New-to-me Coronado

Michael -

When you say 'the auction', what are you referring to ? Also, did you actually buy this car or are you thinking about it ? Have you inspected the driver's floor boards and the rockers ? Those are the locations most likely to have rustout. Do you have any pictures other than what is in the brochure ?

Ron

Michael -

When you say 'the auction', what are you referring to ? Also, did you actually buy this car or are you thinking about it ? Have you inspected the driver's floor boards and the rockers ? Those are the locations most likely to have rustout. Do you have any pictures other than what is in the brochure ?

Ron

Dave Wilson Retirement Auction June 6/2015, at Hampton Ontario, run by Gary Hill Auctions of Uxbridge/Port Perry.

Yeah, I bought it. (big, anxious grin). I haven't pulled the household rug carpet off the floor but from underneath the floor looks pretty solid. It looks pretty solid all over, except for the rr fender behind the wheel, and a foot long section where the hood meets the front of the body, and even that I think is rusting down from the surface, rather than rusting through. You can see it in this photo.

There are several small dents in the passenger side, so small you don't really notice them unless you are looking for them. There is one big ding in the chrome sweep on that side. So neat I had to look on the driver's side to see if that was intentional. (Nope, driver's side has no dent.)

Here's a picture from my phone:

Right now it is at the garage to be safetied. Russ has already been over it and given me the bad news. I'm going to try to get over there in the next little while to get pictures of the data plate and interior, and maybe take some rough measurements of the seats. If I can source some seat covers, etc. that can go in while Russ is working on the mechanical stuff.

As if one isn't enough, I think I'm about to do something else stupid. I'm on my way out tomorrow to look at a 48 sedan in the hopes that some of the upholstery is salvageable and suitable for the Coronado. 7 years difference. 2 entirely different models. Umm, yeah - no. So why am I going I guess "DeSoto" is my newest "Ooh! Shiny thing!"

At least I'm not taking any cash with me so I can't buy it on the spot.

And it's (sort of) on the way to the Jerseyville gun show and sale. Although it's a pretty poor excuse to drive that distance just to see if maybe someone has a .44 ball puller (which would be about $5 if anyone made one in that calibre). And I'm not taking any cash with me so I can't buy anything there on impulse either.

I'd like to think the not taking cash part was my idea, but really, it's just the banks are already closed.

Funny thing, and not really encouraging, just before I called the guy I was flipping through the photos on his Kijiji ad. When I hung up I went to look again and the link said the ad was no longer available!

. . . . I'm on my way out tomorrow to look at a 48 sedan in the hopes that some of the upholstery is salvageable and suitable for the Coronado. . . . . .

Well the rain stopped just before I got there and started again just after I left. Maybe that's a good sign.

The seats are definitely in better condition. He says they are from a 70's Lincoln. Now if the seats of a '49 (oh yeah, he says it's a 49, not a '48) will fit a 55 then we should be good. The tires are in better condition, but not great, not like new. Also they have thin whitewall rather than wide WW. Of course I didn't write down the size for the '55 so I don't know if they'll fit. Wiper arms and blades will probably fit.

Sure looks rough. He says it's all there, he's got all the removed windows, the air filter, the chrome (except for one piece). Since I haven't made up my mind to buy it yet I didn't check his claim. No rocker panels but otherwise seems pretty solid. One patch under the driver's gas pedal heel.

Starts, runs, steers, stops. There was no battery in it so, again, I didn't verify.

Beep beep

Wowser!

The VIN was painted over. It looks like ?620825?. The 8 might be a 3 and the 5 might be a 6. There are 2 digits missing and I can't tell if they are before or after what I can make out.

I thought he had told me a Slant-6. I had one once. You couldn't kill them. But you could sideline them if you didn't have a spare ballast resistor!

Body Number 32094, Model 11 or 111 and Body (style?) 15 or 5, depending on where the digits break. Paint 513 and Trim 916. And looks like Sched 713 and Item No 3070. Whatever all that means.

He wants about $4K for the Pontiac, with the engine in pieces, and maybe $4500 running.

Grats on your purchase of the Coronado. You have a pretty rare car overall. The Coronado was a special trim package offered on the '55 Fireflite. They were released in spring of '55 if I remember correctly as a special release. There were less than 500 of these produced but there are no actual numbers known from Chrysler. They were suppose to be built as orders came in making them pretty scarce. Coronados were only produced for two years, '54 and '55. Of course the '54 looks different and had different options. The Coronado was the only way you could get a '55 DeSoto with tri-tone paint and you could order it with the colors flip flopped around, but only in those colors (green, white and black). Interior was leather and only came in one combination of colors. This was also the only way you could get leather in a sedan. Many of them were pretty loaded with power seats and windows, but not all, I owned a couple that were nearly base cars. Funny to see a top of the line four door with leather interior and tri-tone paint that had a radio delete and manual seats/windows!

