The "Low-V" cars (short for Low Voltage" were built in four groups for the IRT between 1915 and 1938. The Low-Vs were notable for their propulsion control, which only used 32 volts of electricity to control the 600 volt contacts underneath the train itself. This significantly enhanced the safety of the trains for both train crews and maintenance crews. The Low-V cars also featured rattan seats, incandescent lighting, ceiling fans, and starting with the third type of Low-V cars (Standard Low-Vs), a simplified braking system. The Low-Vs were replaced starting in 1949, and the final Low-V train would operate on November 3, 1969 after 54 years of service. The New York Transit Museum has preserved six Low-V cars, which are used on fantrips and other special occasions. Other preserved cars can be found at the Seashore Trolley Museum and the Trolley Museum of New York.

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The R12 was the first subway car ordered by the City of New York for the IRT following the city's takeover of the IRT and BMT subways. The R12s were similar to the R10s but built to accommodate the IRT's specifications. The R12s entered service on the Flushing Line during the summer of 1948. Following the delivery of the R33WF and R36WF fleets, the R12s were moved to the IRT Mainline, where they remained in service until September 1981. Two cars were preserved, one of which is at the New York Transit Museum and is used on fantrips as part of the "Train of Many Colors."

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The R15 was built by the American Car and Foundry Company in 1950. A total of 100 cars, made to operate in single units, were constructed. The R15s made their debut on the Flushing Line (now known as the 7 line) and were transferred to the IRT Mainline. The R15s were notable for beign the first cars to have the conductor's door controls on the inside of the car and porthole door windows. Upon delivery of the R62s, the R15s were retired, with the last ones operating on December 10, 1984. A single R15 is preserved at the New York Transit Museum and is used on fantrips as part of the "Train of Many Colors."

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The R17 was ordered from the St. Louis Car Company in 1954. A total of 400 cars, all single units, were built. They replaced the Hi-V cars that dated back to the opening of the IRT in 1904. The R17s round stormdoor window at the end of each car was the most recognizable feature of this fleet. Ten cars were delivered with air conditioning as a pilot that was deemed to be a failure and the equipment was removed. The R17s remained in service until the R62As were delivered in the late 1980s, with the last run occuring on February 29, 1988 on the 5 line. A handful of cars were preserved (car 6609 is on display at the New York Transit Museum and is part of the "Train of Many Colors" and some were converted to work service.

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The R26, R28, R29, R33, and R36 cars, collectively referred to as the "Redbirds" after they were painted dark red in the mid-1980s, were virtually identical subway cars built between 1959 and 1964. The R26 and R28 cars were built by American Car Foundry and the R29, R33, and R36 cars were built by the St. Louis Car Company. The R33 and R36 orders were divided in to two groups: the R33WF and R36WF were ordered for use on the 7 line prior to the 1964 World's Fair, featured larger "picture" windows than their "mainline" counterparts. All of the Redbirds were compatible with the the R12, R14, R15, R17, R21, and R22 cars and often ran in mixed consists prior to their overhaul in the 1980s, but the Redbirds were built as married pairs (with the exception of the R33WF cars) whereas the others were single units. These cars were beloved by many for their railfan window at the front stormdoor, providing a great view of the tracks and signals ahead of the train as it traveled. The Redbirds were replaced by the R142 and R142A fleets beginning in 2000. The final Redbird train to operate in revenue service operated on November 3, 2003. A number of cars have been preserved, including several that now make up the New York Transit Museum's "Train of Many Colors" having been repainted in to various paint schemes from different eras.

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Prior to 1913, the BRT's rolling stock consisted of wooden cars with swing gates at each end, known as BU Cars. These cars were designed for use on elevated lines and were not permitted to operate with passengers on board in tunnels following the Malbone Street Wreck in 1918. Some BU cars were rebuilt in to Q Cars that had their ends enclosed and subway style sliding doors. The Q Cars operated for 66 years, making them the oldest rapid transit cars in New York history at the time of their retirement.

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The BMT Standard cars were built by the American Car and Foundry Company and Pressed Steel Car Company between 1914 and 1924. They were operated by the BRT and its successor, the BMT until 1940. In that year, the BMT was purchased by the City of New York and operation of the fleet was transferred to the New York City Transit Authority. The Standard cars were made of steel and designed to operate in subway tunnels. Prior to this, the BRT only operated elevated lines, so it was able to use wooden cars on its lines. These cars were the first New York City Subway cars to have rollsigns, running lights on the front of the train, and after an upgrade, a single conductor could operate all the train's doors from an interior cab position. Many Standards were overhauled between 1959 and 1962, and the fleet was retired gradually during the 1960s. Five cars have been preserved.

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The D-Type cars were the first articulated rapid transit rolling stock in US history when they debuted on the BMT in 1925. Each of the 121 cars built consisted of three sections with an articulated joint between each car. These cars also featured front destination signs with a route designation and side signs that could illuminate the direction in which the train was traveling. Although the BMT continued to order articulated trains until its acquisition by the City of New York in 1940, New York City Transit did not order any articulated trains until placing the R211 order in 2018. Three D-Type sets were preserved, two of which are used on fan trips and are displayed at the New York Transit Museum. The third set is in storage as of June 2015.

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The Arnine Cars (collectively referring to the R1, R4, R6, R7/A, and R9 car types) are a series of 1,703 subway cars manufactured for use on the IND System between 1930 and 1940. They remained in service until 1977. Although built under separate contracts and by three different manufacturers, the Arnines are mechanically similar to each other and only minor differences exist between the different car types. Twenty cars have been preserved, including several at the New York Transit Museum that are used on the Holiday Vintage Train and on other occasions.

