1956 Plymouth Plainsman (Ghia)

This Plainsman looks like it is full of optimism for the near future. (1960) But doesn't it look a little too much like a hearse to be a Family wagon? But....yessir. I wish i owned it. When I was a kid my Dad bought a '56 Belvedere 4-dr. We loved that Push-button drive. A nice car.

Did this car really exist? I thought I knew every Plymouth model from the 1952 to 1978, but was this a european model or a concept car one-off? Seeing it in a suburban setting rather than on a car show stage means it's real...

Where is it and how many were made?

There was only one made. My Brother owns it and it currently resides in San Mateo California awaiting restoration. Bob rpjasin@pacbell.net

The Australian Plainsman, and Wayfarer. The car above is a one of a kind show car but Chrysler did in fact build and sell Plainsman wagons. I hve no clue as too how they look. In addition to the Royal four-door sedans, Chrysler marketed two related, more utilitarian models, the "Plainsman Station Wagon," named after the Chrysler "dream wagon" of 1956 and the "Wayfarer," whose name harked back to the lowest-price Dodge line of the late forties. Basically both were Royal sedans forward of the "B"-pillar, with different roof, glass treatment and side panels behind. Neither sported the controversial added fin on the AP2 sedans. The Wayfarer, carrying a capacity of 1/2-ton, came as a six only while the Plainsman came with the V8 as well (192 sixes, but only 32 V-8s). Special commercial versions of the wagon were also sold for use as ambulances and hearses.
There were several commercial versions of the Plainsman. There was a 'panel van' version which was essentially the Plainsman without external door handles on the rear doors (these don't seem to have been very popular, judging from rego figures), but from what we know, hearses were simply standard Plainsmans with the rear seats removed.
Ambulances had specially built bodies and were not converted from Plainsmans as far as we know. A few custom built hearses (similar to ambulance bodies) also exist in the AP3 series.
The Wayfarer was an early example of the popular "utes," coupe/pickup combinations now seen everywhere in Australia. Both models are extremely rare; just 224 Plainsmans and 1,205 Wayfarers were sold between 1958 and 1960. The Plainsman was made in both AP1 and AP2 series, while the Wayfarer was made in the AP2 and AP3 series.
After 1960, there was a gradual thinning out of the "Royal" models; 1961 saw the demise of the Plainsman and by 1963, only the 4-door V-8 remained.

Did Exner have any input in the styling of this car? The windshield looks similar to those found on other Ghia-bodied cars.

I think we saw this about 10 years ago as part of a Joe Bortz display at the Gilmore museum. It was remarkably complete and straight. If I recall correctly, it had a 70s California license plate and an 8-track bolted under the dash.

This is truly one weird looking car. My first thought was that is looks like a modified hearse. Also, on first glance, it is difficult to tell whether it is coming or going.

But, such was the 50's. A time of much experimentation as we moved into the "modern age".

Hi Mike Binis,
Yes, the Plainsman does exist. I am going to be listing it on eBay for sale on Thursday. It is definitely a very historic piece of automotive history. (See Old Cars Weekly front page article from January 21, 2010). Virgil Exner was in charge of design and the car was sent to Ghia for the body. This year Pebble Beach is going to be featuring Ghia designed cars.
Debbie