really cannot be verified anywhere else? I'm just talking production figures that I've seen on some of his appraisals now - that's what I'm talking about here.

At any rate, if anyone has a storage of knowledge out there with this information I would love to know where it is and be able to review it - mainly for my own use of how rare this or that is.............any ideas where this Mopar Valhalla of information is? I know that the the Shelby guys have their registry - and there are so many registered that most, if not all, of the existing cars are in it and verified having this or that. Other than Galen, is there any other registries for our cars, whether they be A, B, C, or E bodies? I know it's a lot of work for any of this stuff, but it would be great if there was something out there that I'm missing so I can help myself out.............

Wait for some of the other members to chime in. They can help you out with production numbers although it's still not clear to me what exactly you're looking for. Is it how rare the 1971 Plymouth Roadrunner are by colour, 4 speeds or by Air Grabbers? depending on how you cook the numbers, anything can look rarer than it actually is. If you want to know about numbers using all 3 of the criteria just mentioned, just wait for some of the big Boys on here to chime in. All I can give you is perhaps numbers of 440+6 and Hemi cars and how many were 4 speeds vs automatics stuff like that or total Satellite production data with numbers by model. Some one will answer your question(s).

google is your friend

road runner build numbers

71 road runner production numbers

71 road runner option percentages

the above production numbers might differ a little bit depending on the source used to publish.
the percentages are figured on TOTAL build numbers. their are no actual numbers on how many high impact paint, air grabber cars with 4 speeds. that number doesn't exist because mopar never spent the time to publish it.
the only real numbers are 71 road runners with 383, road runners with air grabbers, and road runners with 4 speeds. any numbers more detailed than this are just a guess.

I looked at all of those production charts, and the numbers don't add up. It doesn't give any numbers on 71 RR's with a 340, or 383 with a 3 speed manual.

All 1971 Roadrunners breakdown:

340 4V= 12.3%
High Impact paint=37.5%
Trans 4-spd= 24.7% (probably a misprint under 340 cu in)
Air Grabber= 11.2%

Taken from the 3rd link by Mr T2U

There doesn't seem to be any numbers associated with the percentages. No numbers for Sassy Grass Green. Not sure if this was a hi impact colour.

Taken from the internet:


1971 Plymouth Road Runner

VIN RM23H1G139713

Recent ground up restoration! This is a very rare 1971 Road Runner, only 438 were made with a factory manual shift. Of the 438 built not many were Green Go.

Production Numbers:
1971 Plymouth Road Runners: 14,218 Built
340 1-4BBL Road Runners: 1,681 Built
Manual Transmission: 438 Built (3-speed & 4-speed Transmissions)

VIN Decoding:
RM23: Plymouth Road Runner Hardtop
H: 340 1-4BBL Engine
1: 1971 Model Year
C: Jefferson, MI Assembly Plant
139713: Vehicle Sequence Number

Fender Tag Decoding:
Row 1:
N42 = Bright Exhaust Tips
R11 = AM Radio
V8X = Transverse Tape Stripe Black
26 = 26" Radiator
Row 2:
FJ6 = Green Go Roof Paint
U = US Shipment
B11 = 11" Drum Brakes self Adjusting
J45 = Hood Tie Down Pins
M21 = Drip Rail Mouldings
N41 = Dual Exhaust
Row 3:
FJ6 = Green Go Body Paint
M2X9 = Medium Trim Grade Bench Vinyl, Black
TX9 = Black Upper Door Frame
B03 = November 3, 1970 Production Date
187870 = Vehicle Sequence Number
Row 4:
E55 = 340 1-4BBL
D13 = 3-speed Manual Transmission Floor Shift
RM23: Plymouth Road Runner Hardtop
H: 340 1-4BBL Engine
1: 1971 Model Year
C: Jefferson, MI Assembly Plant
139713: Vehicle Sequence Number

Those numbers are for options. The 3spd manual was standard.

We have percentages for each option (the roadrunnernest link) but I have not found any information that lists how rare an individual car with a specific combination of options is.
I have a registry for 71-72 Plymouth B bodies, but I would never assume that it's a fair representation of total build percentages.

Chrysler did not track option combinations.

For your third link, you would be incorrect. As a rule, when production is broken down by options, they are for US-spec cars only. Certain info exists for the "others" (Canadian and Export cars) but generally it's something like Canadian Hemi production or an old wing car document.

Super rare? By today's standards or GM / Ford standards yes. By Mopar standards no.

There were 3,730 manual trans 383 RR's for 71. The vast majority will be 4 speeds.

Of those ~5.5% were Sassy Grass green so that gets you to ~205 cars

I would argue that more manual trans car had Air Grabbers than automatics so lets use the number 40% gets you to ~82 cars - not rare by Mopar standards.

If you looking for a Marti report that says the car is 1 of 1 they don't exist for Mopars.

Again as for Super rare I'd say no. I know where two 71 383 4 speed Sassy Grass RR's with N96 are here in CA and I haven't turned ove r a rock or looked for one.

Gotta take issue with this.



More RRs were built in 1971 than GTOs. Break any Brand X down and you'll find that they are as rare as Mopars – even Chevys on occasion.



You can't combine production numbers, like what Ken said above. While I don't know where the 5.5% came from (source?), presumably it would be for ALL Road Runners built. Hence, it would be statistically incorrect to use a percentage based on a sample (total RR production) and apply it to a smaller group of cars.

Of coarse it's statistically incorrect.

It's probability. It's a guesstimate.

The 5.5% comes from a high impact paint list published in a magazine probably 30 years ago.

At the end of the day NO ONE knows how many.

One that is statistically incorrect.

in the 3rd link it lists 71 road runners with 340 as 12.3% or 1,681 made.
the second link lists as 1,681 340 cars with 438 manual trans and 1,243 auto.


as others posted the 3rd link is a OPTION chart. it won't list 383 3 speed because this is standard equipment so it won't be on a option list.


i would suggest doing some more internet searches on 71 road runner options or possibly 71 road runner build totals.

That's what I was getting at

For what it's worth (and this should not be considered an accurate percentage of total cars built), of the 550+ 71 Runners I have on record 12 are 383 4spd FJ6 and two of those have N96.

True, but the point is the whole thing is a fool's errand

I was just wondering how accurate it would be to say that with X option, Y option, with this motor and this transmission and this exterior color, this B number is how many that were made. It sounds pretty definitive to say that no one knows that answer. The only production numbers that are anywhere near accurate is engine and transmission numbers - that is what I just learned today, which is good.

Thank you everyone for your responses!!!!!!!!