Today's post brings those three cases together so that readers might better appreciate what was done to considerably "freshen" the appearance of cars without spending for total body retooling.
For 1939, DeSotos and Dodges received the same kinds of changes as the Chryslers shown below. Model year 1953-1954 changes for Mercury were as extensive as those for Ford. DeSoto shared Chrysler bodies affected by the 1953 facelift. No comparisons for those brands are shown here in order to keep the presentation fairly brief.
The images below are arranged with front quarter view comparisons shown first, followed by side view comparisons. My intent is to first illustrate how different the designs would seem to most observers, then indicate body structure similarities. Photos are of cars listed for sale or from Chrysler unless noted otherwise.
Late 1930s Chryslers featured all-steel bodies that were strongly rounded.
The facelift created a leaner appearance. Note the windshield change from an old-fashioned one-piece flat affair to a "modern" two-piece V'd design.
The body structure was greatly changed abaft of the C-pillar that too had its upper part reshaped. If you look closely you will see that the front door shape was unchanged, as was most of the expensive cowling. Peering into the aft windows, it's evident that the position of the back seats is the same.
Major changes for Ford seen from this perspective were the panoramic (wraparound) windshield, a new grille design, more radically "frenched" headlight assemblies, new side sculpting, and side two-tone paint.
This side view comparison reveals that, aside from the new windshield, the passenger compartment greenhouse structure was unchanged from 1953. Ditto the front door.
1949-1952 Chrysler Corporation cars seemed boxy, though a mild 1951 facelift rounded off hood noses from what had been more of a ship's prow shape.
Facelifted Chryslers look sleeker. But compare the front end forward of the cowling to that in the previous image. If this photo had been of a '53 Chrysler Windsor, the grilles would have been the same along with the rest of the front body clip.
The Chrysler line used the same bodies for model years 1949-1952, so 1952 Chryslers looked like this '51 model.
Aside from the change from a V'd windshield, the bodies are the same from the B-pillar forward.
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