Plymouth's Emergency 1963 Facelift

The last Chrysler Corporation production cars designed under the supervision of Virgil Exner were the standard size Dodge and Plymouth models for the 1962 model year.

According to the latter link (as of January 2025):

"Under the impression that Chevrolet was about to "downsize" its 1962 models, Chrysler introduced a significantly smaller standard Plymouth for 1962.  As is known, Chevrolet's big cars were not downsized, catching Plymouth in a sales slump in a market where "bigger was better".  The 1963 Fury, Belvedere, and Savoy were slightly larger, featuring a totally new body style, highlighted by prominent outboard front parking lights."

Given production lead-times of three or four years in those days, those '62 Plymouth designs were probably locked-in by, say, early 1961.  But redesigned 1961 standard-size Chevrolets appeared in the fall of 1960, so Chrysler management had strong reason to doubt the competitive abilities of the forthcoming Plymouths.  So it's fairly certain that a major 1963 facelift project was set in place about that time -- it being too late to greatly alter the 1962 styling.

Also around that time Elwood Engel replaced Virgil Exner as Chrysler's design chief.  At Ford, Engel was best known for his classic 1961 Continental with its plain sides and chrome-emphasized fenderline.  Engel carried the general theme over to designs he supervised at Chrysler for the early-mid 1960s.  That included the extensive Plymouth facelift for 1963 intended to make the cars appear larger that those of 1962.

So the Wikipedia quotation above is incorrect where it stated there was "a totally new body style."  This will be shown below.  I should also note that 1962 and 1963 standard size Plymouths had the same 116-inch (2946 mm) wheelbase.

The 1962 Plymouth images below are from Mecum Auctions, and those for 1963 are from Bring a Trailer Auctions.  Although the '62 model is a 2-door hardtop and the '62 is a 2-door sedan, the basic bodies are the same aside from the B-pillar zone.

Gallery

1962 Plymouth Sport Fury 2-door hardtop coupe
The '62 Plymouth carried many Exner touches that were away from mainstream American styling themes of the time.

1963 Plymouth Belvedere 2-door sedan
So Engel brought Chrysler styling back to industry norms.  The hood cutlines remain, but quad headlights are closely grouped and the grille pattern is a more conventional grid arrangement.  The headlight-related dips on the '62 bumper are straitened for '63.

Front quarter view.

Engel did his side-smoothing here.

Note the quirky little beltline hump by the after side window.  Chromed and plain, these are found on all '62 standard Dodge and Plymouth sedans and hardtops.

It disappeared for '63 as part of a C-pillar/backlight window reshaping.  We also see an Engel sculpted sweep along the car's side that replaced the two-segment Exner sculpting.  The door cutlines and window vents are the same on both cars.  Ditto the wheel openings.  Note the wide C-pillar, another Engel carryover.

Rear quarter views.

The trunk and rear are new for 1963.

Rear.

From unconventional to conventional.  Even the previous bumper was abandoned on this end of the car.