Did the factory ever screw up and paint any Chargers the wrong color?

[bull]

I had my 68 outside the other day scraping seam sealer up off the floor pans and every time I did that I found a bronze color underneath the sealant they used 40+ years ago. At first I didn't think a whole lot of it but as I kept going I found the same color under every single bit of seam sealer I scraped off with the "original" TT-1 green around the edges of it, as if it were painted green after the seams were sealed. Later I pulled out the PPG paint chip chart to compare and realized the base bronze I found looks exacly like Dodge's MM-1 Bronze poly from 1968.

So the question, have any of you guys ever heard of a car being coded to be painted one color that was painted the wrong color first? My fender tag says TT-1 as the color code and yet the bronze I found is most definitely beneath the green. And my car was ordered so it would not have been a mistake they could have covered up by swapping fender tags and build sheets. Also, what was the sequence in which they painted these cars? Did they paint the inside before painting the rest or were the bare bodies completely painted all at once?

[tan top]

this might sound silly but the black seam sealer might of stained the primer/paint 

[WingCharger]

Wasn't that one known FK-5 something or other Superbird painted the wrong color back in the day?

[bull]

this might sound silly but the black seam sealer might of stained the primer/paint 

This bronze looks way too good to be a stain, I mean it looks exactly like it does on the paint chart with lots of metallic in it.

[tan top]

this might sound silly but the black seam sealer might of stained the primer/paint 

This bronze looks way too good to be a stain, I mean it looks exactly like it does on the paint chart with lots of metallic in it.

oh right that good then ......  could be 
 

Wasn't that one known FK-5 something or other Superbird painted the wrong color back in the day?

i remember a mix up on EB5 car     can't think where i read about it ..might of even been over on moparts  

[bull]

Here's a picture of a portion of the transmission hump up near the firewall. The bronze portion you see was completely covered by a big blob of sealant with the green starting at the edge of where that sealant was.

[WingCharger]

Wasn't that one known FK-5 something or other Superbird painted the wrong color back in the day?

i remember a mix up on EB5 car     can't think where i read about it ..might of even been over on moparts  

Here is the thread about the FK-5 Burnt Orange mix up Superbird:
http://www.dodgecharger.com/forum/index.php/topic,54579.0.html

[maxwellwedge]

With Ma Mopar - never say never!

[dodgecharger-fan]

they could have covered up by swapping fender tags and build sheets.

No. They couldn't have just done that and called it good. Remember, the body stampings? They'd have to match up too.

So, it sounds like you've got a boo boo paint job there, but I'll ask the obvious question: there's no way that your car could have been redone in it's lifetime? I'm not saying it has, I'masking because I don't know the history of your car.

[bull]

they could have covered up by swapping fender tags and build sheets.

No. They couldn't have just done that and called it good. Remember, the body stampings? They'd have to match up too.

So, it sounds like you've got a boo boo paint job there, but I'll ask the obvious question: there's no way that your car could have been redone in it's lifetime? I'm not saying it has, I'masking because I don't know the history of your car.

Oh yea, it's be done and redone probably five times at least. It's been yellow, blue and black, and now it's black again. And that's in addition to the green and bronze we're talking about now. However, the bronze is under everything, even the factory seam sealer. I can't see anyone prior to me pulling up everything, including seam sealant, to paint the car bronze. There's no evidence that this car has ever gone through a complete restoration prior to me owning it.

[Mopar2Ya]

I found a reddish/brown paint/primer on the interior of my firewall, where the EV2 didn't reach.  

[bull]

I found a reddish/brown paint/primer on the interior of my firewall, where the EV2 didn't reach.  

What year? 1970?

I don't know, maybe it is primer but it sure looks fancy for primer. It looks just like a shiny, single stage color off the chart from 1968. If it were a dull finish I would think primer like that matte salmon-colored primer people use but as you can see in the picture it looks pretty nice.

[Mopar2Ya]

I found a reddish/brown paint/primer on the interior of my firewall, where the EV2 didn't reach.  

What year? 1970?

Yep.

[bull]

I found a reddish/brown paint/primer on the interior of my firewall, where the EV2 didn't reach.  

What year? 1970?

Yep.

Was it just a dull, matte-looking color or did it look like my picture above?

[Mopar2Ya]

I found a reddish/brown paint/primer on the interior of my firewall, where the EV2 didn't reach.  

What year? 1970?

Yep.

Was it just a dull, matte-looking color or did it look like my picture above?

IIRC, it was dull/flat & appeared a little more red than your pic. IIRC, it was slightly metallic looking.  My guess is it was some type of primer.

