My dad and uncle both had Taxi companies in the 50's, and we only used Plymouth and Dodge cars ; cheap , reliable , easy to work on and they lasted forever.
My grandfather had a 2 door 1953 Ford Customline. It did fine for him(and his 45 mph top driving speed) for 15 years/171000 miles. Then a ring broke. The engine was replaced, it then lasted the 3 years until he passed away. However, I do remember the wipers slowing down when going up hill. The video mentions an automatic choke as a feature. Based on my experience with automatic chokes is that they are a problem, not a feature. The car that I had with an automatic choke was always flooding, stalling, etc. My 1963 Falcon with manual choke has none of these issues.
It's surprising how often they go for the "Breaking the 4th wall" motif in these dealer film strips. It's a a dealer strip about the making of a dealer strip.
When I was 16 my parents gave me their 54 Plymouth Savoy. It had overdrive so I had 5 forward gears. With my shift points being if I pushed it 25, 45, 65, and 85. What a reliable and fun car it was. Gas was 29 cents a gallon then.
My great-grandfather was a constable in the small town we're from - he absolutely LOVED Plymouths because they hardly ever broke down and started even on the coldest winter mornings. He thought Fords were total trash (however, my dad and paternal grandfather drove Fords for several decades and said they wouldn't be caught DEAD in a Plymouth LOL!! He drove a Plymouth for many years and after he died, my great-grandmother drove a new Plymouth for several years afterwards. They both said there's NOTHING like the ride and reliability of a Plymouth!
My parents had a 53 Plymouth Cranbrook. They said the heater never worked properly…. Other than that it was apparently a good car because they were Mopar customers from 1950 through 1989.
That's what I've always thought. Chrysler Corp made stodgy looking cars til the new, suddenly its 1960 cars in 1957. The 55/56 Chrysler cars have grown on me in the past few years, but still nothing compared to the 1957 models.
@@autochronicles8667 Boring, stodgy, AND frumpy. Compare the '54 Plymouth to the '53 Studebaker, and to the Kaiser that had been redesigned for '51 and a major facelift in '54. The Plymouth design may have been all new, but it looks more like a '49 than a '52 Ford.
Ford also had a distinct transmission advantage: The buyer could get a fully automatic transmission on the '53 Ford (called Fordomatic, introduced in 1951) whereas the Plymouth buyer only could get HyDrive which was not fully automatic & was only introduced mid-1953 model year.
The fact that the Ford was a continuation means that more bugs had been worked out of it. The Ford had a V8 to Plymouth's six, and that eight had a good reputation, and '53 was the last year you could buy it in a passenger car in the U.S. But the clincher would have been price--Ford and Chevy were involved in a price war in that era--you could get a new Ford or Chevy for only a few dollars more than a Henry J.
Despite all the advantages of the Plymouth, buyers chose style over features. The Plymouth looked squat and stodgy compared to everything else. After 2 years of falling sales Chrysler changed direction in 55
The Plymouth has aged exceptionally well and in 2023 appears to be a terrifically proportioned car. Wish it were still produced - with all practical upgrades possible.
The Chrysler lineup of cars for 1953 and 1954 were behind in styling, even though engineering was ahead of Ford and GM and Studebaker. The main problem with the Plymouth was no V8 or Powerflite automatic until 1955.
The 1953 PLYMOUTH really is a more space efficient more comfortable car. Sure the inline 6 is a little dated but plenty of cars in 1953 used flatheads.
The preferred engine in the Ford seems to have been the time tested flathead V8 which in real world I think handily outran the Plymouths and Dodges. At least until Dodge brought out its mini Hemi which I think made up to 170 horsepower in 1954.
Even though Clara Peller drove a 49/50 Dodge or Plymouth in the "Wheres the Beef" commercial. I can see why they picked the frumpiest car they could find. So even Wendys knew that Chrysler Corporation made old cars as new cars for old people back then.