Just my opinion, but I would leave that '49 alone. Your going to have a lot of work on the '55 itself and nothing from the '49 should fit on the '55 at all. Not even the tires. Take your time on the Coronado and do it a bit at a time. That car is worth a proper restore due to rarity. Good luck with project and have fun!

Dean

...(snip)...
The Coronado was the only way you could get a '55 DeSoto with tri-tone paint and you could order it with the colors flip flopped around, but only in those colors (green, white and black). Interior was leather and only came in one combination of colors. This was also the only way you could get leather in a sedan. Many of them were pretty loaded with power seats and windows, but not all, I owned a couple that were nearly base cars. Funny to see a top of the line four door with leather interior and tri-tone paint that had a radio delete and manual seats/windows! ...(snip)...
Dean

I was getting the idea that the Coronado was the only three-tone, but I didn't realize it was only in those three colours.
Mine is manual seats and windows as well.

...(snip)...
Just my opinion, but I would leave that '49 alone. Your going to have a lot of work on the '55 itself and nothing from the '49 should fit on the '55 at all. Not even the tires. Take your time on the Coronado and do it a bit at a time. That car is worth a proper restore due to rarity. Good luck with project and have fun!

Dean

Thanks for the advice. Pretty much all day I've been thinking

"I'll probably go for it, and then I'll hate myself. It'll be like when I bought the Chris-Craft as a restore project. Didn't you learn your lesson then? Apparently not."

But tonight I started thinking I should pass.
Since the 70's seats (leather, split bench front, plus back bench) fit the '49, I'm wondering if practically any car's seats will fit, and have been looking at As-Is ads. Still have to measure the '55 before I know what will fit. Worst case, pull the straw and mouse fur off the springs, stitch/tie on some foam padding and get some $40 seat covers.
I'm in no position financially to do a full and proper restore, but at least I can get it to summer daily runner without making it worse, so someone could do a proper restore later.

Although I am thinking the '49 would be a better candidate for a Total Tree Service Estimator's vehicle. Wrap the doors on both sides with the company logo and contact info, and "Estimator" is script right under the driver's door. Even get a TOTLTREE vanity plate. The boss would totally be down with that. He might even help with the costs and put it down to advertising expenses. And I could park it in the driveway and my wife would assume it was a company car.

If that's a '49, it's a 1st series car, and is very similar to the '46-48 models. There was a mid-year change to the 2nd series cars.

Not a super technological difference, but quite a few styling changes.

Unless it's super cheap, you can find a much better car for not a lot of money that won't require near as much work.

If that's a '49, it's a 1st series car, and is very similar to the '46-48 models. There was a mid-year change to the 2nd series cars.

Not a super technological difference, but quite a few styling changes.

Unless it's super cheap, you can find a much better car for not a lot of money that won't require near as much work.

I'm so glad I went with an empty wallet It is so easy to get carried away by the moment. Thanks to both of you (and my own sober second thoughts) I doubt I'll do anything about this one.

He's open to offers, but says he has $1400 invested in it now. I very much doubt he'll go below $1000. I'm guessing by "super cheap" you are thinking under $500.

I still have to measure the seats in the Coronado, but just skimming the Kijiji As-Is ads there are lots of post 2000 cars of all makes and models for parts donor cars for under $500, many with A/C and additional power-this and power-that. Just a matter of making sure the seats will fit. And scheduling with Russ, to make sure I don't get a "new" interior only to have it sit over the winter and turn into a mouse motel again.

Got some pictures of the data plate for the Coronado and from them was able to decipher most of it:

Model: TP
Body: 45
Paint: 431
Trim: 477
Sched.: 122
Body No.: 16905

TR 3
HR 5
EG 1
FO (blank)
VP (blank)

EW (blank)
SG 1
PB 5
XI X
GM (blank)

At the bottom left corner is something I couldn't make out. It looked like SHO and one or two more characters. Under it was 45.

There is enough of the original upholstery to see what it was. I'm going to save the rotting cover just in case whoever does the re-upholstery needs a pattern. I pulled a piece of the fabric (from one of the door panels) and will take it to Larry's Auto Trim to see if he can match it. For the time being, once the mechanical work is done and the car safetied, I'll probably just use some Walmart patio furniture cushions stitched right to the bare springs. I was going to use more modern seats pulled from a junker, but then comes the problem of storing the original seats until I can afford to have them redone.

Took a couple of pictures of the hood ornament and may try to fudge it into an avatar, but not now. Not tonight.