Text by Patrick Bell.
Although we are having spring like weather in my part of the world this week, I know winter is far from over. So let’s take a break and experience some top down motoring.
Today’s first photo is a ’49 Lincoln, which was one of two offered that year. In the ’49-’51 generation there were two models, the base which had no additional name and rode on a 121″ wheelbase, and the Cosmopolitan which had a four inch longer wheelbase at 125″. The base model became known as the ‘baby’ Lincoln. In ’50 and ’51 only the Cosmo was produced in a convertible. So this new looking ‘baby’ convertible was a one year wonder. Going by the ladies attire in the photo it does not look like a really warm day. But hey, just crank up the heater.
Here we have another ’49 model, an Oldsmobile Futuramic 88. It was the middle of three offered in both trim level and number produced. This one has a mirror/spotlight combo and a California plate with a nice even number and looks close to new as well.
Let’s head north to Canada and check out a ’56 Monarch Richelieu with some serious curb rash. The Monarch was Canada’s version of the Mercury. I couldn’t find any production figures in a quick search but I doubt there were very many of these made.
A sharp looking V8 powered ’55 Plymouth Belvedere on a country lane with someone squatting on the other side of it. This was the only droptop Plymouth offered that year.
Another V8 powered Belvedere, this one a ’57 model. It has some custom touches on the wheel covers and at least one curb feeler to protect those narrow white walls which date this photo to the early sixties. And, again, the only convertible available that year with the Plymouth name.
Continuing the ’57 theme we have a Ford Fairlane 500 Sunliner with a continental kit and a Missouri license plate. The Sunliner was one of two convertibles offered in the full size line that year, the other was the Skyliner retractable hardtop. It was a banner year for Ford as they produced nearly 100,000 drop tops, making it the best year since Model A days and has not been matched since. It was also over twice the amount Chevrolet produced and nearly ten times more than Plymouth. This photo looks like an early spring day, a nice time for a drive with your lady.
Now we are off to Las Vegas to join a cruise with a new looking ’59 Continental Mark IV that has its six passenger capacity full. The base price on this car was $7056 and it was second in sales that year, ahead of Imperial but behind Cadillac, a very common ranking in the luxury field. Merging in from the right is a ’59 Chevrolet Impala with a V8, and in the background to the left a medium shade ’52 Buick 2 door Riviera on the left and a lighter shade perhaps a ’54 Buick 2 door Riviera on the right.
A cruise on the beach is a nice way to spend some time in a convertible, even though it does not look like a really warm day. This ’59 Impala has a rear mounted antenna, a popular accessory in that era. The Impala was the only full size offering that year and you could select either the six cylinder or one of three V8 engines.
This ’60 Studebaker Lark Regal VI was a new addition to their lineup that was first introduced in ’59. The ‘VI’ indicated a six cylinder and they were also offered with a V8 which had a ‘VIII’ nameplate. The location looks tropical and coastal with the lighthouse in the background.
Off to the beach again with a ’60 Oldsmobile Dynamic 88, one of three droptops offered that year. It was the least expensive and most popular as well. In the background a white over black ’53 Chevrolet Bel Air 4 door sedan with a visor.
There are two convertibles in this shot that looks like a winter photo. Front and center is a ’61 Pontiac Bonneville with a Massachusetts plate. It was one of two offered and was the most expensive as well as the most popular. The other one is a dark sports car on the other side of the light color ’58-’61 Volkswagen Type 1 with a sunroof. The best I can do is a Sunbeam Alpine but I am not really comfortable with that, mainly due to the style of the bumper.
In the background row from the left a dark ’59 Chevrolet wagon, light ’60 Pontiac wagon, another ’58-’61 VW Type 1, this one in a dark color, light ’54 Buick Special or Century 2 door Riviera, perhaps a light ’56 Oldsmobile 4 door sedan, dark ’55 Pontiac 4 door sedan, perhaps a dark ’55-’58 Simca Aronde, and a two tone ’55 Ford Fairlane Club Sedan.
A couple enjoying the sun in a ’63 Ford Galaxie 500 with one of the big block motors. There were two full size and two Falcon drop tops offered that year and the Falcons won the sales race.
I see four drop tops in this photo but just one has the top down. The focus is on a ’64 Pontiac GTO on a family outing to the bank. There were three convertibles offered in the Tempest line and the GTO was the most expensive and the least popular. On the far left is in the background is a ’59 Chevrolet Impala, the far right a rough ’54 Ford Crestline Sunliner missing a hood, and on the street in the background above the GTO’s rear mounted antenna is light ’63 or ’64 Plymouth Valiant. Other cars from the left in the near background are a ’59 Edsel Villager wagon, on the street behind the Valiant convertible is another Valiant, a ’60-’62 wagon, and to its right a ’60-’62 Ford Falcon 2 door.
