1961 DeSoto Assembly Line. Pictured car is not the final one.
Like most failing car lines, DeSoto went out with a whimper, and not a bang. Unlike some other defunct brands that promptly sent their final vehicle straight to a museum (such as Oldsmobile and Studebaker), Chrysler did not even deem the final DeSoto produced to be worth saving: It was sold off to some (likely unknowing) dealership and eventual customer, just like any other DeSoto. So what exactly happened to the last DeSoto? Let’s investigate.
Things weren’t looking so bright for DeSoto as the 1960s dawned. While as recently as 1957 DeSoto had cracked the list of top 10 selling brands, a one-two punch of quality problems and the 1958 recession caused sales to drop 70% by 1960. But the biggest threats to DeSoto were coming from inside the house: On the low end, DeSoto was getting squeezed by Dodge going upmarket with the Matador and Polara, and on the high end by Chrysler dipping downmarket with the Windsor followed by the Newport. A commonly heard refrain was “Why buy a DeSoto when you can buy a Chrysler for just a few hundred dollars more?” Why indeed?
61 Chrysler Newport (top), 61 DeSoto (bottom)
While we may never know the exact timing of the official decision, Chrysler had clearly already decided to terminate DeSoto long before the start of the 1961 model year. The convertible and station wagon models were both eliminated for 1960, along with the longer wheelbase “Senior” models. But the final nail in the coffin what the introduction of the virtually identical-looking (and identically priced) Chrysler Newport, slotting below the Windsor, the former entry-level Chrysler.
As part of this planned phaseout, 1961 DeSotos were offered in only two body styles: A two-door hardtop coupe, or a four-door hardtop sedan, sold in a single, unnamed series. The sole engine choice was a 2-barrel 361 “Wedge” V8, paired with either a 3-speed manual or a 3-speed TorqueFlite transmission (although very few, if any, were built with the manual). Also eliminated for 1961: Storied model names like Fireflite and Adventurer. All 1961 DeSotos we bereft of any model or trim badging, and went simply by “DeSoto,” although occasionally you will see them referred to as “RS 1-L,” their internal designation at Chrysler.
Chrysler went public with their intentions to ax the DeSoto brand on November 18, 1960, in the form of a terse telegram sent to dealers, a surviving copy of which is pictured below.
Courtesy Dean Mullinax
True to their word, the last DeSoto rolled off the assembly line on Wednesday, November 30, 1960, after a scant 32 years of production.
There is one rumor about these final cars I would like to dispel: Over the years, I have seen various people state that these final DeSotos were “bitsa” cars, assembled with random Chrysler pieces as the DeSoto-specific pieces were used up (for example a Chrysler steering wheel in place of the DeSoto piece). However, the DeSoto experts I consulted for this story say that more likely the opposite is true. By this time, some dealers were refusing orders and shipments of DeSotos, especially after the November 18th announcement, fearful that they would be stuck with unsellable cars. Chrysler more than likely actually had leftover unused DeSoto parts after their self-imposed November 30th production cutoff. Any mismatched parts you may now see on a 1961 DeSoto were likely installed years after the car was manufactured.
For decades after it was assembled, the identity of the last DeSoto was unknown: The body style, color, and even the VIN were all mysteries. Not helping matters was an arcane vehicle production and identification system that Chrysler employed at the time, leading many a ’61 DeSoto owner over the years to falsely conclude that theirs was one of the last models (if not the last) just based on the body number on the data plate (recall that Chryslers and DeSotos rolled down the same assembly line and that their serial numbers are therefore mixed together).
Around 2002, Dean Mullinax, DeSoto aficionado and former president of the National DeSoto Club, decides to get serious about locating the final DeSoto and starts compiling a registry of every surviving 1961 DeSoto.
Production record of final DeSoto, courtesy Dean Mullinax
In an effort to break open the case, Dean reached out to Wayne Graefen and Kit Foster for assistance in decoding the data plates and build sheets that he had collected so far. Wayne provided a copy of the punch card for the last DeSoto, pictured above, that he had recently requested from Chrysler. This was a fortunate break, as Chrysler now no longer provides production records for any vehicle unless you can produce proof of ownership. Together, they spend six months trying to decode the body plates Dean had collected.