That dumpy-ass Plymouth next to a Ford? No comparison in looks, but my uncle used to say a Plymouth was like a reliable, sweet old dog and a Ford was the unpredictable cat.
My wife's 55 Plymouth hit a Ford Falcon, the Ford finder eas caved in the Plymouth has paint around the head light. The Plymouth headlight didn't break, heavy steel body.😮
I believe they still had the "hand me down" engine that used to be the Dodge engine. Dodge got a slightly better balanced heavier crankshaft and about 15 more cubic inches in its L head six.
Re: comparing the styling of '53 Plymouth vs '53 Ford, it should be noted that Ford replaced their "shoebox" split windshield generation in 1952 with their first single piece windshield generation. Whereas Chrysler Corp did not replace their last K T Keller compatible "top hat" split windshield generation until 1953.
I suppose I could understand all the comments regarding styling, but you drive sitting IN the car, not outside it. The looks would only serve to impress others mostly. As an engineer, I'm drawn more to how the vehicle functions: it's ride quality, braking, performance, etc. If it's aesthetically pleasing (to me), it's icing on the cake. I like that the Plymouth's front end is not all grille.
what plymouth wont tell you is..the plymouth parking brake only works if both tires have traction...but the ford has both wheels locked at the wheel and not the driveshaft like plymouth ..and for being a new car the plymouth isnt exactly a good looking car
that parking brake was an issue and would be an issue when jacking the car up off the back wheel. They would put wheel chocks in these cars to handle that issue. But on the same note they are right about a separate braking system. These cars had single master cylinders. if you lost pressure, you had no brakes.
@@autochronicles8667 The ford E brake will also work in the case of loss of hydraulic brake pressure though, as it uses cables to activate the brakes and is independent of the hydraulic system. If the issue is caused by something like overheated brake pads the ford E brake wont work while the Plymouth will though. I'm gonna say the ford design is overall better since modern cars still use it.
I am one of the few who likes the 53 Plymouth's styling more than Ford's. To be fair, the elongated greenhouse of the 52-54 Ford to me did not work in conjunction with the short-ish hood and trunk. The longer hood and trunk of the 55-56 Ford (same basic shape for the 4 door sedan, besides the wrap around windshield) really make the car shine, but in 52-54? Meh. Styling wise of course (I am utterly incompetent to judge the mechanics 😂)
They were the same length. The tail of the 55 is more square, instead of cut off at an angle like 54. That makes the car look longer. They were even the same width. The 54's width is from door skin to door skin. The 55's width is the width across the front bumper. A corporate sleigh of hand if there ever was one.
I would choose the Ford over the Plymouth on looks alone. Unfortunately the Plymouth does look frumpy and I think most people buy on the basis of appearance.
The Ford is undoubtedly a better looking automobile. Although Plymouth did make some very good vehicles back then. And even though the horsepower of both engines is fairly the same the Ford Flathead V8 is a far more torquier and speedier engine. By 53 Ford had gotten quite a few of the overheating and vapor locking issues worked out by that time. I will also add that I found both the Plymouth and the Ford to be better looking cars than what Chevy was turning out during that time. That body design was getting pretty long in the tooth by the early 50's.
My grandfather had a 53 Plymouth and it was terrible riding over cobblestone. Climbing steep hills virtually killed it. Within three years it showed rust, especially on the rear fenders. Though it was properly maintained there were issues with the transmission and with proper fluid changes the engine started to show blue smoke from the exhaust so he traded for the Ford. Outside the cobblestone streets the Ford did better.
The "all new" '53 Plymouth was stubby and frumpy, had a hoary flathead 6 as its only engine, didn't offer an automatic (but starting in '52 finally offered overdrive). Still had thru the floor pedals. It was a dependable stodgy old man's car... when new! Furthermore, the list price was higher than the thoroughly modern Ford. The '49-'54 Plymouths have been cheap stodgy uncool bargains for decades. It wasn't until relatively recent times that hot rodders modified them- least if all the '53-4's.
