Russo and Steele will feature a collection of American convertibles from the 1950s at its upcoming Monterey auction, scheduled for August 18-20, 2011 at the Marriott Hotel in downtown Monterey, California.
The years 1957 to 1959 were considered by many the “Golden Era” for American-made automobiles, as fins, advanced engineering and V-8 engines dominated the landscape with names like Dodge, De Soto and Chrysler providing many of the the finest examples from that era. The popularity of these automobiles came in part from the futuristic design that characterized the optimistic, Eisenhower future that Americans were moving toward. It was an age where America was looking toward the future with a rise in the world’s technology and an increase in leisure time.
Russo and Steele will offer a collection of limited production and collectible 1950s American convertibles at its 2011 Monterey sale, all scheduled to cross the auction block on Thursday, August 18th. These convertibles will be offered on both reserve and no reserve. Headline offerings include the following:
- 1957 Desoto Adventurer Convertible: VIN 0411937 – Only 300 were ever made.
- 1959 Chrysler Windsor Golden Lion Convertible (Offered Without Reserve): VIN M511104933 – While only 961 were produced there are less than twenty left today.
- 1959 Desoto Firesweep Convertible (Offered Without Reserve): VIN M412107901 – Only 596 Firesweep convertible were produced in 1959.
- 1959 Desoto Firedome Convertible: VIN M431110592 – Only 299 convertibles were produced in this final year and there may be as few as only 27 remaining.
- 1959 Chrysler New Yorker Convertible (Offered Without Reserve): VIN M551105138 – Only 286 convertibles were built for 1959 and it is thought that less than twenty of these cars are left today.
- 1959 Desoto Adventurer Convertible: VIN M491100602 – Only 97 of these automobiles were made.
- 1959 Chrysler 300E Convertible: VIN M591100010 – Finished in the rare radiant red only 140 of these automobiles were ever made and it is believed that only 21 of them still exist today.
- 1958 Dodge Coronet Super D-500 Convertible: VIN LD212655 – 984 Custom Royal convertibles were ever produced and only 11 examples are known to exist. This example is one of very few that was equipped with the Super D-500 V8 engine.
The 11th annual Russo and Steele Sports and Muscle at the Marriott auction event will be held August 18-20, 2011. The three-evening sale will offer over 250 automobiles in its highly interactive, visceral ground level auction arena that provides cars with no separation from the buyers; known as the auction-in-the-round format and only found at Russo and Steele events.
To view more of the automobiles offered in this collection, visit www.russoandsteele.com.
[Source: Russo and Steele]
Some DeSoto models plus the tri color Packard Caribbean convertible were my favorite monster cars during their era. Both are gone but we still have Buick, a marque I have always despised even though most of my contemporaries are in their 7th+ decade and love them. (Also Mercury)
Just what the hell is this disquis thing that keeps appearing? Please do advise or get our of my computer.