Thanks to their efforts we now know a fair amount about the final DeSoto. Paint code WK2 indicates a two-tone paint job of Surf Turquoise Metallic with a Glacier White roof, while a trim code of 104 would have specified a silver vinyl interior with teal cloth inserts. And perhaps most importantly, we now know it had a serial number of 6113135102, and that it was a two-door coupe. It was built on November 30, 1960, and shipped to the purchasing dealer on December 29, 1960. The final DeSoto also appears to have been well equipped, including such options as a pushbutton radio, Deluxe steering wheel, TorqueFlite transmission, power steering, and power brakes.
Fast forward to 2020. Eighteen years into his quest, Dean has cataloged about 130 surviving 61 DeSotos from a multitude of countries, including Australia, England, Germany, Norway, Canada, Finland, and Sweden (which is home to an astonishing 31 1961 DeSotos). While 130 sounds like (and is) a small number, given that total production for 1961 was just 3,034 units, this actually means that Dean has cataloged about 4% of the total production. By Dean’s reckoning, he’s cataloged less than half of all the remaining 1961 DeSotos, indicating a potential survival rate of around 10%. This is actually pretty incredible, as I would have guessed the number to be far smaller.
Alas, DeSoto number 6113135102 remains elusive, not having turned up despite the collective efforts of Dean and his coterie. Realistically, with just a 10% survival rate, odds are the last DeSoto most likely has long since been scrapped, probably decades ago. But Dean remains optimistic: He is hopeful that it is still in a barn or field somewhere, just waiting to be discovered. Maybe even one of our readers will give him a fresh lead on a 61 DeSoto that will turn out to be that magical final turquoise coupe.
The final surviving DeSoto
So what is the last production DeSoto that is still in existence? According to Dean, the “newest” surviving DeSoto in his database is 6113134667, which was produced on the final day of DeSoto production (11/30/1960), likely within a few hours of the actual ultimate car. It was last seen in Texas on eBay in 2011, in rough shape and half sunk into the ground, but otherwise fairly complete. It was sold to an owner who may not have even realized what it was (the final surviving DeSoto). After that eBay sale, it disappeared off of Dean’s radar, and its current whereabouts are unknown.
There are still a lot of surviving 1961 DeSotos out there that Dean has not cataloged. Dean contacts the owner of every 1961 he sees for sale online, but surprisingly many do not respond to his inquiries, leaving their vehicles (any one of which could be the actual last DeSoto) uncataloged.
If you would like to join Dean on his unicorn hunt for the last DeSoto, feel free to reach out to him at desotodean(at)gmail.com. I would like to thank Dean Mullinax and the National DeSoto Club (desoto.org) for their invaluable and generous support in researching this article.
Almost one month between assembly and shipping. I would hope no such lag exists in the auto industry today.
“Almost one month between assembly and shipping.”
Perhaps it took that long to find a dealer who would accept it.
Ironically, there was recent speculation that the old Chrysler Sales Bank had been brought back due to a backlog of inventory.
Don’t know the current reason for it, but back in the Lynn Townsend days, the Sales Bank existed to keep the assembly lines moving since the UAW contract required that the workers be paid whether they were building cars or not.
The requirement that UAW members be placed in the “Jobs Bank” instead of being laid off was not included in the UAW contract until the early 1980s. That was after Townsend had had been forced out of Chrysler’s executive suite.
If I recall correctly, Townsend used the Sales Bank to artificially inflate sale figures. Once the cars were produced, they had to be sold to the dealers…Chrysler couldn’t simply dump unsold vehicles in Lake Michigan.
So every quarter dealers were strongly “encouraged” by corporate headquarters to take unordered vehicles that were sitting in the Sales Bank.
Thanks, Geeber. I always wondered how Iacocca so easily cashiered the Sales Bank.
I believe that the “official” reason for the sales bank was to allow smoothing out of cycles – to have extra inventory when business gets better and to avoid paying layoff pay and getting no cars when things slow down. Sort of the kind of thing that works in the heads of financial guys. In practice it worked as you say, so that the plants could hit production targets, making the glut of unsold cars the problem of the zone sales guys.
