Ordering Information Preperation

Information typically needed:

• Vehicle manufactured month & year (all years)
• Vehicle GVWR, GAWR Front, GAWR Rear (mid December 1971 and later; check your Serial Plate for the numbers)

Information typically needed for Passenger Cars:

• VIN, Model Number
• List of applicable 3 character RPO Codes
• Paint: Base Coat/Clear Coat/Enamel codes, Interior color/trim code

Information typically needed for Pickup Trucks:

• 6 digit Identification number (1987 Flint)
• VIN, Wheelbase, Model Number
• List of applicable 3 character RPO Codes
• Paint: Base Coat/Clear Coat/Enamel codes, Interior color/trim code
• Order Number

Information typically needed:

This list here pertains to General Motors specifically, but the same idea pertains to the other manufacturers of Chrysler/Dodge, Ford, AMC, and others. It is not all inclusive nor all applicable at the same time and varies for 1960-1980's Window Stickers.

Without an original Window Sticker, Car Shipper, or Dealer Invoice copy showing the original label details, it is a difficult task to create an accurate Window Sticker from scratch as there are many details affecting its accuracy and are at best are just facsimiles of the original. If you have no place to start, Google image searches will get you in the ballpark quickly.

Details to keep in mind are:

• Dealer Zone & Dealer Number
  (Google search GM Dealer Zone Number  ).
• Dealer Sold and Ship To(usually blank)

  as addressed and spelled in that time period.
• Identification/Sequence Number

  .
• Dealer Order Number

  .
• Routing Code

  .
• Assembly Plant Name

  (and how it was spelled out or abbreviated).
• Other Codes or Markings

  used on the Window Sticker.
• Model Number and how it was spelled out, i.e. "16437 IMPALA 8 2D SPT CPE"
• Destination or Shipping Charges
• RPO Code and ECL (if used) format (as used on the Window Sticker) was it 1J70AB, 1J7010 or just J70?
  
• RPO Description spelling (as used on the Window Sticker). The Window Sticker may be spelled differently from any Dealer Invoices, Build Sheets, and Service Parts Identification labels or it may be a longer spelling.
  For example: A 1974 St. Louis pickup HD Front & Rear Shock Absorbers are listed...

  on the Build Sheet as	F51 ABS-FT&RR SHK
  on the Service Parts Identification label as	F51 HEAVY-DUTY FRT/RR S
  on the Window Sticker as	F51 HEAVY-DUTY FRT/RR SHOCK ABSORBER

• RPO Option prices. There may be price increases and updated price lists used during the year that may affect your vehicle depending on its manufacture date. If you are able to obtain the Dealer Invoice (GM Media Archive)   copy for your vehicle use that, otherwise in most cases you can find prices in the   GM Heritage Center Vehicle Information Kits  .
  Example: 1974 Janesville Pickup option A01 SOFT RAY GLASS is priced at $18.00 (Dec. 73), $20.00 (Feb. 74), and $21.00 (Apr. 74), possibly more ...
• Indenting of Descriptions

  in the body, if any.
• Any included standard equipment

  that is pertinent to your specific model listed.
• Any extra model selling features

  that was printed in the body that is pertinent to your specific model listed.
• Ramp Codes

  if any.

Our templates are formatted and duplicated from real Window Stickers

Our Window Sticker Order Entry all start out pre-loaded with a Window Sticker template. This takes the burden out of formatting your Window Sticker data in the right column and on the right lines. Our templates are based on actual Window Stickers and we created our template over the original so all the vertical and horizontal, body spacing, indenting, and column data all line up correctly as the factory had done it for that specific Window Sticker. All that's left for you to do is change the template Window Sticker information to that which is specific to your vehicle, while keeping the same formatting.

Our template objective is to first, provide a specific model/plant/year template based on your VIN when it is a General Motors vehicle. For example a 1970 Camaro Window Sticker from Norwood and Van Nuys are very similar but has slight nuances in the positioning of the data on the form and each plant has a different RPO Code format ("5Z23AA" and "Z23" respectively). Our order entry knows this and loads the correct template for your vehicle in this case. Our second objective is that if a specific car model/plant/year template cannot be matched to your VIN, we can at least provide a template of a Window sticker that was used on that form to be used as a starting point so you do not start with a blank Window Sticker. We have templates for the popular models due to their popularity and we do not claim to have every model/plant/year template possible. Before ordering and getting hung up in creating your Window Sticker, you must know exactly what you want to put on it and how you want it to be laid out on the Window Sticker form when it is finished. It is a self-serve process and you need to know exactly what you want on it allowing you to create it to the degree of accuracy you wish.

