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This site is non-commercial.  There is nothing for sale here! 
Welcome!  This is your place for deciphering tail light and parking light lens codes for American cars, light trucks and motorcycles made between 1930 and 1970.
Identify lenses from GM, Ford, Chrysler, AMC, Harley-Davidson, Indian, and aftermarket brands such as Glo-Brite, K-D Triflex, Lynx-Eye, Ser-Do, and Yankee.  
What's covered here
 
  • Tail lights, parking lights, backup lights, and license plate lights.
  • OEM (original equipment manufacturer) lenses.
  • Period aftermarket (replacement) lenses.
  • American (and Canadian) cars, light trucks and motorcycles from 1930 to 1970.

What's not covered here

 

  • Headlights and interior lights.
  • Imported vehicles.
  • Heavy trucks, tractors, trailers and buses.
  • Vehicles newer than 1970.

This information is very general.  It will tell you the year, make and, in many cases, the model that your lens will fit, but it will not tell you every year, every make or every model.  You should use other sources such as Taillight King, Google Image Search and Yahoo! Image Search to find the specific application for your lens and to aid in your identification.  Consider this site as a starting point for your investigation.

 

Step 1.  Find Your Lens Code
 
Examine your lens for a code of two to five letters, or a combination of letters and numbers, one or two of which are the last digit(s) of the year.  (Look on the gasket surface if you can't find anything on the outside of the lens.)  We'll call the first few letters or numbers key letters or key digits because they will identify the make and model of the vehicle your lens will fit, or will at least point you in the right direction if you need to do more research.  These key digits and letters are shown in BLUE in the examples that follow.
 
General Motors OEM codes from 1941-up start with the word Guide, which is a GM brand.  The first digit indicates the make:  1 for Chevrolet, 2 for Pontiac, etc.  Other digits indicate the model and/or year.  Go to GM Guide Charts to see how this works.  Examples:
 
            GUIDE R-1      GUIDE R-58      GUIDE R4-53
            GUIDE R3-57A      GUIDE 16 SAE STD 69
 
Other OEM codes, including GM prior to 1941, often start with the first letter or letters of the make (CHEV for Chevrolet, F for Ford, PLY for Plymouth, etc.) or with two digits representing the year, followed by the first letters of the make or model, or in the case of 1962-up Ford codes, the first and last letters of the make or model name.  Go to Ford Charts and Chrysler Charts to see how these codes work.  Some 1930s-40s codes look like acronyms, though the letters probably don't mean anything.  Examples:
 
 
            CHEVLITE      FRST-55      PLYBI      ARBO
            SAE TSDB 62 FD      SAE STD B 64 D
            NU      PAP      DELO      TEACO
 
Aftermarket numbers aren't really codes (you can't decipher them without a parts list) but we'll treat them as codes for convenience.  Many are just two or three digits, but some have letters before or after the digits.  Glo-Brite codes often start with the letters TMC; Do-Ray and Ser-Do codes may start with the first two or three letters of the make.  Brand names or code letters may not appear on some lenses.  Examples:
 
            GRIFFIN 82      K-D TRIFLEX 265      LYNX-EYE T-337
            GLO-BRITE TMC-2205      FO-146      SER-DO CH-216
 
SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) codes can tell you the lens functions and year.  In the following example, the functions are (S)top (T)ail (D)irectional, in other words, a tail light.  (We don't know what the C means; maybe Class C but that's only a guess.)  The year is 1968, which is the model year for which the lens was first produced.  (Years on aftermarket lenses cannot be trusted.  See Tips and Trivia.)
 
SAE STDC 68
 
 
Part numbers, which are usually about seven to ten digits, can be ignored unless you have a parts manual or online catalog.
 
Also...
 
 
 
 
Step 2.  Identify Your Lens
 
OEM Codes.  If your lens is marked Guide or Guidex, refer to Guide Codes.  For all others, including Ford, Chrysler, AMC, independents, and Guide prior to 1941, refer to Other Codes A-G or  Other Codes H-Z.
 
  • Look in Column (a) for your key digits or letters.
  • Find the code in Column (b) that most resembles yours.
  • Verify that the range of years in Column (c) includes your year code, if applicable.
  • Bingo!  Your make and model are in Column (d).  See the bottom of the table for notes in Column (e) that may apply.  Use Google Image Search or the Taillight King to confirm your ID, or click on Pix Index to find rare or older items that the Taillight King may not have.

Aftermarket Codes.  Refer to Aftermarket Numbers 1-200, 201-400, 401-700, 701-1000, or 1000-up.  Look for your key digits, then look for the format that most resembles yours.  Don't be concerned about code letters like T or B or TMC, which may not occur, but do note letters on Do-Ray and Ser-Do lenses that indicate the make (CH, FO, PL, etc.)  To confirm your ID, use Google Image Search or the Taillight King, or go to Pix Index.

