1968 Charger R/T Cruise Control Stats?

[familymopar]

Hello all!

Although I have been reading posts on this site for some time, I just registered today and am excited to join in the discussions.

Here is my question:  I have a 1968 Charger R/T with cruise control.  I am curious as to how rare this option was in 1968.  I have seen some posts on here regarding 69's, but not for 68's.  Anybody have any numbers on this?  It is a factory optioned cruise control, rear defogger, rear speaker car.  I assume this has to be a relatively rare combo but I am mostly interested in the cruise.

Thanks for any info!

[charge69]

Welcome to the forum, familymopar ! I doubt you are going to find the actual number of '68 R/T's that were produced with cruise control but, it has to be a fairly rare option! I do not think numbers were kept to indicate how many were produced with a particular option.

Pictures of your R/T would be very nice. Is it running? What condition is it in? Are the cruise control pieces all there?  Like I said,  we LOVE PICTURES!!

[ACUDANUT]

The big question is, does it work ? 

[tan top]

 hello & welcome       , would love to see pictures sometime   

[familymopar]

Thanks to all for the welcome!

The car runs great and everything works, except that cruise.  We are looking into it now and all parts appear present.  This is my first charger with cruise so it is a little new to me.  I have also been having some issues with fuel delivery (fairly sure I have a ripped diaphragm in the pump) so I am replacing pump, sender, lines, and separator this week to make sure I got it.

I am trying to upload photos but apparently my iPhone photos are too big.  Not too sure how to do it but I will keep trying.  Need to figure out how to make it a smaller file I guess.

[ACUDANUT]

That's what I was thinking. They never work. 

[familymopar]

Yea I have never seen one working or not.  But this one will work.  Eventually.

[VegasCharger]

Hello and welcome aboard familymopar 

Let me know if you need help with resizing your pics.

Bryan

[69charger2002]

I think cruise was very rare on chargers from 68-70. Ive only had 2 ever with cruise. None were 68s. There is no breakdown of that option out there as far as I know, but definitely rare. My guess would be easily less than 2-3%
trav

[StoneCold]

XP - 1.8% - 1332
XS - 3.3% - 580

Reported at one time anyway.

[Dans 68]

That's what I was thinking. They never work.  :Twocents:

I know an original owner '68 Charger that has the option and it works just fine. The whole car is just fine for that matter.
Dan

[familymopar]

VegasCharger - I would love some help.  I am not very computer savvy.  I have all my photos on dropbox and I use a mac pro.  My photos seem to all be around 2MB and I guess I need them under 200KB

StoneCold - Those numbers sound about right.  Where did your numbers come from though?  I have been looking for a source on this for a  long time...

Dans 68 - Glad to hear there is one out there working.  Mine will be soon.

[VegasCharger]

VegasCharger - I would love some help.  I am not very computer savvy.  I have all my photos on dropbox and I use a mac pro.  My photos seem to all be around 2MB and I guess I need them under 200KB

PM sent 

[StoneCold]

StoneCold - Those numbers sound about right.  Where did your numbers come from though?  I have been looking for a source on this for a  long time...

Govier's Option and Accessories reports from the mid 90's listing several dozen option figures per car.  No color info though until 1970.  Values appear to have been originally recorded in percentages and someone just calculated that into whole numbers based on the grand total of cars. So its probably a give or take deal when it comes to an exact numbers. There may have been more accurate info discovered over the past 20 years.

[Ghoste]

Those used to be in Hi-Performance Mopar or something were they not?

[StoneCold]

Those used to be in Hi-Performance Mopar or something were they not?

It's quite possible since I remember he had a column in one of the mags, but I'm thinking just a number here and there, not the whole list, could be wrong though.

[Ghoste]

So they were published independently as well?  I don't remember that.

[StoneCold]

So they were published independently as well?  I don't remember that.

Yeah didnt he have a column called "by the numbers" or something along that line. I believe the odd figure was put out. I stopped getting all the magazines in the mid 90s so a more complete list may have be posted since then. I'll post a sample later.

[StoneCold]

Samples...

