MH dropped a note to Indie Auto about the 1961 Dodge, perhaps in response to our article, “Chrysler’s collapse in premium-priced field was a bigger deal than Edsel’s.”
Not much is written about the 1961 Dodge, except that the sculpting was odd, yet restrained compared to the rest of 61 Mopar. But where did that front end come from? There was some continuity between 1960-61 Plymouth and Chrysler front ends, but not Dodge. But there are remarkable similarities with the 1960 Falcon:
- Fish mouth hood/fender above the bumper.
- Plain concave grill of thin horizontal rectangles with imbedded headlights. (In no other 61 Mopar).
- The flare of the fender sculpture ahead of the wheel.
- Even the ridge on the fender inset towards the hood . . . narrow on the Falcon, thick on the Dodge. Coincidences?
— MH
ADVERTISEMENTS & BROCHURES:
- oldcarbrochures.org: Dodge (1961); Ford Falcon (1960)
Indie Auto invites your comments (see below) or letters to the editor (go here). Letters may be lightly edited for style.
Also see ‘Chrysler brand looked the least weird of automaker’s 1961 line’
I see some similarities but I think the styling for the 1961 Dodge (and 1962 mid-year 880) was more an interpretation of the cleaner styling (which the Falcon represented), moving away from the excesses of the late 1950. I remember when my father and I visited Suburban Motors, a Dodge and Plymouth (and formerly De Soto) dealer in Greenwood, IN. My father owned a 1960 Dodge Dart Seneca four-door sedan with a 318 and push-button Torqueflight. It was a great dependable car, and it became my car when I got my driver’s license in the mid-1960s. As a G.M. executive at Allison’s, my father also had to drive a G.M. car, so at the time, we owned a 1960 Chevrolet Parkwood 283 with Powerglide. Both cars were stylish for 1960, but I preferred the Dart over the toned-down bat-wing Chevy. When we saw the 1961 Dodges and Plymouths, I remember my father rolling his eyes when he saw the cars. The Plymouths were bizarre to our eyes and the rear styling of the Dart took some getting used to with its low tail-lights hugging the bumper. No wonder the dealers were provided with a factory accessory round tailights for the Darts. In retrospect, I always thought that the 1961 Dodge front-end grill was the inspiration for the 1972 Dodge Polara front-end grill. Further, I think 1961 was Virgil Exner, Sr.’s worst year as head of Chrysler’s styling. Maybe he was running out of ideas to lead his department, while Bill Mitchell at G.M. was finally finding his groove with his slimmer, more conservative 1961 models. No wonder Chrysler had to clean house at the top.
The 1961 models was still designed while Exner recovered from his heart attack, I think Cliff Voss and Bill Schmidt added their pinch of salt to the 1961 designs.
I wonder how Chrysler would have done if they didn’t rejected what Don Kopka once planned for the 1962 DeSoto? https://auto.howstuffworks.com/1960s-chrysler-concept-cars.htm#pt1 And it might be not a coincidence if that design look very Mercury-like, Kopka later worked at Ford.
Look at chevy trucks front ends from 1968 to 1972 , then look at the front of a 1966 Studebaker (last year of production).
I always thought they were inspired by electric razors.