FINNED MOPAR FAVOURITES

Not much was happening in the market for late-1950s Mopar cars until 1983 when someone decided to take Stephen King’s Christine to the big screen. From that day on, every 1957-59 Plymouth hitched itself to the movie car’s notoriety and money available for real Sport Fury hardtops doubled overnight. As new cars, Australia saw very few of these big Chrysler-made models. The Dodge Custom Royal arrived in reasonable numbers for local RHD assembly, as did the four-door Plymouth Belvedere. There were a few DeSoto Firef lite sedans but no Hardtops and Chrysler Windsors as new cars here were a non-event. A few perhaps accompanied US diplomatic staff or military personnel who were allowed to import cars duty-free.

These cars’ time as prestige transport had by the mid-1960s come to an end and there just wasn’t the enthusiast demand to encourage preservation. Big Plymouths and Dodges sometimes found second lives as tow cars, but once rust took hold it was almost invariably terminal. Those available today in Australia could be fortunate survivors but more likely recent imports.

Prior to the 1990s, cars built right-hand drive were more valuable than those that needed to be driven on permits or expensively converted. Today with cars like these travelling minimal distances and are virtually never seen as regular transport, the location of the steering wheel has no inf luence on prices.

Values do depend greatly on condition, specification and how detailed is any history accompanying the car. Original colours, correct pattern trim and major mechanical components enhance value considerably.

Finding a DeSoto of this vintage in Australia is challenging and not easy even in the USA. The embattled brand only sold 45,000 cars during 1959, including 602 Adventurer two-doors. One of those in decent condition could be worth $65,000 but that’s not a lot dearer than a Sport Fury in similar fettle.

Convertibles pack the real punch among collectors of finned Mopar iron. The Sport Fury soft-top is scarce but still offers value at less than A$100,000 for an excellent car. Those chasing a surviving Adventurer drop-tops (from just 97 made in 1959) will lighten their wallet by US$225,000 or thereabouts.