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d148/simplystressed/pn1_zps70245583.jpg
http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d148/simplystressed/pn2_zps82ef9373.jpg

[mightywing7]

Stonecold - Thanks for the great info!  That's the first time that I've seen any breakdown of various options for our '68's.  Other than the two samples that you posted, were there any other additional pages from that particular source that had other items specific to 1968's as well? 

Thanks again!

[StoneCold]

It's possible there was more info, but this is all I had for the '68.
You're welcome.

ps. In your sig you show an '87 Grand National. I had a couple back in the day as well 

[mightywing7]

It's possible there was more info, but this is all I had for the '68.
You're welcome.

ps. In your sig you show an '87 Grand National. I had a couple back in the day as well 

Thanks for the quick response!  Yeah, the '87 GN is a nice car that my son and I stumbled upon several years back that was too nice to pass up!  It's a different kind of fun when compared to the Charger. 

[familymopar]

StoneCold -  I agree with MightyWing7, thanks for the great info.  I know the accuracy of these stats may be open to some debate, but this was exactly what I was looking for.  Thanks again, a great resource!

And thanks to all for the responses.  Great first experience with the forum!

[familymopar]

some pics

[Tilar]

Cool pics. I picked up a set of the black 68 Hemisfair plates for my 68 a number of years ago... Maybe some day I'll even get to put them on. 

[CCR]

I have the same combo on mine 

[VegasCharger]

I guess "Auto Pilot" means Cruise Control.
Like it was an airplane LOL.

[charge69]

Great looking Charger and I love the "Hemisfair" plates!  Congrats on a pretty rare option and I can understand wanting to get the cruise control working.  A few more pics would be nice!

[tan top]

 nice looking charger !!    awesome color combo 

[familymopar]

Charge69 - Thank you.  My brother got me those plates for Christmas last year and I love them.  The black plates on the car look great, especially compared to our normal red-white-blue plates!

Tan Top - I appreciate the compliment.  I had a white on black 68 a few years ago that my wife convinced me to sell for a down payment on our first house and I have kicked myself ever since.  The guy who bought it took it to Georgia and made it a General Lee.  Last I heard from him he sent me a photo of Daisy Duke sitting in my car.  When it came time to find another I looked for an original sunfire yellow, black top, black guts because that is what my father drove from Michigan to Texas in 1969.  Then he met my mother and had to sell it.  He always kicked himself for that too.   Won't happen again!

[familymopar]

More pics

[tan top]

Charge69 - Thank you.  My brother got me those plates for Christmas last year and I love them.  The black plates on the car look great, especially compared to our normal red-white-blue plates!

Tan Top - I appreciate the compliment.  I had a white on black 68 a few years ago that my wife convinced me to sell for a down payment on our first house and I have kicked myself ever since.  The guy who bought it took it to Georgia and made it a General Lee.  Last I heard from him he sent me a photo of Daisy Duke sitting in my car.  When it came time to find another I looked for an original sunfire yellow, black top, black guts because that is what my father drove from Michigan to Texas in 1969.  Then he met my mother and had to sell it.  He always kicked himself for that too.   Won't happen again!

  oh right !! sounds like your dad had a good road trip back then !! thanks for sharing the storys       has your dad got any old pictures  of the charger back in the day ?

More pics

  real nice looking 68   

[charge69]

Thanks for the additional pictures. I noticed what appears to be a Harris County Sheriff's car and checked your profile. Yep, you do live in Houston! The pics look a little like the west side but not sure. There are a few members on this forum that live in the Houston area, me included. I live in the Spring area and would love a chance to look at your Charger in person!

[familymopar]

Tan Top - I have one surviving pic of my dad's 68.  It is hanging in my garage but I will try to post it very soon.  It hangs right next to a photo of my first 68.  I love to show people the old man's car.  He was a firm believer that there was nothing better than a 68 Charger.

Charge69 - I live in Cypress.  Right around 290 and Spring Cypress.  Just moved over here from Spring around 1960 and Stuebner.  That photo was taken last saturday after niftee 50ees at Jones and Grant.  I go to Niftee 50ee's pretty regularly, I am attempting to join HMCC, and generally hammer about town fairly often.  I was actually raised in Spring in the champions area, spent almost 15 years in Austin, and came back in 2008.  I would love to get together sometime with you and/or anyone else on here from the area.  I have been thinking about how much I would love to do a little charger/mopar run up 290 and back a bit on a nice day with some others.  Hell any freeway would do I suppose.  Drive out, hit some bbq, head back.  And on the backside I assume there may be a beer involved.  Maybe two.

