Edmunds dealer partner, Bayway Leasing, is now offering transparent lease deals via these forums. Click here to see the latest vehicles!
Most popular vehicles
Popular New Cars
- New Acura MDX
- New Acura RDX
- New Audi Q5
- New BMW 3 Series
- New BMW X3
- New Buick Enclave
- New Cadillac Escalade
- New Chevrolet Equinox
- New Chrysler 300
- New Dodge Challenger
- New Ford Edge
- New Ford Escape
- New Ford Expedition
- New Ford Explorer
- New Ford F-150
- New Ford Focus
- New Ford Mustang
- New Honda Accord
- New Honda Civic
- New Honda CR-V
- New Honda Fit
- New Honda Odyssey
- New Honda Pilot
- New Hyundai Elantra
- New Hyundai Santa Fe
- New Hyundai Sonata
- New Hyundai Tucson
- New Jeep Compass
- New Jeep Grand Cherokee
- New Jeep Wrangler
- New Mazda 3
- New Mazda 6
- New Mazda CX-5
- New Nissan Altima
- New Nissan Maxima
- New Nissan Rogue
- New Porsche Cayenne
- New Ram 1500
- New Subaru Crosstrek
- New Subaru Forester
- New Subaru Impreza
- New Subaru Outback
- New Tesla Model S
- New Tesla Model X
- New Toyota 4Runner
- New Toyota Camry
- New Toyota Corolla
- New Toyota Highlander
- New Toyota Prius
- New Toyota RAV4
- New Toyota Sienna
- New Toyota Tacoma
- New Volkswagen Jetta
- New Volvo XC60
- New Volvo XC90
Popular Used Sedans
- Used BMW 5 Series
- Used Chevrolet Impala
- Used Chevrolet Malibu
- Used Chrysler 200
- Used Dodge Charger
- Used Ford Fusion
- Used Ford Taurus
- Used Honda Accord
- Used Honda Civic
- Used Hyundai Elantra
- Used Hyundai Sonata
- Used Tesla Model S
- Used Toyota Camry
- Used Toyota Corolla
- Used Volkswagen Jetta
Popular Used SUVs
- Used Acura MDX
- Used Acura RDX
- Used Ford Edge
- Used Ford Explorer
- Used Honda CR-V
- Used Honda Pilot
- Used Hyundai Santa Fe
- Used Jeep Compass
- Used Lincoln Navigator
- Used Mazda CX-5
- Used Nissan Rogue
- Used Subaru Crosstrek
- Used Subaru Forester
- Used Tesla Model X
- Used Volvo XC90
Popular Used Pickup Trucks
Popular Used Hatchbacks
Popular Used Minivans
Popular Used Coupes
Popular Used Wagons
Comments
@isellhondas, we rarely sit in the back anyway and I think the fold and go seats are great, especially for our needs. Something tells me that Dodge copied the idea from Honda's magic seat in the original Odyssey wagon.
I dunno, there's a 2010 up the road we may go look at - it's about $10k. Don't really believe CPO is worth it.
The '03 here drove surprisingly well, better than the '06 we just got back from driving.
You have a nice collection as well- I LOVE S2000s, and Subies are always cool.
As for the Mazda, it now has 137k on the clock. It had several issues under warranty, but once it hit 65k it hasn't required anything other than a thermostat, rear pads, rear sway bar bushings, and scheduled maintenance. Not too long ago I threw on a set Koni FSDs, which transformed the ride/handling balance. A couple of weeks ago I installed a Hypertech Sport Tuner, which bumped hp close to 300 and torque to around 320 lb-ft. An unexpected bonus was an increase in fuel economy; since the install I've averaged 30.2 mpg. A friend sold me the tuner for a great price and it looks like it may very well pay for itself.
When all is said and done, despite my affection for German cars, I have to say that the Mazda is now one of my all-time favorite cars; I can't think of anything under $35k I would replace it with.
Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport; 2020 C43; 2021 Sahara 4xe 1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica Wife's: 2015 X1 xDrive28i Son's: 2009 328i; 2018 330i xDrive
I agree with Isell on those second row stow 'n go seats. Just check it out real carefully because things like trannies have been an off and on problem for a number of years on those Mopar minivans. Otherwise, they are big depreciators so can be a decent used car deal as long as you aren't counting on it holding up like your Nissan van did. From people I know that drive them, I suspect you'll probably see your mechanic a bit more often as well.
My idea is to get us moved and then look at the 2015s. A moving van would cost $3,000 and the '03 Caravan would cost $5,000. Assuming it makes it out West in one piece, we're golden.
Funny how one can rationalize anything.
That's definitely true. I started to rationalize buying this massive brute, because some of the trim parts on it are in better shape than on my car.
