The 17-year-old platform that the R-bodies used was hidden by the design and engineering changes mentioned above, although the cars ended up being three inches (76 mm) longer than the B-body Dodge Monaco and Plymouth Fury. Initial sales started off strong, and proceeded that way for most of the 1979 model year, with just over 121,000 produced and sold. However, in the spring of 1979, the Iranian Revolution was in full swing. Gas prices rose sharply, and the US economy plunged into a deep recession that would last for the next three years. Sales of the R-bodies sank abruptly for the 1980 and 1981 model years, and never recovered. The line was initially planned to be dropped after the 1980 model year, but strong protest from the fleet community (especially police departments) gave the R-body line a short reprieve for 1981.