On looks alone the 53 Ford is a clear winner. Yes, Plymouth was restyled for 53, but not successfully. Downright ugly, and the warmed over Ford was still more 'modern'. Plymouth interiors were pretty drab too; indeed they upgraded for 54 to more closely match the competition. Got a point about those vacuum wipers though!
Plymouth cars (and possibly Dodge) were designed so a man who was six feet tall could comfortably sit in the car with his hat on. That was fine if you were six feet tall but short people could not reach the pedals unless the seat was almost all the way forward.
I am really a Mopar guy, but a 1953 Plymouth vs. that particular Ford? It is like selling stocked beer to a pissed off customer. The 1953 looks honestly boring... in my sight.
I would not say engineering disaster... I mean electric wipers are way better than vacuum :) and It kind of grows on you but I certainly think Ford won for looks that year.
![[Dealer Film] 1961 Ford Vs Chevy, Ford takes some good shots! Colorized](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/sQ0lRgJaw8M/mqdefault.jpg)
![[Dealer Film] 1961 Ford Vs Chevy, Ford takes some good shots! Colorized](/img/tr.png)
My dad and uncle both had Taxi companies in the 50's, and we only used Plymouth and Dodge cars ; cheap , reliable , easy to work on and they lasted forever.
they had a good reputation for reliable cars.
I rove cab in DC & had all Mopar from a 66 Coronet to a 77 Fury. The slant 6 & 318 were very reliable & very easy to maitain
No. One. Cares.😺
My grandfather had a 2 door 1953 Ford Customline. It did fine for him(and his 45 mph top driving speed) for 15 years/171000 miles. Then a ring broke. The engine was replaced, it then lasted the 3 years until he passed away. However, I do remember the wipers slowing down when going up hill. The video mentions an automatic choke as a feature. Based on my experience with automatic chokes is that they are a problem, not a feature. The car that I had with an automatic choke was always flooding, stalling, etc. My 1963 Falcon with manual choke has none of these issues.
yeah the auto choke... something else to break or clog up... But yes vacuum wipers sucked.
That means your Grandpa didn't spring for the optional double-action fuel pump.
It's surprising how often they go for the "Breaking the 4th wall" motif in these dealer film strips. It's a a dealer strip about the making of a dealer strip.
Yeah but this was for "internal" consumption. Normal people never saw these. Most are marked confidential.
When I was 16 my parents gave me their 54 Plymouth Savoy. It had overdrive so I had 5 forward gears. With my shift points being if I pushed it 25, 45, 65, and 85. What a reliable and fun car it was. Gas was 29 cents a gallon then.
over drive certainly was amazing at the time...
1953 FORD was still the newer style and nicer looking car.
And the Ford has a V8.
Plymouth ❤
My great-grandfather was a constable in the small town we're from - he absolutely LOVED Plymouths because they hardly ever broke down and started even on the coldest winter mornings. He thought Fords were total trash (however, my dad and paternal grandfather drove Fords for several decades and said they wouldn't be caught DEAD in a Plymouth LOL!! He drove a Plymouth for many years and after he died, my great-grandmother drove a new Plymouth for several years afterwards. They both said there's NOTHING like the ride and reliability of a Plymouth!
Brand loyalty was a thing, until the companies killed it in the late 70s and 80s...
@@autochronicles8667 Exactly right!
As a lawman I bet great grandfather would be abhorred with Andy Taylor driving Fords in Mayberry.
My parents had a 53 Plymouth Cranbrook. They said the heater never worked properly…. Other than that it was apparently a good car because they were Mopar customers from 1950 through 1989.
3:10 The new Plymouth looks positively frumpy in comparison to the year-old Ford design.
Plymouth was being very "GM" like... not taking risks on reliability or quality... very safe and steady... But boring? And stodgy? frumpy?