I've already had my front and rear bumpers re-chromed, but I could use those taillight housings. They're in better shape than mine...
I think this beast would be cool in its own right, although I'm sure it would cost a small fortune to bring it back to life.
Wow, that thing is pretty cool - definitely a labor of love to bring back, but I've never seen one in that style.
A LARGE FORTUNE. But it would be quite something if it was done up as a street rod.
I've only seen one DeSoto ambulance in person, but it was a totally different design, and based on the Firesweep rather than the Firedome/Fireflite. This was at the Carlisle Mopar show a few years back...
Old ambulances are rare because it doesn't pay to restore them.
Also, just think of what a pain it would be to store something like that. It's probably not going to fit in most garages. And, I imagine security would stop me and do a search every time I tried to drive it to work! Probably a pain to drive, as well. And I know they're cramped inside, because the owner of the one I posted above let me sit in it. Because of the partition between the front seat and the back area, the seat doesn't go back very far, so it makes for a very cramped car.
If I was filthy rich, I think it would be cool to have one...or maybe a '61-62 Cadillac hearse or ambulance. But, I don't think I'll ever be that filthy rich!
" NEEDS RESTORATION"
Gee...ya think?
Andre I know I've been away a long time and I may be asking a painful question, but..... what is the status of your DeSoto?
I'm glad YOU asked....I've been afraid to.
You can't sand blast metal that rusted so the entire car body probably should be chemically-hot-tanked. That should be fun. > @isellhondas said:
It's actually coming along pretty good. I went over yesterday, because the mechanic wanted to show me some stuff and ask for my approval on something. He was almost ready to drop the body back onto the frame, but asked me if I wanted him to repaint the engine bay area and fix some rust around the driver's side headlight bezel. The frame is powder coated and nice and pretty, and the engine has been rebuilt, repainted, and looks brand new, so suddenly the fender linings and such don't look so pretty anymore, and would look clashy compared to the engine. And, it's cheaper to do it now while it's all apart.
Also, I'm discovering just how cheaply Chrysler slapped these cars together...they built them so that they'd go together as quick as possible on the assembly line, but when it comes time to pull something off, not quite so easy. For instance, if you want to take the chrome taillight bezels off, you have to first take the bumper off, because it overlaps and there's not enough clearance. And you can't pull a fender off without taking the bumper/grille assembly off first, either.
So, at the rate the mechanic is going, this sucker probably will end up being ready sometime this year. I'm kinda worried though, that when it comes back, it's going to be so nice that I'll be afraid to drive it!
Here's one of the more recent pics I took of the frame:
And here's a closeup of the engine:
This year would be good. By this time next year I hop to finally put out another CD - a mere 19 years since the first one. Given the concept I'm working with the DeSoto could definitely play a nice part in the cover shot!
Might look too new, though......
Seeing that new looking engine and frame makes me think of restoring my old car - until I think about the price
If I ever win a Publishers Clearing House sweepstakes I am sending my '02 to The Werk Shop in Chicago for a total restoration- along with a few mods...
Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport; 2020 C43; 2021 Sahara 4xe 1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica Wife's: 2015 X1 xDrive28i Son's: 2009 328i; 2018 330i xDrive
Well, the body itself isn't going to get re-painted, other than the rear quarters where some rust was patched, and around the one headlight that's getting redone. So it probably won't look too new! Here's how it looked when it got towed away, back in December 2009...
Oh, that could be perfect. I'd probably be standing in front of it staring at the engine. We'll Photoshop some smoke coming out of the engine... Maybe use an interior shot that shows the push button tranny for the back. Tentatively titled Roadside America, there's a sing with that title, another called Tail Fins and various road, car and gasoline songs. My first attempt at something of a concept album. I'm certainly old enough by now....
You guys have got me thinking Route 66 now
I've never seen a 57 De Soto with quad headlights!
I know that in 1957 it was possible to get quads on Chryslers but only in the states that permitted them. It looks like the same applied to De Sotos.
Looks like it's going to worth the wait and expense. Just don't make it a Trailer Queen!
Speaking of Trailer Queens...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=e2Qxod6mIrQ
I assume that red paint is just oxidized, and will shine right up.
very nice Andre!
Funny, I think I've seen more '57 DeSotos with quads, than without! But yeah, it varied from state to state. Apparently, Pennsylvania legalized the quads that year, because that's where mine came from originally. While all Chryslers had the option of quads, with DeSoto, it was all models except the Dodge-based Firesweep, which used a DeSoto body on a shorter Dodge frame, and up front had Dodge fenders/hood, with a DeSoto grille stuck on. Oh, and a 325 poly instead of a 341 Hemi.
