Where to Go from Here?

I’m the current owner of an unrestored 1953 Dodge Coronet convertible that I bought locally five years ago from the family of the original owners. The car had been in storage 45 years before I bought it. All systems had to be gone through to make it operable. My intention when I first bought it was to restore it. However, I decided to preserve it as best I could, as they’re only original once.

After five years of car cruises and shows, I feel I’m reaching another decision point. When I bought it the car had some rust in one quarter and the front floorboards had a couple weak spots. The passenger front fender had been pushed back a little, in the process opening a gap behind the driver’s door. None of these issues have yet been addressed, nor have they healed themselves. Now the original top is getting a little rattier and the driver’s side original seat covering fabric, which was pretty thin when I got it, has a couple tears, thanks to my mechanic. I don’t want to start replacing such items without a clear stopping point. The paint, which is still 90% original, has a number of blemishes, some noticeable at 20 plus feet, and the grill is pretty dented.

I know it sounds like I’m making excuses as to why the car needs restored. I’ve done two other complete restorations, but they started in rougher condition, so it was easier to make that decision. Consequently, I am under no illusions as to the work, cost & dedication of setting forth on that journey. Also, my first car was a well-used 53 Dodge & I’d really like to have a nice one.

It’s not like I can sell this car and buy one already restored, although there is one that’s been on the market for quite a while. I’ve had offers for my car, but everyone wants to turn it into a custom – which I can’t let happen. Dodge made only 4,001 of these, and in five years of research I’ve only located eight surviving examples. There were half as many 54’s (which share the same body) made, but over twice as many still seem to exist, undoubtedly because most were Indianapolis 500 pace cars.

So, the question is would I really be making a big mistake to restore this car? I’d like some opinions pro & con.

If it is as good as it looks it would make sense to repair as you go along rather than tear it down for a full restoration. The trend today is not to do a complete restoration but keep the car as original as possible.

My opinion - that is a great original car and your choice or preservation is the right one. I have had the same thoughts with my 34 Packard but am sticking with the preservation route, my reasoning is that there are many restored cars out there with differing degrees of "correct" but nothing is as correct as originality. That said you may want to selectively fix damage like floor rust that endanger the car, same with the top if it leaks, being careful to avoid "scope creep." Good luck.

My 49 new Yorker will never be as rare or in the class of your car but what I am doing with it is trying to get up to and keeping it a good "daily driving" example of how life was in the late 40's, and very few people had immaculate cars back then that I have noticed in pictures of the time.

I think this is a FALAP.......fix as little as possible. Even the rear fender lip can be a limited repair, there is a nice chrome strip to make a border with. No need to repaint the whole fender

I thought we had this discussion on this car a few moths ago.

Speaking personally it's not old enough or unique enough to be an original survivor type vehicle. What you have is a used car needing work. What you also have is a car that is easily repaired to a beautiful car in very nice condition and that's what I would do.

OTOH, why would you care what we think. Since you've already done a couple of restorations you're experienced. Do what ever makes YOU happy ..................Bob

"Speaking personally it's not old enough or unique enough to be an original survivor type vehicle."

It's 60 years old. That's 420 in dog years which are closer to the life of a car. 90% of the cars made that year have been scrapped, made into new cars of which 90% have been scrapped etc etc.

I would call it a survivor even though it does not "feel" like an antique to me. That is because it is the kind of car you saw on the street when I was a kid. Age has a way of creeping up on us.

I thought we had this discussion on this car a few moths ago.

We did. If it were my car I would repair the bad spots and replace the top. It could only look better!

I should apologize. I thought the earlier posting about this car was made several years ago, only to find out it was but 15 months ago. What has, however, changed in the intervening time is the top has further deteriorated (partly from being flatbedded backwards at 60 mph after one of several fuel delivery failures) and the driver seat back & bottom now have major rips. I suppose those things can be expected in a 60 year old car that spent 45 years out of operation. It's just that putting on a new top & fixing the seat covering (even if I could find matching material - which I haven't been able to do) would just look wierd and out of character compared to the rest of the car. As with any car (and most people), the photos make it look better than it is.I should mention (or you might remember from my previous thread) that this is a early production, first year Red Ram hemi car with the optional Gyro-Torque transmission. I gather from the concensus so far that, in spite of the recent problems, the majority opinion is the car should continue be preserved & not restored.

If I owned this car I would search for NOS parts to replace the damaged areas of the grill. The texture of the chrome of NOS parts will be a close match and not look like it has been refinished. The paint over the rear wheel is not original. The area can be properly repaired with a closer color match. The pushed in fender may be able to be returned to its original shape without major body work. The floors can be repaired. The area can not be seen when the carpet is in place. I have lusted for this car the first time I saw it! The original condition is what makes this car special. I'm sure there are a lot of restored cars of this model and a lot of basket cases of this model. Your's is probably one of very few cars in this nice original condition. It is to your credit that you have not destroyed the originality of this car! I'm sure the car is in good hands. Preserve and enjoy it!

What's weird about fixing the top and seat? They did it all the time when your car was a current model. Convertible tops only last so long, I would be very surprised if yours has not been replaced before.

Don't worry in a few years the top and seat will age to match the rest of the car.

A new top is not going to look too out of place on that car and you might have to redo both seats,I am redoing both seats in my 55 Ford convertible with the front first and then later the rear with the rest of the interior original.

I think this is a FALAP.......fix as little as possible. Even the rear fender lip can be a limited repair,

^ That.

It's a perfectly nice driver just the way it is.

Frankly I think you'd be nuts to "restore" that car.

Fix what HAS to be fixed and have fun with it.......

Thanks, guys, for the input. Sometimes when things start to fall apart (I'm talking about the car), it helps to hear some words of encouragement. Especially, rick60, I think you nailed what needs to be done. There appear to be very few of these cars in existence. Mine is the only one listed in the ~10,000 car WPC roster. That, and my only finding seven other examples in five years of searching means nothing, except they're still pretty scarce. My first car was a 53 Coronet sedan and I'd never seen a convertible until I stumbled on this one. By the way, it still has its original top and interior. It was only eleven years old when it was put away in storage and I have records & receipts for all the major work that was done during its life. The original owner was a nuclear physicist and kept detail records. He was also not above working on the car himself.