Special Effects, Customization

We can at no additional charge or cost make the following tweaks to obtain the effect needed. Please Contact Us  before hand if you have an concerns about customization tweaks below:

• Add additional typewriter typed data to label (like some early 1960's may, typewriter dependent)
• Change the stamped serial number typeface (if available) or type it via typewriter
• Change the serial number ink colors, we have blue and black
• Adjust the form so that the printed text is positioned to something different from the order entry previews
• Print the page using carbon paper giving the effect a multi-part manifold form, when applicable

Two page Window Stickers: 2nd page FREE!

That's right, if you have a 2 page Window Sticker the second page is included in the price. Add the second page on the same order entry screen, full two-page image previews shown!

Information typically needed:

• First name, last name, middle initial optional - sometimes used/sometimes not, or company name listed
• Street address or rural route and box number (ROUTE, RT, RTE, RFD)
• City & State. Zip code rarely used
• Vehicle delivery date to customer - seems fairly common, esp. towards 1970+
• Miles on vehicle when delivered to customer (4 or 5 digits w/leading zeros) (applies more to pickups around '71 and '72) and is usually less then 10 miles (although we have seen 28 miles listed)

One redeeming thing about the Protect-O-Plate tape is that there is no standard look to how the tape is or was applied to the Protect-O-Plate, so almost anything goes.

Observed characteristics are:

• Customer name may or may not have the middle initial shown
• Due to limited space streets are (usually) abbreviated: ROAD = RD, AVENUE = AVE, PLACE = PL, DRIVE = DR, etc.
• Periods and commas may or may not be used. Usually a comma appears after the city
• State names are abbreviated unless it is a short name like OHIO, UTAH, IDAHO, etc. When it is abbreviated, the abbreviated name is not the abbreviated name as it is used today: AZ, ND, OK, CA, AL etc. but rather a longer spelling is used. Examples used are as shown below:
  WASH, N.DAK., ARIZ, OKLA, ILL, N.Y., CALIF, IND, MINN, ALA, COLO
  For further information on the 1960's era US Government state abbreviations used in that time period, see Wikipedia List of U.S. State Abbreviations  and refer to the abbreviations listed under the GPO column in that table.
• Periods may or may not be present after the state as in "ARIZ" or "ARIZ."
• Date separator can be a slash or dash: 1/5/70 or 1-5-70 and seems equally used. Sometimes no separator is used but spaces: 1  5  70 (pretty uncommon)

Protect-O-Plate Tape Layouts

Here [ DATE ] = 3/7/71 or 3-7-71 or 3 7 71, one of the Date formats, and [ MILES ] = 00004 for example.
[ MILES ] and [ DATE ] may or may not be cut off from the rest of the line and applied separately when applicable.
Also [ NAME ] and [ CITY STATE ] could really be [      NAME     ] and [    CITY      STATE     ] where
they used waaay more tape than what was necessary giving a excess look, or it could be cut just long enough to spell out
what was needed giving a clean trimmed look.


2 line address examples:
[ NAME ]             [ NAME ]                    [ NAME ]             [ NAME ]                 [ NAME ]
[ CITY STATE ]       [ CITY STATE   DATE ]       [ CITY STATE ]       [ CITY STATE ]           [ CITY STATE ]
                                                 [ DATE ]             [ DATE ]    [ MILES ]            [ MILES ]  [ DATE ]

3 line address example:
[ NAME ]             [ NAME ]                    [ NAME ]             [ NAME ]                 [ NAME ]
[ STREET ADDRESS ]   [ STREET ADDRESS ]          [ STREET ADDRESS ]   [ STREET ADDRESS ]       [ STREET ADDRESS ]
[ CITY STATE ]       [ CITY STATE DATE ]         [ CITY STATE ]       [ CITY STATE ]           [ CITY STATE ]  [ MILES ]
                                                 [ DATE ]                         [ DATE ]

A couple of customer Date Delivered dates seen instead of the usual [ DATE ] are these here on the last line all by themselves:
[ D DATE 6/7/67 ]   or [ DD 8-  16  -68 ]
            

Our Protect-O-Plate tape order entry can handle any case given it and provides you with an image preview of your order.