The Honeymoon Car
I hit the Cleveland Auto Show on Saturday, March 6. Like last year, there was a classic car show in a side gallery. The coolest thing there was this 1950 DeSoto.
Powered by a big flathead straight six, it's a lovely example of a the postwar superdreadnought four-door sedan. DeSotos of any sort are not terribly common, so this car was already in the running for the coolest thing in the room just by virtue of showing up. The owner was there with his wife, and they were displaying an old photo album and publicizing an Easter craft project they are involved with.
He bought it used in 1953 with 36,000 miles on it, and it's still going strong at age 60, with 158,000 showing on the odometer. What really makes it special, though, is its place in their life story:
It's a little early, but so what? Happy 55th wedding anniversary to Ron & Betty from all of us here at Car Lust, and may you and your DeSoto enjoy many more years and miles together.
--Cookie the Dog's Owner
davidt on March 09, 2010 at 08:13 AM
"May, 1956, First child born in the back seat when we didn't make it to the hospital in time."?
Steaming Pile on March 09, 2010 at 08:43 AM
@davidt - aw, come on! That was uncalled for. I think it's awesome that these two have kept and cared for and cherished this car like the family heirloom it has become. I bet it has the original paint and everything.
David Colborne on March 09, 2010 at 09:15 AM
Yeah, there's not too many DeSotos left in the world. My understanding is that it was Chrysler's version of Buick - sort of a mid-level brand that nobody was really sure what to do with. Unfortunately, it was killed off due to a fatal combination of poor economic circumstances ('57 recession) and poor rustproofing in their later models. It's a pity, really - they're interesting cars.
Robbins Mitchell on March 10, 2010 at 08:22 AM
"So see your DeSoto-Plymouth dealer...and tell 'em Groucho sent you."
comatus on March 10, 2010 at 08:28 AM
DeSoto's 1954 itty-bitty hemi V8 was a marvel. Early-Interstate acceleration (a wagon! pulling a Shasta!), and 20+MPG, on premium. The station wagon had a varnished-wood deck; the interior was stately, and the bodywork, er, substantial. The chrome, though, a victim of the Korean misunderstanidng, was pit-tiable.
Mike on March 10, 2010 at 10:40 AM
Wish you all the best Ron & Betty and may you have many more years with your DeSoto as well.
Jed on March 10, 2010 at 11:36 AM
That's a heartwarming story. I hope Ron and Betty have many more years to go on trips in their car. Even though the 1949-52 Chrysler products are postwar, they were designed and built with a decidedly prewar attitude. They were basic, boxy, tall enough to wear your hat in, underpowered by a massive, reliable flathead six and built with very thick metal. This Desoto even has the taupe mohair interior that these cars all had. I met an older lady in MA about ten years ago who had an original 1951 Plymouth that was a well-preserved, rust free daily driver. These cars were nothing special, but they just lasted.
Here is an article about a single owner 1951 Desoto Suburban
http://www.allpar.com/cars/desoto/suburban-1951.html
I really wish that Chrysler could have used this same build quality when they were building their more exciting later cars.
Steaming Pile on March 10, 2010 at 11:51 AM
I believe those "underpowered" flathead sixes were about the state of the art in 1950. Underpowered as in 109 bhp. Enough to get you going, but I'd worry more about the brakes trying to stop that big heavy monster.
Ralph Kinney Bennett on March 10, 2010 at 02:03 PM
Thanks for featuring that DeSoto. It brings back many memories. I learned to drive in that DeSoto's older, richer cousin -- a 1950 Chrysler Imperial Town Sedan. It had the same general lines, but was a little bigger and a little more posh in chrome trim and interior appointments, besides having a big, very silent, straight eight under the hood. Our earlier car had been a 1946 Chrysler Windsor with a flat head six very similar to the one in that DeSoto. They were not underpowered. They could move along quite well once up to speed. They simply were not made for fast getaways. But they could cruise the highways with quiet aplomb. They had pretty good brakes and one of the best rides of the time; very comfortable. Yes, they were way behind the styling curve and it would not be until 1955 that got slightly ahead of the curve with all the rest of those flashy "Forward Look" Chrysler products of the late '50s. The DeSoto back then was a Chrysler cousin who managed to stay out of the orphanage because he had just enough of an engaging personality to separate him from his near look-alike.