I wonder if that include the export DeSoto Diplomat who was based on the Dodge Dart (Dodgsoto) instead of Plymouth (Plysoto)? http://www.forwardlook.net/forums/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=31524
Adding to more confusion, the 1st-gen A-body Valiant/Lancer was sold as a DeSoto in South Africa. https://www.facebook.com/pg/De-Soto-Automobiles-376207452478287/photos/?tab=album&album_id=1787885314643820&ref=page_internal
I’m always impressed and intrigued when I read about someone so committed to such a unique and seemingly obscure quest. I hope Dean does get to the bottom of what happened to the final DeSoto, even if he’s unable to find the car in the metal. I applaud his tenacity and scholarship.
On the other hand, I just can’t get past that warthog snout on the ’61 DeSoto. Admittedly, I find pretty much all of the ’61 Mopars to be visually challenging (despite recently learning to love the ’62 downsized Dodges and Plymouths and the ’63 Chryslers). But looking at that mug on the DeSoto always makes me wonder if it was just a cruel joke. They sure did send the marque out on a low note.
Indeed, while all of the 1961 Chrysler products were pretty bad, when I look at the front end of the Desoto, I can’t help but think that the Chrysler stylists were trying to come up with their own version of the Edsel.
Or, “Make it look different from a Chrysler, but don’t spend any money.”
Could maximum interchange with Chrysler Newport (without being super-obvious) be a factor? The tops of the Chrysler grille and upper DeSoto grille seem to have similar curves for example (is the hood shared?) I didn’t realize before looking at the comparison pic how nearly identical the two cars were. There were far more differences between the last Edsel and the 1960 Ford.
That’s a good guess on Chrysler using the Newport hood on the Desoto being the reason the stylists came up with such a goofy front end on the latter. As stated, they wanted the last Desoto to be differentiated from the Newport, but wanted to spend as little as possible doing it.
It could also be an attempt by Chrysler to try and stave off lawsuits from now orphaned Desoto dealers. As mentioned, that didn’t work since the lawsuits ran all the way into the seventies. It might not have been so bad if the 1961 Desoto didn’t look like such a monstrosity.
I’ve never been a fan of the ’61 front, and was very surprised to see an article about styling of 1959 Lincolns. One of the front end treatments in the final running for production was IDENTICAL to the ’61 DeSoto, didn’t like it on the Lincoln either.
Yet it sure looks like the ’61 DeSoto inspired the front end design of the Honda CR-V from a decade and change ago (2009 model shown).
More of this please.
How ironic. I heard on the radio this morning that it was on this date in 2006 that Western Union sent it’s last telegram, and then here in this article is featured a Western Union Telegram. Hopefully the elusive last DeSoto was not shipped to the rust belt.
I was reading an old Collectible Auto article on this subject just yesterday. At that time Mullinax hadn’t yet sorted out the final number. Nice to get an update.
I’ll bet the dealers had some choice words when they received that telegram. “Two” low-priced brands that were hopelessly ugly compared to the competition wouldn’t be much comfort.
Chrysler Corporation was still fighting a lawsuit filed by a group of former DeSoto dealers into the early 1970s.
Wow–I had no idea. Yeah, if Chrysler sold you a franchise when it had (apparently) already decided to discontinue–yikes! (That $25K = about $220K today.) February 1975 here:
Yes, that telegram is startlingly dispassionate — it would be like in modern times getting fired from your job via a text.
I think the lawsuit Geeber refers to was appealed up to the Supreme Court, and then bounced back to Federal court. I pity the Chrysler Corp. attorneys who had to deal with that case a decade after the brand was discontinued… talk about a thankless task!
It does still happen.
I was laid off, from a major health insurance provider after a decade of employment, via Instant Message.
Or like finding out on the news that the network just cancelled the sitcom you star in.
I love the kind of quest Mr. Mullinax is doing, as that sounds like some of my own (non-automotive) research ventures.
This might be my one chance to drop this here at CC—from a 1961 DeSoto brochure shoot. The women seem to have hose but not shoes; maybe so’s not to damage the wraparound backdrop?