Thanks for the Trip down memory lane. My first car was a red 66 Dynamic 88 convert. Later I found a 72 LTD convert. Back in the day when convertibles were highly sought after and driving one was SAFE. In today’s crazy world, it’s risky to drive one. Of course bloated SUVS at bloated prices now rule the roads 😑
Amazing that Ford sold over 100,000 convertibles in 1957. At the time all makes had at least one convertible offering in its lineup. Then, by 1977, they were all gone. The culprit was the increasing popularity of air conditioning, which became cheaper and more popular starting in the sixties, slowly, but relentlessly, eroding convertible sales. The cost of factory air was about the same as the extra cost of a convertible over a similar hardtop and for many the choice was a no brainer. In the seventies many of the declining number of convertible buyers also ordered factory air, but the die was cast. There were also rumors at the time of impending federal rollover standards, which, together with the declining sales, further prompted Detroit to drop them.
Another reason I believe is that driving habits changed. More and more trips were on stressful, traffic clogged interstates and crowded urban highways and less and less on country lanes. Sitting in noisy hot traffic breathing fumes in a convertible was no match for a quiet, cool air conditioned car.
The advent of hardtop styling hurt, too. At first, it wasn’t too bad, but when relatively cheap A/C became a widespread, affordable, factory option, well, with a hardtop, you got all the benefits of a convertible without the negatives.
The final straw was the threat of potential government rollover standards. Those never actually materialized but the meager sales of those last convertibles in mainstream models pretty much wiped nearly all of them out, with the only exceptions being versions of specialty, sporty cars (like the Mustang).
I think the local Simca dealer must have been quite persuasive, in the picture ten locale. I reckon the dark/black car behind the Beetle is an Aronde P60 convertible. The relationship between the fins and boot lid doesn’t seem quite right for an Alpine to me.
I think the dark drop-top is a Renault Caravelle.
Could be at that. The height of the back bumper and full hubcaps would fit with that too. There’s what looks like some sort of script/moulding just ahead of the rear light cluster but it’s just too indistinct to read. If we can get the Beetle driver to move forward a few feet we’ll have a better idea.
+1
There is the shadow of a crease just behind the door too; the lower one isn’t visible, but the upper one is.
Yes, caravelle…. Love the triple ring whitewalls on the Buick in the last pic…
Thanks, guys. The Caravelle was high on my list but the rear grille threw me off. I should have figured out it wouldn’t show on a dark car from that distance.
Caravelle. Mom owned one; I’d recognize that tail anywhere.
Great images all .
I cannot imagine driving a vehicle I like on the beach .
-Nate
Meh; you see this at Daytona all the time. (I mean, NASCAR used to race on the beach.) It’s pretty well packed near the water and you have to do something stupid to get stuck.
If it’s the salt you’re worried about, it’s less than you’d see in a drive down Baum Bolevard any given January day…
Amazing that Ford sold over 100,000 convertibles in 1957. At the time all makes had at least one convertible offering in its lineup. Then, by 1977, they were all gone. The culprit was the increasing popularity of air conditioning, which became cheaper and more popular starting in the sixties, slowly, but relentlessly, eroding convertible sales. The cost of factory air was about the same as the extra cost of a convertible over a similar hardtop and for many the choice was a no brainer. In the seventies many of the declining number of convertible buyers also ordered factory air, but the die was cast. There were also rumors at the time of impending federal rollover standards, which, together with the declining sales, further prompted Detroit to drop them.
Another reason I believe is that driving habits changed. More and more trips were on stressful, traffic clogged interstates and crowded urban highways and less and less on country lanes. Sitting in noisy hot traffic breathing fumes in a convertible was no match for a quiet, cool air conditioned car.
I enjoyed today’s assortment, though I can’t see a way to identifying any of the locales today (other than the impressive Lincoln in Las Vegas).
The second-last photo with the Pontiac somehow has a whiff of a staged photo, with the lighting-or-flash from the camera side, and woman looking agreeably at driver–who knows? I’m still unaccustomed to seeing side-view mirrors on front fenders, though I know that wasn’t really uncommon then.
I thought that two in that picture. In fact, the first thing that really caught my attention to think that was that Laura Petrie in the passenger seat.
Challenge accepted! Looks like that second-last photo was taken in Los Angeles. I can’t get a precise then-and-now comparison since the site where the Pontiac is parked is now a high-rise apartment, but the houses in the background are still standing and visible in the image below. (It’s a slightly older SteetView image because one of the houses has high shrubs now that obscure it from view).
