(first posted 4/10/2019) CC regular Mike Hayes found something out of the ordinary parked at a marina in the Seattle area, I assume. It’s a 1965 Dodge Dart GT hardtop coupe with a sunroof. Not original, but well done nonetheless.
Mike left this comment: Note the snaps. Either they did a good job of fooling me, or this is a real sunroof. They’re not fooling me; note the “bathtub rings” on the roof where rainwater pooled up and the vinyl sagged in the middle. A fake would not have done that.
The sunroof replaced the stock center roof section, which was covered in black vinyl standard. Quite clever.
Let’s take in the Dart’s face while we’re at it. A transitional one, from the very expressive and deeply sculpted ’63 to the bland ’66.
Here’s the view from the rear. This looks like a well-used car, from the looks of the stains around the gas filler cap. I like the streaks of white patina too. Works well for me all-round.
Not as strange as one would think, and wasn’t the first:
That’s one of my favourite publicity shots of such a car, but while a similar canvas sunroof was definitely installed on some of the highly de luxe Swiss-built ’62 Lancers, I doubt if more than about one (if any at all) of these American retrofitments were made. It’s 1962: who the hell’s spending an additional roughly 10% of the purchase price of a compact car to add a sunroof?
Very interesting. I like the patina up top. The decay down low is a bit much, this Dart could use a little love.
The ding in the bumper does make for a funny expression on this car.
The sunroof solution here is a natural for the Jeep Liberty. Too bad Honda had already used the Del Sol name because that would really put the S-O-L in Del Sol:
http://www.curbsideclassic.com/blog/news/cc-news-fca-to-jeep-liberty-owners-with-sky-slider-roof-youre-fked/
“The ding in the bumper does make for a funny expression on this car.”
You’re right. It does almost look like a smirk.
I’d say more of a sneer.
I would guess that air flow would press down on that roof with the car at speed, stretching the vinyl a bit – thus the mini bird bath.
That hardtop roof treatment on these Darts was particularly nicely done. There seemed to be a micro-fad of those roofs with a vinyl covered section ahead of the C pillar. I am thinking of the 63-64 New Yorker Salon and the 64 GT Hawk. There may have been others.
Actually I think that it’s the reverse dynamic – a convertible at speed will have the top lifted a bit due to the airflow, kind of like an airplane wing. This is especially noticeable among the last gen GM B body convertibles; if you see one on the expressway, take a look. That being said, that effect could also stretch the material a bit so that when static, it would droop, and be a natural collector of rainwater/snowmelt, as all four sides are roughly planar. Just my speculation – any experts on aerodynamics here?
The roof of the car is like the top of an airplane wing, meaning the Bernoulli effect creates a low pressure area there. That’s why you see all convertible tops (and floppy sunroofs) bulge out the faster they go.
It’s also why cars all have lift at higher speeds, which is why spoilers were created to counteract that.
Next time you’re driving fast in your Miata, look up at your top, although on such a small tight op it might not be very visible.
I think you are right.
Some older cousins told the story of taking their parents’ 64 Galaxie 4 door hardtop out for some high speed country-road driving one time. With all of the windows open they were amazed that when they passed 90 or 95 the center of the roof started pushing down into the car. They maxed out at an indicated 97 and said that the roof resumed its shape when they slowed down. They were thrilled to not have to explain a deformed roof when they got home.
I suspect that with windows open a low pressure area developed in the passenger compartment. Perhaps there was something unique about that particular design.
97 on a country road in a 64 Galaxie? – they’re lucky they did not experience more than a temporarily deformed roof! I got my Dad’s 65 Thunderbird up to 90+ on a country road when I realized it was not a particularly good idea, especially with the driving skills of a 17 year old and a car that was built for Interstate cruising. No roof deformation though…
Ford would use that same vinyl roof style on nearly all its cars in the late 60s to early 70s. Ford would even offer a vinyl roof with the vinyl on the rear portion of the roof (red, on this Dart, and painted metal where the sunroof is on this Dart).
Seems really strange to see the Dodge brand on this vehicle. I don’t think the Dodge version became popular here until the 1967 restyle. The US 1960-66 Valiants look so small and stumpy next to the Canadian version, which I believe used the bigger Dart body.
Leaving aside mechanical differences:
Canadian and US ’60-’62 Valiants were the same except for minor badge and trim differences.
Canadian ’63-’64 Valiants used the US Dart body and its 111″ wheelbase, with the US Valiant front end assembly—rather than the US Valiant body and its 106″ wheelbase.
Canadian ’65 Valiants were available in both the small 106″ and large 111″ wheelbase version; that is, Canadians could buy Valiant-shaped Valiants and Dart-shaped Valiants in ’65. There was no mixed sheetmetal as in ’63-’64.
Canadian ’66 Valiants were all the 111″ Dart-shaped items, without any mixed sheetmetal as in ’63-’64.
My neighbor had a late 79 Chrysler with a vinyl roof that ballooned at highway speeds.
I recall driving behind the car on the interstate and the roof almost rose three inches.
My 85 Fleetwood did the same. The glue let go and the roof would balloon up at speed. Never came off but all my friends used to say they could see me coming from a mile away.
It looked to them like a 4 wheeled hot air balloon.
If you don’t think a vinyl top will lift at speed, just ask Richard Petty.
https://www.diecastxchange.com/forum1/topic/183962-rc2-118th-1968-richard-petty-plymouth-roadrunner-wvinyl-roof/
The ’68 Petty Road Runner with the vinyl roof is some fascinating stuff, especially when one considers that ‘all’ 1970 Plymouth Superbirds came with a vinyl roof to more easily (and cheaply) cover the modified rear window weld seams.
Yes, but they didn’t try to race with them.
What a strange thing. I wonder how a vinyl top got attached to Petty’s NASCAR Road Runner. Could this have been some Chrysler marketing guy’s harebrained idea to sell civilian Road Runners with a vinyl top?
If so, it would seem like just another reason Petty defected to Ford for 1969. As stated, none of the 1970 Superbirds raced in NASCAR had the vinyl roof that they all came with from the factory.
One reason racers ended up with vinyl tops was that it disguised the effects of acid-dipping the body shells to lighten them, which was illegal and potentially dangerous.
I found another unicorn, didn’t I? Too bad the owner wasn’t around. Maybe I could have gotten some photos with the top removed. I love the fact that someone turned a fake sunroof into a real sunroof.
Pretty cool and that it’s still out there being used as is right and proper .
I like the A Body GT’s, this one being red is a bonus .
-Nate