[C_stripes]

I remember one of the mopar mags running an article about a car, I think a 70 runner or challenger, that the fender tag and build sheet said one color and the car was another. It was an all original survivor too. I want to say it was in MCG. Probably been 5 years back.

[paironines]

I know the painters at Chrysler would empty their paint guns from the previous car onto the next car. Usually seen this on the drivers door jamb behind the front fender, but I guess it could've been done anywhere.

[bull]

I know the painters at Chrysler would empty their paint guns from the previous car onto the next car. Usually seen this on the drivers door jamb behind the front fender, but I guess it could've been done anywhere.

This explanation almost makes sense in my case because it's all over the floor but nowhere else. It would be interesting to learn if the previous sequential car was painted bronze.

[69CoronetRT]

Does your car have an early build date?

A theory....

in 67 TT1 was medium copper metallic. In 68, it was green. An experienced paint guy sees TT1 on the paint sheet and, thinking it was the same as '67, grabs the wrong color and paints the car. Somewhere down the line, an inspector discovers the mistake. Car is re-painted with correct color.

[Sublime/Sixpack]

But the car wouldn't have been painted before the seam sealer was applied.

[69CoronetRT]

But the car wouldn't have been painted before the seam sealer was applied.

Apparently it was if he found paint under the sealer.

[Sublime/Sixpack]

How do you know its paint and not a type of primer or sealer?

[bull]

How do you know its paint and not a type of primer or sealer?

I don't other than it just doesn't look like any primer I've ever seen. All the primers I've seen are always a dull, matte type of finish whereas this has a metallic content and a gloss to it.

[Sublime/Sixpack]

Yeah, that seems strange.  I didn't work at the factory assembling these cars so I don't know, but my thinking was why would they lay down any top coat before the seams were sealed? Curious.

[bull]

Does your car have an early build date?

A theory....

in 67 TT1 was medium copper metallic. In 68, it was green. An experienced paint guy sees TT1 on the paint sheet and, thinking it was the same as '67, grabs the wrong color and paints the car. Somewhere down the line, an inspector discovers the mistake. Car is re-painted with correct color.

It's early but not a '67 car. It left the factory in Jan. of '68.

[chargerkid01]

my 69 was painted under the seem sealer!!! It was all the same color though!! As for your car I'm going with the theory!!

[bull]

Seems to me like it would be better to paint or prime before putting seam sealer on, but that's just me. Anyway, what kind of primer did the factory use?

[resq302]

From what I have read, the factory primer was actually a water based primer that washed off on the outside of the body when they went to paint the car.  The cars were originally hung on rails and went through a series of vats that they were "dipped" in.  I want to say it was something like 3 vats in total.  Hence the drain plugs in your car.  These drain plugs would let the primer drain out of the bottom part of the car.

I, too, have also heard that the spray booth just bled out the previous color in the gun when they hooked up to a new color and sprayed areas like door jams and inside parts of the car that would "not get seen" on a finished product.  It was a big time saver this way instead of cleaning out at least two guns whenever you changed colors.  Lets face it, Chrysler didn't manufacture all red cars one day and then all white cars the next day.

I also think I remember reading somewhere that the average car they put out back in the day was something like a car a minute coming off of the assembly line.  This probably accounts for my starter motor splash shield never being installed and the wire harness metal tabs never being install on my firewall either.

[Charger_Fan]

Speaking of dipping the body, here's a cool shot of an older model going in for the dip. I see the whole car isn't being submerged, so I assume this is just a rust protection.

[NHCharger]

It appears that my 72 Charger parts car may have been painted a different color than what the broadcast sheet said. It was all original, only 72k miles.
http://www.dodgecharger.com/forum/index.php/topic,22134.0.html

[resq302]

Charger fan,

Yes that is the set up that they used.  Basically, the whole car was not submerged, just up to just below where the bottom of the windows were I think.

Pretty cool to see the assembly line pics.  I think Barry (of the Hamtramck plant registry) has more factory pics.

[Alaskan_TA]

Some more facotry photos here;

http://www.hamtramck-historical.com/photos-p.shtml

This image illustrates the dip sequence;

http://www.hamtramck-historical.com/images/dealerships/DealershipDataBook/1972/72_Dodge_Engineering0010.jpg

Some cars do have traces of a different color paint, usually in the trunk. This is most likely from one of the paint guns being "flushed" until the correct color started to flow.

I would have to assume primer under the seam sealer though, got any pics of it?

[bull]

Yup. The bronze you see here was under the seam sealer. The correct green can be seen along the edge of where the sealer was.

[Alaskan_TA]

My T/A has that same color primer over the gray dip primer in the trunk.

[bull]

My T/A has that same color primer over the gray dip primer in the trunk.