That's what I've always thought. Chrysler Corp made stodgy looking cars til the new, suddenly its 1960 cars in 1957. The 55/56 Chrysler cars have grown on me in the past few years, but still nothing compared to the 1957 models.
@@autochronicles8667 Boring, stodgy, AND frumpy.
Compare the '54 Plymouth to the '53 Studebaker, and to the Kaiser that had been redesigned for '51 and a major facelift in '54.
The Plymouth design may have been all new, but it looks more like a '49 than a '52 Ford.
Ford also had a distinct transmission advantage: The buyer could get a fully automatic transmission on the '53 Ford (called Fordomatic, introduced in 1951) whereas the Plymouth buyer only could get HyDrive which was not fully automatic & was only introduced mid-1953 model year.
oil filter is a pretty big advantage though
My aunt had a '52 Dodge with 'fluid drive' transmission! She shifted once & then it
was automatic! Supposedly , a low maintenance transmission!
The fact that the Ford was a continuation means that more bugs had been worked out of it. The Ford had a V8 to Plymouth's six, and that eight had a good reputation, and '53 was the last year you could buy it in a passenger car in the U.S. But the clincher would have been price--Ford and Chevy were involved in a price war in that era--you could get a new Ford or Chevy for only a few dollars more than a Henry J.
the flathead V8 ford used was a pretty outdated engine at this point though
@@redtra236 Definitely out of fashion.
No, the Ford flathead was the hot rodders choice in that era. Old, yes, but nobody was rodding the Plymouth 6. It was an old man's car when new.
@@loumontcalm3500 The average car buyer wasn't building hotrods it was definitely outdated as far as normal street cars go but is a decent engine
So was Plymouth's six... by a longshot.
Despite all the advantages of the Plymouth, buyers chose style over features. The Plymouth looked squat and stodgy compared to everything else. After 2 years of falling sales Chrysler changed direction in 55
The Plymouth has aged exceptionally well and in 2023 appears to be a terrifically proportioned car. Wish it were still produced - with all practical upgrades possible.
The Chrysler lineup of cars for 1953 and 1954 were behind in styling, even though engineering was ahead of Ford and GM and Studebaker. The main problem with the Plymouth was no V8 or Powerflite automatic until 1955.
Chevy outsold Ford and Plymouth in 1953.
KT Keller and his stupid edict of designing a car that a guy can wear a fedora in.
I thought a '53 Plymouth was a fine value - priced car. Our family owned one for almost 7 years. Sorry to see it go. 😮😮
The 1953 PLYMOUTH really is a more space efficient more comfortable car. Sure the inline 6 is a little dated but plenty of cars in 1953 used flatheads.
The flathead ford V8 was just as antiquated as the Plymouths engine.
@@Wiencourager very true. And as the owner of a 1953 Plymouth Cranbrook club coupe I can say it's a far superior more modern car than A Ford.
Russell's delirious there is no doubt about it
@@bradzimmerman3171 well what do you drive? Because that Plymouth is a fine riding comfortable automobile.
I'd replace that 6 with modern Mopar power, a Hellcat and 6 speed on the floor!
The Ford straight 6 was overhead valve; the Plymouth version was flathead.
The preferred engine in the Ford seems to have been the time tested flathead V8 which in real world I think handily outran the Plymouths and Dodges. At least until Dodge brought out its mini Hemi which I think made up to 170 horsepower in 1954.
Even though Clara Peller drove a 49/50 Dodge or Plymouth in the "Wheres the Beef" commercial. I can see why they picked the frumpiest car they could find. So even Wendys knew that Chrysler Corporation made old cars as new cars for old people back then.
The 1950's voices and words...lol😅
It's called English.
That dumpy-ass Plymouth next to a Ford? No comparison in looks, but my uncle used to say a Plymouth was like a reliable, sweet old dog and a Ford was the unpredictable cat.
