Vehicle Description
1950 Plymouth Special Deluxe
Old cars have gotten a bad reputation lately as being a rich man's
game; news reports and TV shows depicting cars passing over the
auction block for literally millions of dollars can easily put that
impression in peoples' heads. Happily, like so much of what passes
for "reality TV" and "news" these days, most of it is orchestrated
hokum, and an example of the bank-draining insanity that can happen
when you have a live camera trained on you.
When you say "Fifties cars," most folks think of fins, but if you
look on the other side of the Jet Age, in the first half of that
decade, enough has changed in our cars nearly 60 years on that
these machines manage to feel vintage-they transport you to another
era. We also need to look at the word "Deluxe" which was used by
virtually every car manufacturer at one point or another. This
consignment oozes "Special Deluxe" in many ways, like its design,
embellishments, interior chrome, and curvaceous lines. All
affordable, and a real piece of vintage that will not break the
bank. Owned by the same family from new until 2017, it is a
survivor.
Exterior
A correct respray of Plymouth Black in good condition covers the
ding free voluptuous panels on the exterior of this car. Gaps are
all very good, and the car is straight as an arrow, except for the
designers use of the curve on this exterior. Transitioning from the
40's to the 50's, the fenders are starting to be almost totally
integrated into the car, and the use of chrome accents is becoming
more prevalent. All trim on this car presents very nicely and would
be classified in good condition. From the beltline fender spears,
to the rocker trim, and upfront on the hood, the trim line to the
hood ornament in the center, it is all shiny and nice. This hood
ornament fronts a bulbous hood which is the typical early 50's
massive in size. Badging is all attached, light bezels, and chromed
bumpers, make up the lower framing for the grille in the front, and
some badging on the rear. Wide whites are on all fours, and
Plymouth logo moon caps are seen as well. A side view shows the
graceful curved roofline as it melts into the trunk and rounded
rear fenders, and even the window openings are curved. On the back,
horizontal rectangular tail lights have chrome bezels, and a small
round dot light is above.
Interior
Door and side panels greet us as we swing the doors and are in a
medium fuzzy gray broadcloth which matches the seats. All levers
and turn knobs are in good condition, as is a darker gray vinyl
armrest on either side. A faux wood grain painted metal dash houses
plenty of round chrome bezel original gauges which are in black
with white numbers and letters. There is a trio of them right
behind the steering wheel in full view. A beautiful radio and
speaker combo, in a square and rectangle design with chromed ribs
and a mesh opening for the sound to fill the cabin. A near perfect
heating/air lever control hangs below the radio. An original cream
bakelite steering wheel with a chrome horn fronts the decently
preserved and all original dash, and has a chrome column. Just
below the woodgraining is a horizontal chromed bar that starts to
driver's left and runs the length of the dash, and houses some
shiny chromed knobs and pulls. Black carpeting floods the floors
and is fairly clean. In back the bench has some tufted tuck and
roll in the center and is smooth gray broadcloth, like the split
back front bench which has a blanket covering the original seating.
Some wear is underneath this blanket in front. Above is a very
light cream headliner and its looking nice and tight.
Drivetrain
A pop of the hood and we are greeted with an unrestored and patina
engine bay which has a 218ci L head inline 6 cylinder engine
within. It is topped with a 1 barrel carburetor, and there is the
original 3 speed manual transmission driving a 3.73 rear axle. All
original is the buzzword for this power plant.
Undercarriage
Plenty of patina, road dirt and surface rust abounds underneath on
all surfaces. A newer fuel tank has been installed, and next to it
the spare tire holder has rusted through but been repaired. The
framing and rockers remain structurally sound showing some surface
rust in sports and lots of road dirt. A few areas of repair are
showing in the floorboard area. A shiny transmission is seen
amongst the patina, and for the corners braking is provided by
drums. Suspension is independent coil springs in front, and leaf
springs in the back. A stock exhaust with no leaks is present
throughout the undercarriage from front to back.
Drive-Ability
A quick starter and on the test track it worked swimmingly. I
noticed that when you get her over 40MPH there is a slight miss
present in the engine purr. The car does have new brakes which work
nicely to bring this mass of Detroit Iron to a halt, and consignor
states the engine has been recently tuned. Interior is comfy and it
has a nice feel, lumbering around curves in 50's style. Bog bold
and beautiful!
This classic driver owned by 1 family for 67 years, then our
consigner took hold of it and buttoned up some issues on the
undercarriage, tuned the engine, and just made sure it still holds
its own very well. This writer, being attracted to this era of
cars, gives it a thumbs up. Stylin in the turn of the decade,
pre-fin era design and comfort.
Classic Auto Mall is a 336,000-square foot classic and special
interest automobile showroom, featuring over 650 vehicles for sale
with showroom space for up to 1,000 vehicles. Also, a 400 vehicle
barn find collection is on display.
This vehicle is located in our showroom in Morgantown,
Pennsylvania, conveniently located just 1-hour west of Philadelphia
on the I-76 Pennsylvania Turnpike. The website is
www.classicautomall.com and our phone number is (888) 227-0914.
Please contact us anytime for more information or to come see the
vehicle in person.