 

Try These Exercises
 
Exercise 1
 
Say you have a lens marked GUIDE 16 SAE STD 69.  You'll refer to Guide Codes, and look for the key digits 1 and 6.  Next to those you'll find Guide 16 SAE...##.  The ellipsis (...) indicate the SAE code, which you can ignore because your lens is red and obviously for a tail light.  The double pound signs ( ##) indicate the year, 1969 in your case, which falls within the range (1965-up) in which this format was used.  Your lens is for a 1969 Chevrolet.  The first digit (1) means Chevrolet, and the second (6) means full-size, which can be either Impala or Caprice.  A browse through Chevrolet Pictures or a visit to the Taillight King will probably tell you which one it is.
 
Exercise 2
 
Now say your lens is marked FRST-55.  It’s not Guide, and it starts with the letter F, so you'll refer to Other Codes A-G and look for a code that starts with the key letter F.  You'll find FRST-## and a range of years (1949-61) that includes your year (55) so your lens is for a 1955 Ford.
 
If you go to Ford Charts you'll learn that FRST means F(ord) R(ear) S(top) T(urn); which is Ford's way of describing a tail light.  If your lens had been marked FPT-55, it would be for a F(ord) P(arking) T(urn) light.  If it had been marked MRST-55 it would be for a Mercury; or if it had been marked LRST-55 it would be for a Lincoln.  Ford codes through 1955 apply to trucks as well as cars, so you may need to do more research to find the exact application for your lens.  To save you the trouble, though, it's for a car.
 
Exercise 3
 
Suppose your lens is marked PLYBI.  You'll refer to Other Codes H-Z, and look for a format that starts with the key letters P, PL or PLY.  You'll find your code under PLY with a description saying it's for a 1957 Plymouth station wagon.  You can confirm this by going to Plymouth Pictures or searching the Taillight King.
 
If you had been unable to find your code in the table, you could use your key letters to find a generic code (PLY__ in this case) to determine the make and range of years that may be applicable, then you could look for a picture here or at the Taillight King.
 
Incidentally, most Chrysler, AMC and independent codes before 1962 are of this "alphabet soup" variety.  Exceptions include Studebaker (mostly aphanumeric after WWII) and International Harvester (mostly numeric).  Look in Other Codes H-Z (which includes alphanumeric codes) and the Aftermarket pages for these exceptions.
 
Exercise 4
 
Finally, suppose you have an aftermarket lens like Glo-Brite 564 (or GB-564, PT-564, T-564, or TMC-564--the letters don't matter for what you're doing).  You'll look in Aftermarket Numbers 401-700, and probably find two or three possibilities:  1955-56 Pontiac, 1960-61 Rambler, and maybe a third or a fourth.  Then you'll do a Google image search or go to the Taillight King and look for a picture.
 
You needn't be concerned if the King doesn't have your number.  He may have a different brand, or he may have an OEM lens.  What's important is the picture.  If it looks like the one here, it's for a 1960-61 Rambler Custom, Super or Classic.
 
If this same lens had been Do-Ray or Ser-Do, it would be marked RA-102, and the letters would matter because they would tell you it's for a Rambler.  If it had been marked PO-103, it would be for the aforementioned Pontiac.
 
Tips and Trivia
 
Helpful hints and marginally useful information:
  • Tail lights have lenses, not "covers."  One tail light has a lens.  People in other countries (not the U.S.) call it a lense.  People named Leonard are called Len.
  • Most Guide and Guidex lenses are for General Motors vehicles, but some are for other makes.  Try Guide Codes, bottom of page.
  • Studebaker codes in the late-40s and 50s use a letter/number/letter or number/letter/letter format.  Examples: T6C, T9G-6, T14A, 3HD, 5HT.  Look for these in Other Codes H-Z, bottom of page.
  • SAE STDB does not mean Studebaker.  See SAE Codes in Step 1.
  • On Guide and Guidex lenses, don't confuse the key digits (make and model) with the year code.  For example, Guide 68 SAE STDC 65 is for a 1965 Cadillac, not 1968.  See the GM Guide Charts to learn how this works.
  • Many aftermarket lenses have SAE year codes that are are not reliable.  Glo-Brite 321, for example, is marked SAE STDB 60 but is for a 1957 Ford.  With aftermarket lenses, trust the number not the SAE code.
  • A few OEM codes look like aftermarket numbers, so you'll find them in the Aftermarket pages with a note indicating they are actually OEM.
  • Automakers went from glass to plastic lenses in the late 40s-early 1950s.  If your lens is glass, and doesn't have a year code, it's probably 1951 or earlier.
  • If your parking light lens is amber, it's 1963 or later, unless it's aftermarket.  Some aftermarket lenses are made in both clear and amber versions.
  • Bezels, buckets and housings often have codes that are similar to lens codes.  This also applies to headlight buckets and housings, which may have the letter H in the code.
  • 1970s and later codes are similar to those of the 60s, but they're harder to spot among the DOT codes and part numbers that have been added over the years.  Also, the letters for model names are different, and GM has gone back to a number/letter format.  But Ford is still F, Dodge is still D, and Chevrolet is still #1, in codes at least.
Make and Model Minefield
 