My wife's 55 Plymouth hit a Ford Falcon, the Ford finder eas caved in the Plymouth has paint around the head light. The Plymouth headlight didn't break, heavy steel body.😮
Still powered by the old pre war side valve in line 6,not a bad engine but certainly not all new.
I believe they still had the "hand me down" engine that used to be the Dodge engine. Dodge got a slightly better balanced heavier crankshaft and about 15 more cubic inches in its L head six.
The Plymouth looked like it was squished. It's kind of stubby.
I don't think I've ever heard the word "new" so many times in my life!
Lol yep new! new !
The Plymouth looks more like the ' 49 Ford than a '53 car.
I own a 1954 Plymouth Belvedere. Great car. Greetings from germany.
Re: comparing the styling of '53 Plymouth vs '53 Ford, it should be noted that Ford replaced their "shoebox" split windshield generation in 1952 with their first single piece windshield generation. Whereas Chrysler Corp did not replace their last K T Keller compatible "top hat" split windshield generation until 1953.
I suppose I could understand all the comments regarding styling, but you drive sitting IN the car, not outside it. The looks would only serve to impress others mostly. As an engineer, I'm drawn more to how the vehicle functions: it's ride quality, braking, performance, etc. If it's aesthetically pleasing (to me), it's icing on the cake. I like that the Plymouth's front end is not all grille.
The '53 Ford Crestliner was good. It ran nicely. Loved the rounded tail lights. I give the two a time limit draw.
1953? Great year for babies!
This film sure displayed a lot of "balance"
Plymouth presented its disadvantages to Ford in advantages. A clever marketing.
My grandfather bought the Ford and it was a nice car
The Plymouth looks so much like a Skoda from the 1950s...but who copied who?
Yeah auto design would sit still for a few years more.
Plymouth/chrysler would not have known what a skoda was back then🙃
what plymouth wont tell you is..the plymouth parking brake only works if both tires have traction...but the ford has both wheels locked at the wheel and not the driveshaft like plymouth ..and for being a new car the plymouth isnt exactly a good looking car
that parking brake was an issue and would be an issue when jacking the car up off the back wheel. They would put wheel chocks in these cars to handle that issue. But on the same note they are right about a separate braking system. These cars had single master cylinders. if you lost pressure, you had no brakes.
@@autochronicles8667 The ford E brake will also work in the case of loss of hydraulic brake pressure though, as it uses cables to activate the brakes and is independent of the hydraulic system. If the issue is caused by something like overheated brake pads the ford E brake wont work while the Plymouth will though. I'm gonna say the ford design is overall better since modern cars still use it.
53 ford last year for flat head 8 znicer looking But during the 60s you saw more Plymouth s on.the Road 54 the same just more crome
Ford styling, imo, is much more pleasing than Plymouth's stodgy look. My paternal grandfather's last car was a '53 Ford.
That was Barney Fifes' first car. 1953 Ford.
We always had a couple of Ford's Plymouth and Dodges 1 to drive the rest for parts!!😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
I like the ford better, even though I am a mopar man
I am one of the few who likes the 53 Plymouth's styling more than Ford's.
To be fair, the elongated greenhouse of the 52-54 Ford to me did not work in conjunction with the short-ish hood and trunk. The longer hood and trunk of the 55-56 Ford (same basic shape for the 4 door sedan, besides the wrap around windshield) really make the car shine, but in 52-54? Meh.
Styling wise of course (I am utterly incompetent to judge the mechanics 😂)
it does grow on you, and the one guy mentions its very Skoda like.
They were the same length. The tail of the 55 is more square, instead of cut off at an angle like 54. That makes the car look longer. They were even the same width. The 54's width is from door skin to door skin. The 55's width is the width across the front bumper. A corporate sleigh of hand if there ever was one.
I would choose the Ford over the Plymouth on looks alone. Unfortunately the Plymouth does look frumpy and I think most people buy on the basis of appearance.
