In France there are more DeSoto Diplomat than Fireflite or Firedome ! Same thing for the Dodge Kingsway.. These export models built on Plymouth car with the DeSoto (or Dodge) front clip were less expensive than the "senior" models. A lot of them went in North Africa (Algeria, Morocco) bought by french people who lived there and they came back in France after the independence of these countries. About DeSoto models there was three (or four) price levels: In 1958, the Diplomat (= Plazza) , the Diplomat DeLuxe (= Savoy), the Diplomat Custom (= Belvedere). Choice of engine & trans. was the same as Plymouth, but without the 318 or 350 2 x 4 Fury. In 1959 there was a Diplomat "Adventurer" which was a Sport Fury. I've put some pics of Diplomat & Kingsway on the "autres Mopar" pages of my Chrysler Imperial France site. Ther's a Diplomat Custom 55 convertible Go to http://www.ifrance.com/c-i-f/mainpage.htm then click on the "autres Mopars 55/61" in the left frame of the page. You'll find thumbnails at the bottom of the page. -- Philippe COURANT (Pau, France) Imperial 57 Crown convertible Buick 58 Roadmaster sedan - American Car Club de France (ACCF) : http://www.accf.com - Chrysler Imperial France : http://www.ifrance.com/c-i-f - Cadillac " Standard of Excellence " : http://www.ifrance.com/accf-cad - SportsCars : http://www.ifrance.com/accf-sprtcar
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