Shoeless Jo from Hannibal, MO? 🙂
Interesting bit of trivia….. the pre-release publicity shots like this all have body color end caps on the rear fins. But it seems all the actual cars built have chrome end caps around the tail light lenses on the rear fins.
Great article. This has me curious – did Chrysler make the decision to kill DeSoto before or after it had decided to kill Virgil Exner’s original plans for the 1962 full-size cars?
The styling model that laid out the overall “theme” of the original S-Series cars (as the 1962 full-size cars were code-named within the corporation) was a DeSoto. The Imperial, Chrysler, Dodge and Plymouth were then developed from it.
The decision to kill the big new ’62s must have happened right around the end of 1959. So there’s about a year difference until they announced DeSoto’s death in Nov. 1960. I can’t imagine they decided back in 1959, and then sat on that decision for a full year.
As you noted last week, when Chrysler’s sales cratered during the 1958 recession, its management was forced to concede that the corporation was Number Three, and would remain so.
No doubt all of the decisions – the massive layoffs of white-collar staff, the paring down of the original plans for the 1962 S-Series, and the phase-out of DeSoto – were all part of the effort to bring the corporation’s cost structure in line with its real-world sales and market share.
Well, I’m sure there was plenty of thought going on about DeSoto’s future starting right back in late ’58 or so. I don’t really know how long of a gap there would have been between making the decision and making it public.
You have to wonder how much of an impact the crash ’62 downsizing had on Desoto’s future. Chrysler was likely still on the fence about it back then, but when the last-minute (and very expensive) decision was made to completely revamp the 1962 cars, I would guess that pretty much put the final nail in Desoto’s coffin. I can’t imagine there being much time or money left to keep Desoto going after that.
Could it be said that the ’62 downsizing debacle is what finally cost Desoto its life?
No. It would best be said that DeSoto sales plunging 65% in 1958 to less than 50k units is what effectively killed it. That left it with 1% market share. Not nearly enough to survive. The writing was on the wall in 1958. it had no future.
In any case, as I said above, if DeSoto had good enough sales to continue, it would have been easy enough to just keep doing what they had been doing for many years: make modest changes to a Chrysler. But there was no point.
The ’62 downsizing had no impact per se on DeSoto.
Chrysler could have saved DeSoto with this look for 1962
A clay model proposal
I believe that was the original full-size clay model for the 1962 S-Series of cars.
Whether they would have succeeded is an interesting question…their proportions and overall look were completely different from what GM was peddling. They were advanced in some ways ( the long hood, short deck proportions, and no “shoulder” at the beltline).
Exner was trying to replicate the initial success of the 1957 line. The problem was that, by the time those 1957 models debuted, GM’s Harley Earl had lost his touch. The 1962 models would have debuted while Bill Mitchell was at the top of his game.
There was a more conservative but rejected clay model then Don Kopka did. https://auto.howstuffworks.com/1960s-chrysler-concept-cars1.htm First photo at the top, the front end looked like a Mercury of the same era while the roofline with its 6-windows looked like a preview of the upcoming 1965-66 Newport/New Yorker 6-windows sedan.
Here’s an interesting question to ponder: what would a downsized 1962 Desoto have looked like, particularly considering how goofy the Mopars looked.
They probably wouldn’t have downsized Desoto so I’m going to guess it might have been what ended up being the 1962 Dodge Custom 880.
It wouldn’t have been downsized. DeSotos shared bodies with Chryslers. It would have looked very much like the ’62 and then the ’63 Chryslers.
The downsized cars were for the low price field.
Are there individual photos of the S-Series cars? I’ve just seen group photo of mock ups in studio. You just see parts of each model. Would like to see S-Series Imperial- front, back , side. These cars were radical looking but reducing their size wrecked Virgil’s aesthetic.The resulting ’62 Plymouth and Dodge sabatoged Virgil’s new look.
So, given that Chrysler had clearly decided to end DeSoto production before the 1961 model intro, any speculation as to why they didn’t just make 1960 the final year and not bother with the halfhearted 1961 effort? I’m guessing it was fear that having to unload cars that were both last year’s model and an orphaned brand would be too difficult, so better to have a brief token run of ’61s.
