Aussie DeSoto Ute

[DaveBuckle]

Thankyou all for your input: much appreciated! and yes indeed Mike - dash glass is a work of art: gauges should come up alright...
Dash.jpg

[Mike K]

Dave

The seating arrangement in these army utes is rather unusual, the passenger or drivers mate seat base is arranged so that the guy can stand up and observe and if he is brave enough , he could use the LAA Bren gallows mount .

The ute rear springs are 'beefed up' compared to the springs on the Plymouth sedans .

I put an article together for the USA Chrysler club magazine and the editor was amazed , he had never heard of a 1941 Plymouth sedan based utility .

There was a short window of opportunity for me to own all three variants of the military 12 cwt utes - the 1941 Ford , Chevrolet and the Plymouth plus I did have the Pontiac for a while but it was just all too much , where to store them and the cost of it all.

The engine blocks fitted in these utes are longer when compared to the contemporary T214 and other Chrysler vehicles with smaller bores i.e. up to 3 and 1/4" . So be careful when buying a head gasket. These long block engines also can have different stroke lengths - I think the common post-war 250ci engine has a bore of 3 and 7/16" . There was also a larger Chrysler s.v. 6 engine used in a particular brand of agricultural harvester . Was it 261 ci ? This might help you or maybe confuse you ! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chrysler_flathead_engine

Oh there are some of these utes listed in the ARN books so you can have a look for your engine nr. and maybe find its ARN and where it was disposed to.

[Tony Smith]

Engine Number P12-17048C was fitted to De Soto "Van, 12cwt, GS" with the chassis number 9829683, and was issued with the ARN 88652. It is recorded as a 1941 SP11 model.

It was disposed of to the Canada Cycle and Motor Co, but no date is given when this happened.

While it is not the highest engine number or chassis number recorded for a De Soto or Plymouth, it is the last or highest ARN registered for a De Soto.

[Mike Cecil]

The last of a very small group. All had engine numbers (not chassis numbers - thanks Tony) prefixed with P12.

ARNs 88345 to 88398, (however 88371 to 88398 are listed as model P12 rather than SP11); 88628 to 88652.

The VB listed for the location where 88652 was taken on charge stands for Victoria Barracks, but as there is a VB in both Sydney and Melbourne, there has been some debate as to which one is referred to. I tend to think it is Melbourne, as that was the location of Army Headquarters, whereas Sydney seems most often to be listed as simply '2', for 2nd Military District.

Mike

[Tony Smith]

Originally Posted by Mike Cecil

The VB listed for the location where 88652 was taken on charge stands for Victoria Barracks, but as there is a VB in both Sydney and Melbourne, there has been some debate as to which one is referred to.
Mike

And another Victoria Barracks in Brisbane, although this is a colonial era building used by the Militia during WW2, but it was responsible for many of the administrative tasks in Qld (such as registering vehicles?). https://www.armymuseumsouthqueensland.com.au/
https://www.ww2places.qld.gov.au/place?id=320

[DaveBuckle]

Thanks Mike, Tony, Mike for all that - I am indeed enlightened!

[DaveBuckle]

Found on FB MarketP ...
1954 Plymouth motor - would it be an acceptable/doable option for the DeSoto?
https://www.facebook.com/marketplace...728646513986/?