The make and model names on on this site are those given by the automakers, rather than the popular but sometimes inaccurate names used by hobbyists.  Thus, LaSalles are not called "Cadillac LaSalles" nor are Edsels called "Ford Edsels." Also, 1955-75 Imperials are not "Chrysler Imperials," and 1956-58 Continentals are not "Lincoln Continentals."  Conversely, LaFayettes are "Nash LaFayettes," but only from 1937-40, and Terraplanes are "Hudson Terraplanes," but only from 1938-39.  This subject can be a minefield even for experts, so here's a cross reference guide to get the rest of us through it:
 
             
  Make and Model Names Cross Reference  1930-1970  
  (Not comprehensive)        
             
  Name See Also   Name See Also  
  AMC Rambler (1957-66)   Lincoln Continental (1956-58)  
  Buick Marquette (1930)   Mercury Meteor (Canada 1949-61; 1964-76)  
  Cadillac LaSalle (1927-40)     Comet (1960-61)  
  Chrysler Imperial (1955-75)   Nash LaFayette (1934-36)  
  Comet Mercury Comet (1962-77)     Rambler (1957-65)  
  Continental Lincoln Continental (1959-up)   Oldsmobile Viking (1929-31)  
  Ford Monarch (Canada 1946-61)   Packard Clipper (1956)  
    Edsel (1958-60)   Plymouth Valiant (US 1960, Canada 1960-66)  
    Frontenac (Canada 1960)   Pontiac Oakland (1909-31)  
  Hudson Essex (1919-31)     Acadian (Canada 1962-71)  
    Essex-Terraplane (1932)     Beaumont (Canada 1966-69)  
    Terraplane (1933-37)   Rambler Nash Rambler (1950-56)  
    Rambler (1957-65)     Hudson Rambler (1954-56)  
  Imperial Chrysler Imperial (1926-54)     AMC (1967-up)  
  Kaiser Henry J (1951-54)   Studebaker Rockne (1931-33)  
  LaFayette Nash LaFayette (1937-40)   Terraplane Hudson Terraplane (1938-39)  
             
             
 
Note:  For convenience, we refer to all Ramblers made between 1967 and 1969 as AMCs.  In the mid-1960s, AMC management felt the Rambler name had acquired a stodgy image and had become a hinderance to sales, so, in 1966, they began de-emphasizing it in favor of the AMC brand.  Lower-priced offerings (American and Classic) were advertised as "Rambler by AMC;" higher-priced models were branded "AMC Ambassador" and "AMC Marlin."  When the Rebel replaced the Classic in 1967, it too was branded "AMC," and in 1969 the Rambler American was rebadged as "AMC Rambler."  The Javelin, AMX, Gremlin, and Hornet were never called Ramblers in the U.S.  See the Rambler and AMC articles on Wikipedia for more information.

Thanks to Ralph for inspiration and encouragement.  Thanks to A.J. for the wonderful Taillight King site.

There is nothing for sale here  -  Please do not ask for prices
 
Sorry, we don't respond to friending requests, we don't do appraisals, and we don't buy or sell anything.
To buy something, please go here:  Taillight King.
 
For suggestions, corrections, or help with tail light codes, please email us at our new address:  russelld47@sbcglobal.net.
 
If you'd like to submit a picture and have it appear on the site, please position your item right side up on a neutral background (like a piece of gray or brown cardboard), keep extraneous objects (including fingers and hands) out of the view, and use good lighting and fogus.  This will not guaranty your picture will be used, but it will improve your chances!
 
If you have a lens to identify:
  • Send a picture.
  • Mention all names, numbers and letters, including any on the gasket surface.
  • Say whether it's glass or plastic.
  • State the diameter if it's round.
  • Allow a few days for reply.
Pictures are from various sources on the web.  If you claim ownership of any of them and object to their use here, send me an email and I will cheerfully remove them.  
Design and contents (except pictures) copyright © 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 by russelld47.  Reuse for commercial purposes is prohibited without written permission.