Ia673, I know nothing about the DeSoto decision, but I immediatel thought of Edsel just a year earlier, taken a few months into 1960 model year at some expense (though still not much differentiated from the 1960 Ford).
Edsel was a brand-new division, and some powerful Ford executives had been looking for an excuse to kill it even before the first cars were officially unveiled by the dealers.
DeSoto, whatever its problems by the late 1950s, wasn’t faced with that scenario.
I suppose the last Thunderbird, which flopped miserably, was the last chance we’ll have to get a retro ’50’s styled car. That seems like a shame. Perhaps had the Thunderbird been a four seater it would have done better. I would love a big four seater convertible with lots of glittery ’50s chrome and a modern, reliable powertrain, but I’m not enough of a market.
I really wish we could once again buy cars with “a two-tone paint job of Surf Turquoise Metallic with a Glacier White roof, and a silver vinyl interior with teal cloth inserts.” That would be a vast improvement over the black/grey interiors we have today. Doesn’t a silver vinyl interior with teal cloth inserts sound stunning?
I thought the 2002 Chevy Bel Air concept car was going to be that updated ‘50s-style 4-seater convertible, but then we never heard about it again. I’m guessing the disappointment around the T-bird caused GM to think twice, but it’s a shame, I thought that car looked great!
No, not at all. I was so happy to see the colored interiors mostly go away. Black all the way for me.
That unfortunate, bi-level grille did no favors to this otherwise attractive body shell.
Very much in agreement, Mark. I very much like the 1960 DeSoto in 2-door form. The 1961 model simply appears as a major mis-step if they wanted to sell those cars after it was known to be a “Dead” brand.
“But the final nail in the coffin what the introduction of the virtually identical-looking (and identically priced) Chrysler Newport.”
MTN expressed this thought further up, but I think the styling was the final nail in the coffin.
MTN called it a ” warthog snout,” which describes the aesthetic perfectly.
It’s hard to believe but someone high up at Chrysler must have thought that the warthog look was going to catch on as the nose of the ill-fated, downsized 1962 Dodge had a similar warthog grille.
Late December 1960, three still for sale in Abilene TX, but none in Unicorn Livery:
Wow, that grille had me running off screaming in the night. Ugly enough to rank right up there with the Edsel grille.
Well, I own a fine condition 1961 DeSoto 2-dr Ht in Scandinavia. It’s amazing, in generally, how much people still hates this car after 60 years. I post pictures of it to the car forums or FB groups only, if I want voluntarily dirt on my neck especially from Americans. No need yet and I believe I will never post pictures of it anywhere.
Several things hit me. First, I have always found it odd that the final DeSoto was offered only as a 2 or 4 door hardtop. Mopar buyers bought 2 door cars and 4 door hardtops in relatively low numbers compared to GM and Ford buyers. Mopar people were 4 door sedan people. But no 61 DeSoto sedans.
Next, for most (but not all) of the time there was a DeSoto, Chrysler offered two different main bodies – the big one for Chrysler and DeSoto and the smaller one for Plymouth and Dodge. But certainly since 1949, even though they looked similar. That plan kept on through 1964 with the Chrysler/Dodge 880 being on one body and the Plymouth/Regular Dodge being on the other. Lynn Townsend’s 1965 C body program put all 3 brands on the same body. As we discussed last week, that plan really didn’t increase sales, though it surely decreased costs.
Finally, I remember a 61 DeSoto in my area in the 80s – it was not the last car because it was a 4 door, or at least I think it was. It was the non-metallic turquiose with a white top owned by some young guy who lived in an apartment near me. It wasn’t long before it was sporting a smashed front end, and not long after that before it went away altogether. I always kind of wanted it, but will agree with everyone here that it was one ugly car.
Also, most don’t know that as late as 1959 DeSoto was offering *four* separate convertibles (Firesweep, Firedome, Fireflite and Adventurer). None of which sold decently. A Division going from four convertibles to two bodies of one series in two years (or less) is a stunning turnaround.
Next, for most (but not all) of the time there was a DeSoto, Chrysler offered two different main bodies – the big one for Chrysler and DeSoto and the smaller one for Plymouth and Dodge. But certainly since 1949, even though they looked similar.
