Other MoPars of the Forward Look

OTHER MOPARS from Exner era

DeSoto 1957 ad
This site is chiefly dedicated to the Chrysler 300s and Imperials, but other Chrysler divisions responded to the surge of power and bold Forward Look styling that emanated from Virgil Exner in 1955-1961. Starting in 1956, Plymouth, Dodge and DeSoto came up with models of their own reflecting the muscle-car performance and look of the flagship Chrysler C-300. These were called, respectively, the Fury, D 500 and Adventurer.

In appearance these cars lost their plainness, and their performance was first-rate. Plymouth was the only division to omit the Hemi engine. It adopted a "small" motor with polyspheric heads whose performance threatened to overshadow that of the 300s.

These cars were not produced in great numbers and are in high demand today. Even the Fury, less rare than the others, is priced far above a Belvedere coupé. The success of the movie "Christine" with its heroine’s ’58 Fury has probably helped keep the car fresh in people’s memory!

Here are specifications of these fine automobiles, with below them a photo gallery. For more about them, visit the site Forward Look Mailing List, and the page Clubs and Web.

Special page about the Plymouth (Chrysler) CORONADO: 8 pass. limo built in Belgium. You must see !!

DeSoto Adventurer 1959 2dr-ht

PLYMOUTH Fury Base: Belvedere coupé	DODGE D-500	DESOTO Adventurer Base: Fireflite coupé or convertible
1956: V8 Hi-Fire 303 cu.in, 240 hp at 4800 rpm (one 4-barrel carb). Manual trans. or optional automatic trans 2 speeds. The 1956 Fury was a modified Belvedere. From ’57 on the Fury was a line of its own. Production: 4485 coupés 400 meters from standstill 17 sec. 0 to 60 mph: 9.5 sec.	1956: 2 models: 2-door sedan and 2-door convertible. V8 hemi 315 cu.in., 260 hp at 4400 rpm, one 4-barrel carb. Optional D 501(Nascar), two 4-barrel carbs, 295 hp. Production: not known.	1956: also called Golden Adventurer, part of the Fireflite series (S24 A). V8 hemi 341 cu.in., 320 hp at 5200 rpm. Two four-barrel carbs. Automatic trans. Pwflt 2 sp. or Tqflt 3 sp. Production: 996 coupés
1957: V8 V-800 318 cu.in., 290 hp à 5400 rpm (two four-barrel carbs 4c). Manual trans. or optional automatic trans 3 speeds. Production: 7438, all coupés	1957: Available as a package on any Dodge. "D 500" badge on trunk lid D-500 V8 hemi 325 cu.in,, 285 hp at 4800 rpm. One 4-barrel carb. Super D-500 same but two 4-barrel carbs, 310 hp. D-501 (Nascar) V8 hemi 354cu.in. (= Chrsyler 300 B). 340 hp at 5200 rpm. Two 4-barrel carbs.	1957: now own series: S26 A V8 hemi 345 cu.in., 345 hp at 5200rpm, two 4-barrel carbs. Autom. trans. 3 sp. Torqueflite Production: 1650 coupés, 300 convertibles.
1958: V8 as in ’57 but with optional: V8 Golden Commando 350 cu.in., 305 hp at 5000 rpm, two 4-barrel carbs. Same but with Bendix fuel injection, 315 hp. Production: 5303, all coupés	1958: Available as a package on any Dodge. "D 500" badge on trunk lid. D-500: V8 wedge 361 cu.in., 305 hp at 4600 rpm. One four-barrel carb. Super D-500 same but two 4-barrel carbs, 320 hp. Super D-500 Same but with Bendix fuel injection, 330 hp.	1958: own series: LS3 S V8 wedge 361 cu.in., 345 hp at 5200 rpm, two four-barrel carbs Autom. trans. 3 sp. Torqueflite Production: 350 coupés, 82 convertibles.
1959 to 61: Fury name no longer limited to 2-door performance cars. Top of the line is Sport Fury (’59), coupé and convertible offered. In ’60 and ’61 optional "Sonoramic Commando" (Ram Induction, 361 or 383 cu.in.)available on all models. With over 330 hp and a favorable power/weight ratio, these Plymouths were queens of the dragstrip.	1959: Available as a package on any Dodge. "D 500" badge on trunk lid. D-500: V8 wedge 383 CI, 320 hp at 4600 rpm. One 4-barrel carb. Super D-500 same but two 4-barrel carbs: 345 hp at 5000 rpm. In ’60 et ’61 optional D-500 (Ram Induction 383 cu.in. ) or Super D-500 (same but 413 cu.in.) offered on all "compact" models. The most powerful reached 375 hp and, on a stripped-down Dart, spun the wheels on dry pavement.	1959: own series: MS3 H V8 wedge 383 u.in., 350 hp at 5000 rpm. Two 4-barrel carbs. Autom. trans. 3 sp. Torqueflite Production: 590 coupés, 97 convertibles. In 1960 the Adventurer becomes simply the top-of-the-line DeSoto.The only concession to high performance is an optional 383 cu.in. Ram Induction 330 hp engine. Performance with 330 hp: 0 to 60 mph: 8.8 sec.

Photo gallery
Click on the thumbnails to enlarge the pictures.

DeSoto 57 Adventurer conv.	DeSoto 57 Fireflite conv	Dodge Coronet convertible1957	Dodge Kingsway coupé 1958	Dodge Polara 2dr/HT 1960
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DeSoto 57 ad	DeSoto 58 Diplomat convertible	Dodge Custom Royal convertible1957	Dodge Custom Royal convertible1959	Dodge Polara convertible 1960



Plymouth 56 ad	Chrysler NewYorker convertible 1957	1958 "Golden Commando" engine	Dodge Kingsway 2dr H/T 1959	Dodge Dart Phoenix conv. 1960



Plymouth Fury 1957	Fury 57	Plymouth Belvedere conv. 57	Plymouth Fury convertible 1959	Plymouth Fury 2 dr H/T 1960


Chrysler NewYorker 59 conv.	Dodge 1959 D500 C.Royal cv.	DeSoto Diplomat conv. 55	DeSoto Diplomat conv. 55	DeSoto 1959 Explorer


'59 DeSoto Diplomat Custom 2drHt	'57 Chrysler NewYorker T&C		'59 (white) DeSoto Adventurer


'57 Dodge Coronet convertible			'59 (white) DeSoto Adventurer


'59 DeSoto Adventurer (black)" fully loaded" : A/C , Mirrormatic, twin aerials, autronic eye etc.. Was for sale on Ebay, october 2002.				'59 Dodge Sierra


'58 DeSoto Diplomat Custom convert.		'60 DeSoto Diplomat Custom convertible		'58 DeSoto Dipl. Cust. conv.

Actualised: 10-févr.-2004

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