1957 DeSoto Adventurer Convertible Coupe

The DeSoto was an early muscle car equipped with the division's top Hemi V8 engine offering nearly 350 horsepower. Its wheelbase measured 126 inches, and its body came with aesthetically pleasing tail fins. Introduced in the mid-model year 1956, the Adventurer was the company's top-of-the-line model. A convertible body style was added even later. DeSoto introduced the 1957 Adventurer in December of 1956, two months after the introduction of the other models. Every Adventurer convertible top was gold. During this era, the traditional launch was from late September to early October.

The 1957 DeSoto Adventurer was given the new 'Forward Look' seen throughout all Chrysler Corporation models and was longer, lower, and wider. It was based on the Fireflite and came with specified color combinations of white with black and a gold side sweep and roof or gold with a white or black side sweep and roof. The grille mesh was gold anodized, and 'DESOTO' letters could be found on the front of the hood - and were done in gold. A stylized DeSoto emblem was placed on the middle of the hood. Gold 'DESOTO' lettering was also featured on the rear decklid. Five stainless steel strips accent the top of the trunk. The Adventurer logo appeared on the sides of the tailfins. Just ahead of this cursive script is a logo featuring crossed flags and a gold V accented by gold wings. Another Adventurer crest appears on each front fender, just ahead of the doors. In the center of this emblem is the Hernando DeSoto coat of arms.

In the front were dual headlamps.

The interior of the DeSoto Adventurer featured light gold seats (60/40 up front) with gold and white tweed in the seated portion of the benches, front and rear. This theme continued into the door panels.

Beginning with the 341 cubic-inch engine, the DeSoto engineers bored the powerplant to 345 cubic-inches and installed dual quads. Horsepower rose from 295 to 345 HP, making the engine provide one horsepower per cubic inch of displacement.

Body styles included a hardtop coupe priced at $4,000. Total production of the coupe reached 1,650 units. The Convertible Coupe had a base price of $4275 and a total of 300 examples were built. Options such as a record player (called the Hi-Way Hi-Fi), electric windows and six-way power seat pushed the price up even further. Every Adventurer came with the famous push-button automatic transmission.

This 1957 Desoto Adventurer is one of 1,650 hardtop examples produced in 1957. It has a white and gold exterior and a tan and brown interior. The 345 CID V8 Hemi offers 345 horsepower and is mated to a TorqueFlite Push Button 3-speed automatic transmission. There is Mark IV air conditioning, power steering, power windows, a 7-button seek radio, and twin original antennas.

By Daniel Vaughan | Apr 2019