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The R11 was a prototype subway car built in 1949 by Budd. Originally, there were to be 400 R11 cars built. However, with the cancellation of the Second Avenue Subway, only ten were manufactured. Several features of the R11 were incorporated in future subway car orders. The R11 also has the distinction of being the first stainless steel R-type subway car to be built. The R11s were overhauled under the R34 contract in 1964 and 1965 and were ultimately retired in 1977. One car has been preserved by the New York Transit Museum.

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The R16 cars were manufactured by the American Car and Foundry Company in 1954 and 1955. They entered service on January 10, 1955 and remained in service until 1987, at which time they were replaced by the R68 cars.

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The R30 cars were manufactured by the St. Louis Car Company in 1961 and 1962. They were refurbished in the late 1980s, at which time they were painted in the "redbird" paint scheme. However, it was decided to prematurely retire the R30s as they did not have air conditioning (they were the last B Division cars not to have it). The last revenue service train with R30 cars operated on June 25, 1993. All the cars have been scrapped with the exception of a handful of units used for maintenance purposes, and a single unit that is on display at the New York Transit Museum.

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The R32 cars, also known as "Brightliners", had one of the longest service lives in New York City Subway history. The cars were built by the Budd Company in 1964 and 1965, and the first train entered service on September 14, 1964. At the time of their introduction, they were the first mass produced stainless steel New York City Subway cars. They were also the first cars to feature Mylar roll signs. Between 1988 and 1990, the R32 fleet received a general overhaul, at which time the head end destination signs were replaced with a flip dot destination sign, air conditioning was installed, and other improvements. Most R32s were retired upon the initial delivery of the R160s between 2007s and 2009. By October 2010, only 232 cars remained in service (out of 600 originally built). These remaining cars stayed in service for nearly 10 more years, as it was decided to retire the R44s first. The remaining R32s were gradually retired as the R179 cars began to arrive in 2017. The final train of R32 cars operated on the C on March 26, 2020, and the R32s were officially retired on April 27, 2020. At the time of its retirement, the R32 had been in service for 55 years, the longest service life for an R-type subway car and the second longest service life of any New York City subway car, following the Q-Types. They outlasted the R38s, R40s, R42s, and R44s, all of which were built after the R32.

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The R38 was built by the St. Louis Car Company in 1966 and 1967, with the first train entering revenue service on August 23, 1966. A total of 200 cars of this type were built. This was the first New York City Subway car to have air conditioning succesfully installed on the cars upon delivery. Prior to this, all air conditioning prototypes had failed. Air conditioning would become standard on subsequent car orders (starting with the R42s, all subway cars would be ordered with it) and would be retrofitted on many car classes that lacked it. The R38s remained in service until 2009, at which time they were replaced by the R160s. All but two cars were scrapped and most of them were sunk to become artificial reefs in the ocean. The New York Transit Museum preserves the lone "surviving" R38 cars.

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In 1965, the Transit Authority contracted with Raymond Loewy and Associates to design a new exterior and interior for its subway cars to encourage people to use mass transit. The resulting design featured a slanted end of each subway car, wider doors and windows, and updated signage. The St. Louis Car Company won the bid to build the 400 cars in 1966. However, shortly after these trains entered service on March 23, 1968, safety issues concerning the lack of handholds for passengers passing between cars led the TA to add protective chains and handholds to the cars and modify the last 100 cars to have a flat end. These last 100 cars are often referred to as R40Ms. The R40s were rebuilt by Sumitoto in Elmira, NY between 1988 and 1989, at which time they were retrofitted with air conditioning and other modifications. The R40 was retired in 2009 following the delivery of the R160 cars.

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The R42 was built by the St. Louis Car Company in 1969 and 1970 and first entered service on May 9, 1969. The R42s were the last 60 foot B Division cars built until the R143 was built in 2001 and the last car type to be built in married pairs. The cars were rebuilt by Morrison Knudsen in the late 1980s. Most R42 cars were retired upon the delivery of the R160s and the remainder were retired after the R179 cars arrived. The final revenue trip for the R42s took place on February 12, 2020 on the A line.

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The R44 cars were built by the St. Louis Car Company between 1971 and 1973. These were the first 75 foot subway cars to be purchased for the New York City Subway, the first cars since the R16 to have crosswise seating, the first subway cars to have bucket seats (a feature included on the R46, R62/R62A, and R68/R68A cars), and the first cars since the BMT's Green Hornet to have an audible chime to warn passengers the doors were about to close. They also set a world speed record for a subway car during testing, reaching a speed of 87.75 MPH (141.22 KPH) on the Long Island Railroad. The cars were overhauled in the late 1980s and early 1990s by Morrison-Knudsen, at which time the blue stripes on the sides of the car bodies were removed and the side rollsigns were replaced with LCD signage, among other improvements. The R44s were removed from service on September 16, 2010. An additional 62 cars were added to the R44 order for use on the Staten Island Railway. These cars remain in service and have been overhauled twice since their introduction in 1973.

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The R110B was part of the New Technology Test Program, which was launched to test out various new technology features that could be incorporated into subsequent subway car designs. Although the R110B only operated in revenue service for about seven years, many of the experimental features of the R110B (and the R110A, its A Division counterpart) have been included in the R143, R160, and R179 subway cars that have entered service during the 21st century. These features included automated announcements, electronic route signs and next stop indicators, passenger intercom, and AC traction motors.

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