I agree the picture looks staged – I bet the kid got his balloon from the bank at some kind of event, or perhaps because his folks took out a loan at Pioneer National Bank.
Google SteetView link:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/GucMadUJaZxe2u336
I grew up in the backseat of convertible’s, no seatbelts, and never fell out. At age 4 Mom had a new 1955 Olds Starfire convertible. She would drive me to school with top down even with frost on the ground. When my parents divorced she moved us to San Francisco and bought new a 1960 T-Bird conv. and her boyfriend had a new 1960 Chevy Impala conv. Years went by and I bought new a 1974 Buick La Sabre conv. and sold it when I got a new 1976 Eldorado conv. that I kept for ten years. More years went by but never lost my lust for convertibles. In 2014 my older brother reminded me I was not getting any younger so I bought my dream car, a 1966 T-Bird convertible which I enjoy to this day.
Any car nut who enjoys driving should own at least one convertible in their lifetime. Nothing like a nighttime drive, top down and stars above.
You are so right! I had my first ride in a convertible at about age 10 and was hooked. I decided that was the kind of a car to have. My first convertable was a used ’59 Ford Fairlane I bought with the base V-8 for $235. I moved on to a ’68 Mercury Montego MX with a 6 (big mistake on the 6) and then to a ’69 Ford Galaxie with a 390 V-8. In about 1972 our federal government published a draft of their new proposed safety standards which required roll over protection which would have eliminated convertibles. So I looked for a new convertable I could keep for a very long time. Fiberglass doesn’t rust, so I bought a new ’73 Corvette and kept it for 39 years! It was a love/hate relationship — terriffic fun to drive vs horrible, horrible reliability (3 engine rebuilds/replacements, 2 transmissions, multiple clutches, water leaks, fender bonding strips that came apart allowing a credit card to be slipped through cracks in 3 of the 4 fenders) , poor factory paint, multiple annual A/C system failures until I finally disconnected the system, etc., etc.) After 39 years I had finally had enough hassle. My current convertible is a 2012 Mustang Shelby GT500. Great car! Got it up to 154 MPH (showing on the GPS) on US 50 in Nevada before I backed off — it was still pulling strongly in 5th gear!
Those of you who have owned convertibles will likely agree with me that 50 mph on a country road is the most pleasant of all (non race track) driving experiences. Yes, 75 on an urban interstate with the top down is nice, but not as pleasant as a 50 mph cruise in the country. Rising rates of air conditioner use, higher speeds, less interesting Interstate highways and safety (rollover protection) concerns all joined to reduce the sales of convertibles in the later ’60’s and ’70’s until only the ’76 Caddy was left. Thank you Lee Iocacca for bring back convertibles, even if the frist one was a K car! Convertible lovers have a choice again, and yes, everyone should own at least one convertible.
“Those of you who have owned convertibles will likely agree with me that 50 mph on a country road is the most pleasant of all (non race track) driving experiences. Yes, 75 on an urban interstate with the top down is nice, but not as pleasant as a 50 mph cruise in the country.”
There are some lovely twisty back roads near my house where I can enjoy top down drives in the Miata. In the summer, I will often take the back roads to work in the morning, but if it’s hot in the afternoon, I’ll put the top up and turn the A/C on for the drive home on the freeway.
Your Corvette sounds like a nightmare. It’s one reason why Miatas were and are so popular.
“Any car nut who enjoys driving should own at least one convertible in their lifetime. Nothing like a nighttime drive, top down and stars above.”
I totally agree. I had no idea how much I would enjoy a convertible until I bought my ’91 Miata 10 years ago. My maternal grandmother had several convertibles — a ’57 Bel Air, ’62 Impala and ’67 Monterey — so I think I got the convertible bug from her. My sister was also infected. She bought a Buick Cascada a few years go.
I only experienced the Monterey, but I recall being afraid of falling out of the back seat when the car was going up a steep hill on the way to our house. But I was five at the time.
Love these photos.
That profile shot of the 59 Chevy really highlights the short hood long tail look of these. The front overhang is miniscule compared to the tail.
Whoever took that shot did a great job anticipating the car in a pan photo.
Love the Monarch. Meteors and Monarchs were prettier than Fords and Mercurys in those years.
Some of these could serve as advertisements, especially the Lark and GTO.
Am I mistaken or convertibles were over represented in the American movies from 40s to the 60s or 70s? If so, I’d say probably because of being easier to film the characters inside it than on a closed car. Does that make sense?
