Exner’s Last Stand: 1962 Dodge Dart 440 Wagon

Under the direction of Virgil Exner, Chrysler Corporation’s design department produced some of the most striking, unique, and iconic automobiles of the 1950s with his “Forward Look” designs. Exner’s last Mopar designs were the 1962 models, and this 1962 Dodge Dart 440 station wagon, available here on Craigslist in Gladstone, Oregon, with an asking price of $28,500, was one of his final designs. Special thanks to Barn Finder Curvette for finding this one for us!

Dodge was having something of an identity crisis in the early 1960s. Dodge’s dealership network lost access to Plymouth’s line of cars in 1960, leaving the nameplate scrambling to fulfill its dealers’ desire to offer Dodge models at lower Plymouth price points. This resulted in the creation of the Dart, a full-size, entry-level Dodge model for 1960. The Dart shared the 118-inch wheelbase of the Plymouth platform (except for the station wagons), making it slightly smaller than the other full-size Dodges of the time. The Dart proved to be exceptionally popular among Mopar customers, doing so well that it began eating into Plymouth’s sales figures in the low-price sector.

1962 proved to be a pivotal year for the Dart. Having been provided faulty information about a drastic downsizing of GM models for 1962, Dodge panicked and asked Virgil Exner and his design team to follow suit and downsize the entire model lineup. The three Dart submodels, Seneca, Pioneer, and Phoenix, were scrapped in favor of the Dart, Dart 330, and Dart 440. The 1962 Dart was built on the new Plymouth “B-body” platform, the same chassis that would later be used on the Charger, Superbird, and Road Runner, among other iconic Mopar models. 1962 would be the only year the Dart shared this platform, as it would evolve again into the compact model it became known as throughout the late ’60s and early ’70s. This means this particular Dart wagon is a one-year-only body style.

This car, being a Dart 440, is the highest trim level Dart and the second-highest trim level Dodge for the ’62 model year, behind only the Polara. This meant that it got backup lights and some model-specific trim. This car is in exceptionally good condition given the 93,000 or so miles shown on the odometer. The seller provides little to no history on the car’s ownership, but the car does have the correct 318 ci V8 engine (optional for Darts in ’62; the standard engine was the 225 slant-six), three-speed push-button automatic transmission, and three-row seating, including the rear-facing rear seat. Curiously, the heater and radio have been deleted, but factory delete plates were not used. The powder blue paint shines beautifully, and the navy blue interior is in excellent condition. The styling is a bit of an acquired taste, but for $28,500, would you buy this turn-key grocery getter?