The Ford is undoubtedly a better looking automobile. Although Plymouth did make some very good vehicles back then. And even though the horsepower of both engines is fairly the same the Ford Flathead V8 is a far more torquier and speedier engine. By 53 Ford had gotten quite a few of the overheating and vapor locking issues worked out by that time. I will also add that I found both the Plymouth and the Ford to be better looking cars than what Chevy was turning out during that time. That body design was getting pretty long in the tooth by the early 50's.
My grandfather had a 53 Plymouth and it was terrible riding over cobblestone. Climbing steep hills virtually killed it. Within three years it showed rust, especially on the rear fenders. Though it was properly maintained there were issues with the transmission and with proper fluid changes the engine started to show blue smoke from the exhaust so he traded for the Ford. Outside the cobblestone streets the Ford did better.
ack cobblestone... Plymouth would start worrying about rust proofing in 1959-60 when people complained a lot more.
Although Plymouth increased sales in 1953 by 150,000 over 1952, Ford still outsold them in 1953 by a 2:1 margin.
In this particular era I would have chosen what my grandfather did - a Fabulous Hudson Hornet!
Yeah these films took time and money and you take your shots at the big guys :) No time to poach smaller fish!
Jay Leno has a 53 Hudson Hornet with Twin H Power, and 3 on the tree!
The Plymouth was trying to catch up to the Ford styling, but still looks frumpy.
The "all new" '53 Plymouth was stubby and frumpy, had a hoary flathead 6 as its only engine, didn't offer an automatic (but starting in '52 finally offered overdrive). Still had thru the floor pedals. It was a dependable stodgy old man's car... when new!
Furthermore, the list price was higher than the thoroughly modern Ford.
The '49-'54 Plymouths have been cheap stodgy uncool bargains for decades. It wasn't until relatively recent times that hot rodders modified them- least if all the '53-4's.
Chevy featured an overhead valve straight 6.
The Plymouth is a gumpy looking car. Ford is much easier on the eyes.
On looks alone the 53 Ford is a clear winner. Yes, Plymouth was restyled for 53, but not successfully. Downright ugly, and the warmed over Ford was still more 'modern'. Plymouth interiors were pretty drab too; indeed they upgraded for 54 to more closely match the competition. Got a point about those vacuum wipers though!
Maybe the 52 Ford was ahead of the 52 Plymouth?
Similar? No they are not. They are very different from each other.
Plymouth cars (and possibly Dodge) were designed so a man who was six feet tall could comfortably sit in the car with his hat on. That was fine if you were six feet tall but short people could not reach the pedals unless the seat was almost all the way forward.
truth in advertising :) Some times they flipped the script :)
Yes, the hat was obligatory. 😅
chrysler cars of that era were dorky looking as hell, but they were very good cars !
yeah very top heavy
That must be the reason old maids & teachers liked them 😂
Didn't burn as much oil as some of the others and probably better gas mileage.
Ford was so much better looking and faster than either the dull Chevy or boring Plym in '53. However, build quality was a different story
I think Ford did win in 53 :)
I am really a Mopar guy, but a 1953 Plymouth vs. that particular Ford? It is like selling stocked beer to a pissed off customer. The 1953 looks honestly boring... in my sight.
Yeah Ford won that year :)
Dodge had a Hemi !
So did DeSoto and Chrysler.
Coupla squids. Little substantial content
it was not a great year for autos...
FORD Fix Or Repair Daily
Potato era
Some good engineering but as ugly as sin compared to the Ford
the early 50s cars were "fairly" similar but I think the Ford did stand out also. It was a "safe" time in car design...
53 plymouth is crap,ugly and an engineering disaster.
I would not say engineering disaster... I mean electric wipers are way better than vacuum :) and It kind of grows on you but I certainly think Ford won for looks that year.
It's a pretty good car, both have advantages and drawbacks.