[charge69]

familymopar:  I live off Aldine-Westfield very close to Old Town Spring. Another member here (hemi68charger or Troy Hawkes) that has a Daytona and a project '69 500 lives in Cypress! A cruise out hwy 290 to Chappell hill or Brenham for BBQ sounds great. Actually, the restaurant on the grounds of Brenham Airport makes Great Hamburgers and is a '50's and '60's themed place. I just need to get my Charger running right as the carbs just do not want to cooperate right now!

I have been to the Niftee Fiftees show but only as a spectator for now. Some very nice rides show up but most are Chevy and Ford products! Still nice but, a nice MOPAR is far and few between! Let me know next time you go and I will try to meet you there, spectator or participant, not sure right now!

[RECHRGD]

I love that color combo as well.  Same as my new one in '68 and the present one.  Welcome to the board.....

[familymopar]

I love that color combo as well.  Same as my new one in '68 and the present one.  Welcome to the board.....

Thanks Rechrgd!  It has been a warm welcome indeed.  Like I said in an earlier post I have been referring to this board for years but have never joined any kind of forum or anything like this.  Don't really know why I was so hesitant but am really glad I finally did.  I love the yellow/black/black as well.  At first I wasn't sure but went with it as a sort of 'homage' to my father and passed up a terrific black/black that ended up going from Dallas to Australia (we were a couple $$$ apart too).  No regrets though!  Like most of what the old man said, I have learned that he was right.

[familymopar]

familymopar:  I live off Aldine-Westfield very close to Old Town Spring. Another member here (hemi68charger or Troy Hawkes) that has a Daytona and a project '69 500 lives in Cypress! A cruise out hwy 290 to Chappell hill or Brenham for BBQ sounds great. Actually, the restaurant on the grounds of Brenham Airport makes Great Hamburgers and is a '50's and '60's themed place. I just need to get my Charger running right as the carbs just do not want to cooperate right now!

I have been to the Niftee Fiftees show but only as a spectator for now. Some very nice rides show up but most are Chevy and Ford products! Still nice but, a nice MOPAR is far and few between! Let me know next time you go and I will try to meet you there, spectator or participant, not sure right now!

Charge69 - You are very close!  I have met Try once or twice at the nifty fifties show.  I actually approached him because I recognized his Daytona from a feed on here when he was installing the gear vendors and I wanted to know more about it.  Super nice guy.  It was before I moved and I told him I was moving over here and he told me he actually lives down the street, gave me directions to his house and told me to pop over anytime.  I have long since forgotten where exactly he is though.

I think a cruise out to Brenham airport sounds great.  And no hurry, the weather is just starting to get good anyway (hopefully this time for a while).  I actually just shopped my Charger on Wednesday.  Nothing major, just some minor stuff I don't have time to get into right now and I want it done before too much good weather.  Should be back in a couple weeks I imagine.

I will let you know next time I go to the show with the car.  You are right that it is largely chevy and ford stuff, but somebody has to break up the mustangs and camaros!  There are probably 4-5 second gen chargers that are fairly regular that I can think of.  A few cudas and a good number of challengers, there is an original owner demon that is somewhat regular, a small assortment of A bodies.  A first gen charger is a rare sight and a third gen is almost as rare.  I myself have only seen Troy's Daytona there once last year, and it drew the crowd you would expect.  He was there with a fellow with a nice Hemi too, 69 if I recall.  Anyway, it is plenty to keep me entertained for a while.  Be nice if we could get a few of them in a row.

Lets keep each other posted.

[charge69]

We will make it a "cruise" to the Brenham Airport this Spring!  They really do have good hamburgers there.  The people around here used to call it the $100.00 hamburger as that is how much fuel you used to get there and back! Probably more like a $300.00 hamburger now! Ha! Planning stages for the trip should come pretty soon as it gets hot down here fast!

Troy has a friend he runs around with that has a red '69 HEMI and that is who you must be thinking about.  Troy's name on here again is hemi68charger and I am sure he would like to reconnect. Give him a PM and I am sure he will respond.

