Vehicle Description
Woody wagons remain red hot in the marketplace and why not? Cars
like this 1950 Plymouth Special Deluxe wagon are not only
incredibly attractive, but they're fun and practical as well. The
writing was on the wall for the wood-bodied wagon in 1950; even
Plymouth had introduced the all-steel Suburban wagon in late 1949
and it handily out-sold its wood-bodied sibling. If you want one of
the last, this is a great choice.
We believe most of the wood is original on this Plymouth, which
will tell you all you need to know about its previous lives. High
maintenance was the reason for the woody's decline in popularity
and why so few still exist. Of the 2057 wood-bodied Plymouths built
in 1950, only a handful still exist, and Plymouths in particular
seem to remain popular with woody enthusiasts. The handsome Rio
Maroon paint is a great complement to the rich wood tones and is a
nice older respray that can be enjoyed as-is or perhaps given a
light color sand and buff to rejuvenate it to a high level. Either
way, you get a great-looking little wagon! You'll also note that
this was the most expensive Plymouth of all in 1950, and it
included a lot of bright stainless trim that's easy to maintain,
plus wonderful details like the Plymouth "schooner" hood ornament,
unique taillights, and a steel tailgate that has the spare tire
enclosed in its own housing. The bumpers are in good order, which
is particularly important in back, where the bumper is unique to
the wagon and is probably worth a good chunk of cash all by
itself.
The beautiful tan vinyl interior is quite neatly trimmed in the
original style. Seating surfaces are plain and simple, but that
means they're durable and easy to maintain. Simple rubber mats on
the floor are joined by some carpeted mats to dress things up a bit
and it does offer true 8-passenger seating with a full rear bench.
Front windows wind up and down in the conventional style but rear
passengers get sliding window panes, which is kind of neat. The
dashboard is the same as any other Plymouth, with attractive gauges
housed in three round pods, a center stack with the AM radio
(powers up and hums but doesn't pull sound) and heater controls,
and a fairly convincing woodgrain pattern on top (it had better be
with all that genuine wood around it!). Control efforts are light
and the Plymouth is a tidy handler, so it should quickly become one
of your favorites to drive.
It would be a mistake to underestimate Plymouth's rugged little 217
cubic inch inline-six powerplant. It fires up almost instantly,
idles smoothly with a great mechanical whir, and thanks to
relatively tall 3.90 gears in the rear end, it's quite peppy around
town. While not detailed for show, the engine compartment is tidy
and clean, and shows signs of regular maintenance and care. The
three-speed manual transmission slips through the gears easily once
you've familiarized yourself with the column-mounted shifter's
operation and the gears keep the little six in its sweet spot. It's
still working on six volts, so it feels quite authentic, and with
that giant radiator up front, you don't have to worry about
overheating. There's a newer muffler and tailpipe, tube shocks have
been installed, and there are
205/75/15 wide whitewall radials on the original wheels that make
it a pleasure to drive.
Representing the end of the line for wood-bodied Plymouths, this
neat little wagon is a delight to drive and will always be welcome
at events. Call today!