Yes, I think you’re correct on both points. Even in the late ’40s, the U.S. market share of convertibles had fallen to less than 5 percent, but there were a lot of them in movies, and I do think it was in large part because it was more convenient for filming.
Many thanks Aaron
Growing up here in rural England in the seventies I experienced America by way of films and television shows. In fifties films in particular the only cars with roof’s seemed to be taxis and the police, exepting station wagons. Another thing I noticed was the driver constantly correcting with the steering wheel, even on a straight road. Is this just a film trope or was steering that vague on cars of that era?
With Chrysler Full Time power steering, you were constantly making small corrections, IIRC, because you got no feedback. But yes, it was mainly overacting.
Great pictures of cars worth lots of money today. The bird’s eye view of the ’49 Lincoln with a couple of ladies deep in conversation is truly special.
I think the Monarch convertible is a 1955, unless ’56 Monarchs had front bumper guards and chrome taillight surrounds used on 55’s.
Stuart, looking through R. Perry Zavitz book Monarch – Meteor it appears the convertible is a 56 model.
The book states only 163 convertibles were produced for the model year at a base price of $3,587 CDN. The same production figure is quoted for 1955 at a slightly lower base price of $3,487. I’d be shocked if any of those convertibles still existed on my side of the border. Any kind of convertible back in the day was a rare thing, perhaps a second car for a wealthy family.
Thanks Garry – yeah I also checked out some pictures of 1956 Monarchs and saw the parts also found on ’55 Mercurys. ’56 Mercs have flattened tips on the vertical front bumper guards and a wider chrome top to the taillight assembly.
I wonder where and when the ’56 Monarchs were built. Given their small production numbers and the apparent use of 1955 parts, I imagine they were built at a Mercury assembly facility at the tail end of 1955 model production.
That Lark convertible is cute as a bug!
That is a great pic! The big, gold, “Buick” is awesome as well.
Soft tops in their “heyday”!! Need a “beetle convert”, here! Maybe a “Nash, Metro”…
Terrific photos, and supporting captions. From what my parents and relatives shared with me, convertibles were still quite rare in Canada, back then. Due to our on-going harsh climates for six months, through the ’50s and ’60’s. Air conditioning, also a rarity. Convertible owners were exclusive, and stood out.
I am smitten by the 1961 Bonneville, having spent a lot of time behind the wheel of the folks ’61 wagon. Really sharp styling…even in black & white.
When I saw the title of this piece my mind went immediately to my Dad’s 1964 LeMans convertible. Thanks for having the GTO in the mix, pretty close (though better).
There used to be a junked ’57 Ford Sunliner convertible on the Northside of San Angelo, Texas. If a parts car rated a ‘5’ on the Old Cars Weekly scale (1 =. Restored/mint original, 5 = parts car)…this one was a ‘6’. Every unrusted body panel was dented, the front of the car was wrecked, the interior was mostly missing along with the drivetrain, and there was grass growing inside. Car had most of a red over white paint job on it. Saw it back in 2012. Looking at the site on Google Maps last year reveals the car, along with the other junk near it (WW2 Jeep, burned out ’53 Mercury sedan on ’55 plates, assorted oil well junk) is gone.
Take it on down to Daytona Beach today… and drive thru the sand.
According to a website I found, total Monarch (all models) production for 1956 was around 8000 units.
http://www.caaarguide.com/id632.html
…and the site lists the convertible as “very rare”.
I’d be surprised if they sold even 500 convertibles!!
If Bill Blass got started with The Ford Motor Company about 20 years sooner, I’d swear that Canadian ’56 Monarch Richelieu would have been the Marquis’ 😉 Bill Blass Edition. Just look at those colors!!!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Blass#The_Bill_Blass_Edition_Continental_Mark_series
Maybe it’s just me, but when convertibles are parked, ALL the windows should be down! 🙂
Or when being driven. Nothing looks dorkier than having the rear quarter windows up when the top is down.
The trick to making a convertible fun is to make the top as easy to lower and raise as possible.
My 62 Chevy II and 64 Corvair had crank windows and balky latches. My Spitfires had a dozen or so easily broken snaps. My Miata would have been super easy except the previous owner had installed a glass backlight that had to be unzipped to lower the top.
My current Mustang (my third) makes it super easy: turn the handle ninety degrees and push the button. The windows drop automatically, followed by the top. Elapsed time about ten seconds.
Correction on the Monarch Richelieu:
Monarch was not Canada’s version of the Mercury. We had Mercury up here too, but we also had the Monarch and Meteor brands in addition to the Mercury. They were both phased out in the years following the ratification Auto Pact, as were Beaumont cars from GM, and Fargo trucks and vans from Chrysler.