Carl

[moparfan53]

I guess "Auto Pilot" means Cruise Control.
Like it was an airplane LOL.

It was called "Automatic Speed Control" in the Dodge dealer info, however I think sometimes the Chrysler/C body info referred to it as Auto Pilot.

Great looking car with a rare and neat option.

[xs29bb1]

Samples...

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d148/simplystressed/pn1_zps70245583.jpg
http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d148/simplystressed/pn2_zps82ef9373.jpg

Hey StoneCold - could you post these up again?  I was out of town last week and I'd like to copy them onto my computer....

[familymopar]

Samples...

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d148/simplystressed/pn1_zps70245583.jpg
http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d148/simplystressed/pn2_zps82ef9373.jpg

Hey StoneCold - could you post these up again?  I was out of town last week and I'd like to copy them onto my computer....

I grabbed them while they were up.  Not sure that the quality is the same but here they are:

[xs29bb1]

Thanks for posting them up!!   

[familymopar]

  oh right !! sounds like your dad had a good road trip back then !! thanks for sharing the storys       has your dad got any old pictures  of the charger back in the day ?

More pics

  real nice looking 68   


[/quote]

Tantop -  Here is the only picture I know to exist of my Dad's 68.  It is hanging in my garage so this is a pic of a pic.  My mother made this black and white blow up years ago for me and in going through both of their things I have never found the color original, but I know it existed in the mid 90's when she did it for me and I am still on the look out for it.  I did find the originals of a Vette he had, 6 or so, but he hated that thing and gave it up pretty quick for the Charger.  The color original has to be around somewhere.  If I ever find it I'll post it.  But rest assures it is an SSI yellow, black top, black interior.

The other photo is the 68 I sold around 2004.  Man I gave that thing away.  I sold a running matching 383 68 for less than people are getting for parts cars now.  And I gave the buyer an extra tranny, hood, all sorts of interior parts, etc.  Worse than when I sold a Michael Jordan rookie card in a large trunk of cards for $20.  These things happen I suppose.

[tan top]

  oh right !! sounds like your dad had a good road trip back then !! thanks for sharing the storys       has your dad got any old pictures  of the charger back in the day ?

More pics

  real nice looking 68   

Tantop -  Here is the only picture I know to exist of my Dad's 68.  It is hanging in my garage so this is a pic of a pic.  My mother made this black and white blow up years ago for me and in going through both of their things I have never found the color original, but I know it existed in the mid 90's when she did it for me and I am still on the look out for it.  I did find the originals of a Vette he had, 6 or so, but he hated that thing and gave it up pretty quick for the Charger.  The color original has to be around somewhere.  If I ever find it I'll post it.  But rest assures it is an SSI yellow, black top, black interior.

The other photo is the 68 I sold around 2004.  Man I gave that thing away.  I sold a running matching 383 68 for less than people are getting for parts cars now.  And I gave the buyer an extra tranny, hood, all sorts of interior parts, etc.  Worse than when I sold a Michael Jordan rookie card in a large trunk of cards for $20.  These things happen I suppose.

[/quote]


good pictures !! thanks for  sharing them & your memories  , if we could go back in time eh ,  like the look of your old 68 , love the look of centreline type wheels on a second generation  ,
your dads charger looks good !! yeah it looks SS1 in the black & white picture , have one of mine it black & white , looks like that 
look forward to seeing the color picture of your dads charger , if you ever find it   

[xs29bb1]

I grabbed them while they were up.  Not sure that the quality is the same but here they are:

According to this info, only 1.7% of the R/T's came with the middle lap belt in the rear (557).  That seems an awfully low percentage - was this really very rare?

[cdr]

WELCOME from KATY TEXAS
very nice charger!!!
i see we both got DLH XXX  LICENSE plates

[familymopar]

WELCOME from KATY TEXAS
very nice charger!!!
i see we both got DLH XXX  LICENSE plates

Thanks CDR!  It is especially nice seeing all the local people on here.  One of these days we will all do a nice cruise up 290.  And I love those hemisfair plates.  I am not sure where my brother got mine but it seems likely it may be the same place you got yours, or a pretty good coincidence.  When I got them they came with the paper plate separators advertising the old prison rodeo.  Pretty cool!