I think they could have put quad lights on if they wanted to, though. The '57 Dodge (and Plymouth) were set up where a big turn signal mounted inboard of the single headlights gave the car a somewhat quad-headlight look. And, for '58 they all went with quad lights.
One thing I just realized...I don't think I've ever seen a 1957 Adventurer with single headlights. Not in pictures, nor in person. I think the Adventurer came out somewhat late in the model year though, so maybe quad lights were legal nationwide by then?
Yeah, a little oxidized, and VERY dusty! Here's a pic of the body, up on the lift where it's been for a good 4 years by now...
It will still show flaws and age once it's washed and waxed, but it should look fairly presentable. I think all the handprints in the dust on the trunk give it a nice, horror movie touch. Like something's trying to get out. Or in...
So, on a restoration like this id it pay as you go with periodic payments?
Nothing that $20,000 wouldn't fix up real nice.
What's with the lower rear quarter panel? Paint has been stripped off for some reason?
Oh I wish I was only into it for $20K...
As for the lower quarters, they were rusty and had bondo in them, so they were cut out and patched. Here's a closeup of each side:
The passenger side was worse, and needed a bigger patch.
Oh I meant $20K for paint and bodywork and chrome.
Is it original paint? Originality and patina are huge right now - if it waxes up nice enough, I'd leave it be. Body and paintwork are ridiculously expensive anyway.
$20k in a sit would vetch on the open market.......?
I'm a big fan of 55-58 Mopars and I'm particularly fond of the Desoto's back then. I think they just really carried the designs well.
On another subject, I was stuck in a big traffic jam today immediately behind two white cars next to each other. One was a new Malibu, the other a new Fusion. Like the cover of an auto magazine! I think that Malibu looks kind of sharp in the rear. The Fusion seemed to kind of have a dowdy rear end. Hadn't really noticed that before. Made it look narrow and tipsy. I think they should put the current Focus rear on it instead of those dinky tail lights it currently has. OTOH, I like the Fusion front end better and I think the side profile is sort of a draw depending on whether you prefer 4 or 6 window sedan design. One rear end I really don't care for is the current Camry. Those tail lights look like it's someone in a Halloween costume.
I have seen careful color sanding bring paint back to an amazing standard--but it has to be "intact" of course.
I tended to prefer the DeSotos to the Chryslers as well. I don't know though, if I'm simply biased because of the '53 Firedome sedan my Granddad got back in the late 70's, but for the most part, year for year I just tend to prefer the styling details of the DeSoto.
When I first started seeing pics of the new Fusion, I liked it alot, while I wasn't impressed at all with the Malibu. But, over time, I've found I'm liking the Malibu more and the Fusion less. I agree on your assessment of the Fusion's rear-end...I think that's its weakest point, whereas I think the Malibu's rump is one of its stronger features! I think the Fusion has a more youthful look to it, whereas the Malibu is more conservative, and a bit more upscale in profile.
As for the Camry, IMO its taillights look to me like two designs got stuck together. I think they should gone one of two ways: 1) keep it off the trunk lid entirely or 2) keep the part on the trunk lid, but then get rid of the part on the rear quarter that drops below the part on the trunk.
My dad had a 54 Desoto Firedome, but I don't think that really influenced me. That car was actually a bit of a lemon. I always thought the 55 Desoto and Dodge were just nice designs. I liked the full tail lights on the 56 and 57 Chrysler, but not the partial tail lights on the 58. But maybe I like those Desoto's because they had the 3 tail lamps vertically like Impala had horizontally. I think those lights just filled the tail space very nicely. Formal, yet sporty too.
I didn't like the shrunken taillights on the '58 Chrysler, either, but I like its front-end. In fact, to me it looks like they tried to make the Chrysler look more like a DeSoto up front in '58...perhaps they did this to try and distinguish it a bit more from Imperial?
Maybe that was also one reason DeSoto sales fell off more in '58 than Chrysler did as well, because the cars looked more alike, so people just went for the prestige of the Chrysler name? DeSoto dropped from around 117,500 units in '57 to about 49,000 in '58. Chrysler fell from around 125,000 to about 63,000.
I'm not sure, but I think DeSoto also raised prices a bit faster than Chrysler did around that timeframe, so that may have put the cars closer, price wise. For instance, I think the Firedome sedan went from around $2958 in 1957 to $3234 for 1959, a 9+% increase in just two years, but I'll have to look up and see if an equivalent Chrysler went up as much.
Going back to the comparison of the Malibu versus the Fusion, I was just thinking...in terms of mainstream midsized cars, I don't think there's anything out there that really gets me excited, when it comes to style. Maybe the Mazda6? I also saw one of those new, Dart-based 200C's up on a turntable at the DC auto show, and it looked pretty good in person. Better than I thought it would.