Cookie the Dog's Owner on March 10, 2010 at 02:41 PM
While I've never driven a DeSoto of that vintage, I've driven a '48 Frazer Manhattan, which is a pretty close analog to this car. (Writeup here: http://www.carlustblog.com/2009/09/test-drive1948-frazer-manhattan.html) Cars of this type and vintage are big, and though they are not as heavy as they look, they have the frontal area of a barn door and the drag coefficient of an overdressed cinder block. An engine in the 100-120 HP range was enough to get them moving and keep them up to speed on the (pre-Interstate) highways, but they are extremely slow off the line by today's standards. In any car like this, you have to accept that acceleration, cornering, and braking are all going to happen at a much slower pace than anything built in the last twenty years, and conduct yourself accordingly.
That Car Guy on March 10, 2010 at 03:20 PM
It seemed that until about 1980, most cars were judged by how "easy" they drove, not by how well. Luckily, we woke up in that decade and got to where we are today.
Steaming Pile on March 11, 2010 at 04:25 AM
@TCG - Yep. It was all about ride, as in how much would you feel a pothole (which were ubiquitous) in the seat of your pants, how much the front end would heave like a shrimp boat when you hit the brakes, and how much effort steering the beast was. Power steering made the latter more like playing a race car game at the arcade - practically zero effort. I believe some people called it "dialing for dollars" because one could steer the car with one finger on the wheel. Oh, and automatic transmission. It wasn't really ready for prime time in the early 50s, but that didn't stop mid-price and luxury brands from offering it. It was all about user-friendliness (as it was understood 60 years ago). If you wanted handling, you got yourself one of those itty bitty English sports cars. Just don't expect it to keep it out of the shop very long.
Cookie the Dog's Owner on March 11, 2010 at 08:02 AM
@SP: spot-on! People of my parents' generation, who were young adults when this DeSoto rolled off the line, grew up with three-on-the-tree with a clutch off a tractor, unboosted brakes, and unboosted slow-ratio steering--cars that, by our standards today, are *work* to drive. Little wonder why they went for those late-60s early-70s soft-riding large-barge sedans.
DCThunder on March 11, 2010 at 12:05 PM
My grandfather worked for ConEd and lived on Long Island (Westbury to be exact and he had a DeSoto in the early '60s(don't remember the model or year). As a 11 year old kid, I remember thinking that the curb feelers were the coolest thing about it. It had a weird kind of door handle too, IIRC, you sort of pushed a button and lifted a lever to open the doors from the outside.
Never got to drive it as he died before I was old enough and Lord know what ever happened to it, because my grandmother had a '64 Pontiac Tempest when she moved to Leisure World. I drove that car some while in high school
tomm on June 17, 2010 at 09:31 AM
The early seasons of "Happy Days", when filmed with location scenes featuring cars, the Mr. Cunningham had a black DeSoto just like this one. In one episode, Richie had the Fonz hop it up so he could win a drag race.
Arthur King on December 11, 2011 at 06:47 AM
First and only DeSoto was puchased for $50.00 from my then sister-in-law after she got a new 1966 Ford (Mary I'll always love you - I really needed the ride). It spent its better years in the ice and road salt of minnesota(?) and it showed up upon a brake application in heavy traffic with the ditch and the emergency brake. A Wild ride. Thankfully Sis decided she liked the 1968 model better and I got the 1966 and the DeSoto got another home still running like champ. Oh those were the days! In Loving Memory Herchel Manford Woodall