Certainly not for 1957, and up. The key dimensions of the ’57 Plymouth through Chrysler are all the same, except length, of course. The critical ones like width, track and hip room make it quite clear that they’re the same.
But for that’s all just the proof; as a kid I could tell they all were obviously on the same body. 🙂
And it’s pretty clear to me that although the there were some differences on the pre-’57s, they all seemed to ride on the same chassis, with very minor differences.
And certainly Chrysler didn’t engineer two new big unibodies for 1960.
In ’57, Chrysler did what GM would do in ’59. They obviously couldn’t afford otherwise.
And the difference in key dimensions like hip room are quite modest. I think it was mainly a stylistic difference. The ’55-’56 Chryslers have “fuselage” sides, with no shoulder, whereas the Plymouth and Dodge do.
After the big Mercs went away, Ford, GM and Chrysler all used the same basic body in the ’60s. Chrysler starting in ’57. GM in ’59. Ford in ’61.
The GM C body was just a longer B, right?
Good point on the 57-59 series and the 60-61. I had also been thinking of the 41-48 cars as being at least close.
The 53-54, 55-56 and 62-64 were quite different, and even the 60-61 2 door hardtops are quite different, although that may be more visual than actual. Even the 74-77 Plymouth/Dodge was on a body that was highly differentiated from the Chrysler. Thinking about it, neither method ever worked to get strong sales out of all 3/4 lines (however many they had). They certainly never developed a consistent approach.
There are more differences between 65-70 B and C bodies. Door construction for example.
I knew a family in the 1980’s who had a medium-green with white top ’61 DeSoto four door hardtop they had retired to the back forty after using it as a daily work car for a number of years. They were all Mopar, he was a mechanic at a Chrysler-Plymouth dealer, told me the DeSoto had been traded in with low mileage in the mid-’70’s but no one would buy it. So, his employer sold it to him for cheap wholesale to get it off the lot. Being a 361 with Torqueflite, it was pretty much bullet-proof, he was thoroughly familiar with how to wring the most miles out of it. He put over 100K miles on it, said it was one of the best cars he ever had. But did think it was pretty ugly, especially the front end.
My Grandpa Ed and my Uncle Harry were dyed-in-the-wool DeSoto men. It must have been a dark day for them when the last one rolled off the line…
So was my grandfather but he didn’t know about Desoto’s demise until the end of ’61 when he went looking for a new one. He settled on a black ’62 Plymouth Savoy two-door sedan (didn’t need a “rainbow” colored car as he used to say).The Plymouth was the last car he owned.
Another factory photo (testing clothing colors/patterns against car, I reckon):
Slight color restoration
Very similar (the front end treatment is now growing on me, ever so slightly):
I’m trying to get a feel of where the Desoto’s place was in the Chrysler Corporation line:
Plymouth=Chevrolet
Dodge=Pontiac
Desoto=Oldsmobile
Chrysler=Buick
Imperial-Cadillac
is this correct?
Yes, it was the Mopar version of the Sloan Ladder.
Those angled headlights did no favor for the ’61 Chryslers, either. It’s kind of mind-blowing how that could have been approved, especially considering how attractive the front end of the ’60 Chrysler is (and the DeSoto shares that design, basically).
The advent of the canted headlights into Chrysler cars is a really good question. AFAIK, Lynn Townsend and Elwood Engel weren’t at Chrysler when the decision was made to add them to the cars (it was still Tex Colbert and Virgil Exner).
Yet, it sure seems like the beginning of the ‘copy whatever GM is doing’ era that Townsend and Engel get blamed (or take credit) for. I can only surmise that it was all the confusion and panic that was in full force at Chrysler back then (especially with the health issues that Exner was experiencing at the time) that caused them to embrace whatever GM was doing (at least for the full-size cars). Then, when the radical ’62 cars bombed, well, Townsend and Engel were firmly in place and it was ultra-conservative from that point forward.
I also think the 1960 Chrysler and DeSoto were high points in styling. I don’t mind the diagonally arranged quad headlights of the 61 models, but the fins are awkward on both and as everyone has said, the bifurcated grille of the DeSoto is weird.