Too bad you couldn't take the front end of a Fusion and the rear of the Malibu. That's where their strengths are, but I can't imagine the finished product would be too good.
The other day, there was this all polished up black Fusion sneaking up on my left. I'm really digging the front. Looked great. When he passed me and I got a look at the tail talk about a disappointment. Of course I've seen that before but somehow this really stuck out.
Andre - our 57 Custom Suburban had those giant turn signals to give the quad light effect.
Those 57 Mopar wagons were pretty sleek, particularly the roll down tailgate window. I'm not sure, but I think Rambler was the only other model that year with that rear window style, although maybe Mercury had it, can't really remember now? Made the lift tailgates look obsolete and clunky. But when I think back to those days as a little kid, the 57 wagon that seemed almost ubiquitous, at least around my Chicago suburban area, was the Ford, especially the Country Sedan (although I kind of liked the 2dr Ranch Wagon, along with the Studebaker Conestoga models that year). Oh, can't forget it was the last year for the chromed up Nomad's too. I think in general '57 and '65 are my two favorite model years for all cars.
Yeah, I loved most all 57s. The amazing thing was that by 58 everything turned awful.
Unfortunately, too true Fezo! At least after the 65's, the 66's stayed nice.
Good point. The 66's were nice. A lot of the 67's as well.
I have mixed feelings about 1958. While that year takes a bad rap because of the recession, and a growing backlash against American extravagance, I actually prefer some '58 cars to their '57 counterparts.
For instance, the entire '58 Mopar lineup is just a copy of '57, just with standard quad headlights and minor trim changes. I thought the Plymouth and Dodge were actually an improvement, partly because of the standard quads, but also because the Dodge's front-end was less hulking, while the Plymouth matched the lower stone shield to the upper grille, so it no longer looked like it was swallowing a Jeep. The DeSoto was a wash for the most part, IMO. I thought the Firesweep looked better with the standard quads, although the grilles and side trims in general were a bit busier. Chryslers still looked good IMO, despite the shrunken taillights. And Imperials looked about the same.
With Ford, I actually prefer the '58 to the '57, because I never liked the jutting, bug-eyed look of the '57's headlights. Mercury is a wash pretty much. I don't like the looks of the '57, but I don't like the '58 either. I think Lincoln was a big step down though...the '57 was pretty attractive I thought, and managed to look trim despite its 227" length, longest of any domestic '57 production car, short of a limo. Now, the Edsel sort of speaks for itself, but my main issue with it is the center spot of the grille. The rest of the car doesn't seem too bad.
At GM, I'm probably one of the few that prefers the '58 Chevy to the '57. Partly, perhaps, because the '57 Chevy has just had TOO much exposure and has been overplayed in our culture, but I just think the '58 has a nice, upscale look to it. Even as a little kid I preferred them. I don't think the '58 Pontiac is too bad looking, other than the headlights seeming to jut out a bit too far. But I like the '57 Pontiac as well, so it's hard for me to pick a favorite here. Buick and especially Olds, IMO, took a big step down for '58. And the Caddy got a bit garish for '58. I still like it, in its own way, but prefer the '57.
With Rambler, I think the '58 was an improvement, with the quad headlights. At Studebaker/Packard, the poorly done quad headlights were pretty bad, but I liked the addition of the "Starlight" hardtop coupes. Packard's version of the Studebaker Hawk is pretty bad, though.
I agree though, going into the 60's, things stayed pretty good into '66. Even '67, although by that time, the big cars started plumping up a bit. Even my ex-wife, who wasn't really into cars, took notice one day when we were at the repair shop, and there was a picture of a '66 Catalina convertible on a wall calendar. She looked at it and then asked something like "Why does ours look so fat?"
Paging andre1969, paging andre1969:
http://www.robertschryslerdodge.net/used/Chrysler/1981-Chrysler-Imperial-Meriden-CT-408984c50a0a00644eaf6e88cbfd9e61.htm#
I like the tacked on "limited edition" badge - must be a dealer installed thing, right? Even though the bordello interior is plush, I'd think that's a base car with the hubcaps and no leather.
"Limited Edition" I always get a kick out of that. Every car ever built is a Limited Edition since at some point they won't make any more of them.
"Limited" is usually an apt description of the cars that wear that particular badge...
Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport; 2020 C43; 2021 Sahara 4xe 1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica Wife's: 2015 X1 xDrive28i Son's: 2009 328i; 2018 330i xDrive
My '97 Outback is a Limited. Leather, heated seats. And a fake hood scoop. Oh, and gold pinstriping!