So you think it's primer? I would think so too but I've just never seen primer that looks like this.

[69 charger 500]

i could be wrong but maybe paint got the wrong word and thought they were supossed to paint it instead of giving it the primer

[Charger-Bodie]

My T/A has that same color primer over the gray dip primer in the trunk.

So you think it's primer? I would think so too but I've just never seen primer that looks like this.

Alot of the time the primer would have been still somewhat wet when the paint application began....

In this case that could explain the metallic in your primer.

[Alaskan_TA]

Except for the fact that the body seam sealer was applied before the body paint. 

[bull]

My T/A has that same color primer over the gray dip primer in the trunk.

So you think it's primer? I would think so too but I've just never seen primer that looks like this.

Alot of the time the primer would have been still somewhat wet when the paint application began....

In this case that could explain the metallic in your primer.

That's a good explanation, except for the seam sealer thing like Alaskan_TA pointed out. But if you look closely at the bronze you can see some green in it.

[Alaskan_TA]

Have you sanded through it to see how many layers there are? The green you see may be the gray (or a different color) from the dip process bleeding through.

[bull]

Have you sanded through it to see how many layers there are? The green you see may be the gray (or a different color) from the dip process bleeding through.

I haven't dug down any further to see what's under it. Maybe I'll check it out.

[70426rtse]

 I own a 70 GTX that the factory screwed up on and painted the wrong color. Fender tag says the car is supposed to be FC7 purple with a EW1 upper door frame paint. Well the line worker misread the EW1 as the body color and painted the whole car white. The funny part is you can still see the tape lines from the upper door frames being taped off and painted white before the body was painted. The car is still unrestored yet, so not a problem to document. The door  jambs are still original paint with the original VIN sticker. The outer edge of the VIN stickers are clear so you can see the original paint color through them. Car is coded for a reflective white side stripe and the factory still put it on over the white paint. I can only assume that they didn't catch the mistake in time to correct it. Must have been somewhat assembled before they realized it. The GTX is coded for a white vinyl top but had a black one installed instead. I figure some authority on the line must have made the decision to switch the top color or the car would have been triple white. The car is all matching #'s 4 speed air grabber car too.

[70426rtse]

tag pic

[70426rtse]

Original door sticker clearly showing original white paint that it was placed over.

[70426rtse]

Also, here is a pic of the edge of the door jamb showing the remnants of the original white reflective stripe that was placed over the white painted body.

[70426rtse]

I have spoken to Galen about Mopars that were incorrectly painted from the factory. He knew of a 70 Cuda that had B5 blue paint under the original FE5 red paint (could have been the other way around). That car was corrected at the factory like the main poster's car. The error on these cars were corrected before being assembled. My 70 GTX is the only one that I am aware of that came out the door the incorrect color. It brings  up the whole debate of what is the "correct" way to restore the car. The way it was supposed to be built or the way it WAS built. I'm sure other people that have discovered small factory errors on their cars just corrected them during restoration. What do you do when you got a big mistake on your hands? Lets say that your  70 Road Runner had a Satellite grill installed at the factory by mistake. Do you correct it? or restore it back with a Satellite grill and have the the occasional comment by people at the car shows that tell you you put the the WRONG grill in your car.  Can you see the frustration of people constantly telling you you did something wrong on your car. 

[moparstuart]

your car is a pretty big mistake , if you document it well I would restore it white the way it came from the factory , even though i love the purple

 

[Brock Samson]

 Wow! interesting, i've seen several tripple black HI-PO mopars but never seen a Tripple White one - now that's a car I'd make a bee-line at a show to see!

[WingCharger]

Wow! interesting, i've seen several tripple black HI-PO mopars but never seen a Tripple White one - now that's a car I'd make a bee-line at a show to see!

That would be a cool car to see!

[70426rtse]

your car is a pretty big mistake , if you document it well I would restore it white the way it came from the factory , even though i love the purple

 

I REALLY like the the way it was supposed to be built too and that is why I bought it. Restoring it to the "as factory built" combo would certainly be unique and I'm sure a 1 of 1 combo. I'm just not that big of fan of white cars. A white on white 4 speed Mopar in any body style is a pretty much unheard of combination.

[BLUE68RT4ME]

Back when I was in high school (90-93) and had time to read every Mopar magazine out there, there was a front page pic and article on a Charger or Road Runner, pretty certain it was a Charger, that left the factory Rootbeer Barrel and it wasn't supposed to.  It was definitely not that greatest color on the car, but it was the only one of it's kind.  It was in mint condition and low miles.  I can't remember if the car was owned by someone here or in europe, but it was definitely a rarity.  Seems to me it was residing in europe.  Not that it matters.