I am aware of a black 1961 4-door DeSoto that was in not too bad shape in a nearby junkyard about 20 or so years ago. I have no idea if it’s still there.
Yes, I very much agree with you as to the 1960 Chrysler and DeSoto being high points in styling. And, have felt that way since a kid, long before I could drive in 1970. My father briefly owned and daily drove a used 1960 DeSoto 2-door sedan in white that was well-equipped. Had the cool swivel front bucket seats. He must have had it for a year or less. Don’t think there was ever any problem with it. Was sad when he traded it in for another Mopar.
I’ve caught a glimpse of a black one of these around here over the years. While I wouldn’t throw one out of bed for eating crackers, I much prefer the Chrysler version.
There were a 1961 Desoto Diplomat offered for export only; identical to a 1961 Dodge Dart.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DeSoto_Diplomat
Those cars were the “last Desotos”…?
I’ve read that some of those South African rebadges were still being made in ’62. Don’t know if that’s accurate.
the D1961 Dodge Lancer becam the DeSoto Rebel in South Africa for ’61-’63, (with grille changes) the bigger 1962 Dodge Dart became the ‘Luxury’ DeSoto Diplomat for ’62-63
Great to see this article again, and to cheer on Mr. Mullinax. Scanning the 1960-61 papers again, I see a new ’61 still unbought in June, 1961 (Washington State):
This guy was able to track down the owner of this 1911 E.M.F. Model 30 touring car shown in a black & white silent film simply by researching the license plate number.
Re: this ’61 De Soto–if you have a VIN, there must be extant registration records. Somebody in law enforcement or FBI should be able to solve this!
Let’s not forget the export DeSotos that were made through 1962 in a few countries, and through 1963 in South Africa. Or were these actually built there from CKD kits?
Built locally from CKD kits.
My best friend (52 years ago) was hit while riding his bicycle on the way to school sometime in 1969…by a ’61 Desoto. I was riding my bicycle right behind him, and must have yelled out something seeing it happening…his bicycle was knocked down but he wasn’t hurt. We were on our way to school, but don’t know for sure the time of day, since we actually went to school twice a day (came home for lunch) so 2 trips back/forth…part of the reason bicycles were nice, as it was about a mile walk from our house (he lived net door to me). It was at the outlet of a development (Lakewood Estates) between our street and our school (which no longer exists…I’ve been out of high school for about 45 years and the only 2 schools I went to up to college still exists, the parochial school I went to for first grade and the high school I went to for only 1 year which I graduated from)…we moved quite a bit back then, hence I went to several different schools in different towns.
We could only ride part of the year, as this was Burlington, Vermont, and about 40% of the time there would be rain or snow around (but my bicycle had fenders, so at least rain didn’t put too much of a stripe on your back, but of course you’d get pretty wet, and handbrakes didn’t work well when wet.
We moved from Vermont to Virginia later that year (Nov, 1969)…neither of the 2 schools I went to in the 5 years we lived in Virginia still exist..kind of like the Desoto.
My Uncle was driving my Grandfather’s hand-me-down ’51 Chrysler Windsor (semi-automatic) that year, he graduated from College, but it died right before that, but he bought a new ’69 Ford LTD to replace it.
Dad was a DeSoto dealer and he sensed there was a coming to an end for DeSoto. 1959 was the last year model for the full line-up cars with the DeSoto name. 1960 models were paired down to only 3 models of Adventurer and Fireflite and the Fireflite wasn’t even identified like the Adventurer was – there was no “Fireflite” on the car.
He only received one ’61 model and it was a 4 door HT so it certainly wasn’t the last one built.
Now I am trying to find a pristine example of a 2HT ’60 or ’61 for myself – the ’60 for looks and the ’61 for character because it was the last year and fewest made.
Here’s a ’61 for sale:
https://petesclassiccars.com/1961-desoto-four-door-hardtop/
The VIN = 6113116470. I don’t know how close to the end that is.
Photo from flickr. Maybe this is the car you’re looking for:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/coconv/52358439400/in/pool-rusty_old_cars/
But the DeSoto name continued well into the 21st Century. The last DeSoto truck was manufactured in 2015