1958 DeSoto Shopper Hidden for Years Is a Rare Wagon You Probably Never Knew Existed

While Plymouth needs no further introduction, DeSoto is one of those orphan brands few people remember. With Plymouth aimed at the affordable car market, DeSoto was founded to compete with Pontiac, Studebaker, Hudson, and Willys in the mid-price class.

Named after Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto, the division sold lower-priced versions of Chrysler automobiles. Positioned below Dodge in its first years, DeSoto was moved up in the corporate hierarchy in 1933, gaining access to the streamlined Airflow bodies.

DeSoto was somewhat successful in its early decades, but a few corporate mistakes turned it into a slow-selling marque in the 1950s. The shrinking dealer network, the lack of a compact car, Dodge moving upmarket with the Custom Royal, and Chrysler's introduction of the entry-level Newport prompted the corporation to shut down the brand in 1961.

But even though it doesn't get as much attention as Plymouth, Chrysler's other orphan brand, DeSoto left a few cool vehicles behind. In addition to being the only division that offered Airflow models apart from Chrysler, it was still on the market when Virgil Exner rolled out his "Forward Look" design. Like their Chrysler and Dodge counterparts, the mid-to-late-1950s DeSotos are among the most beautiful automobiles ever created in my book.

The company had no fewer than five vehicles in showrooms at the time. The list includes the iconic Fireflite and Adventurer, as well as the somewhat lesser-known Firedome, Pacesetter, and Firesweep. The latter was short-lived compared to its contemporary siblings. While the other four nameplates were sold for four to seven years, the Firesweep was around for only three model years.

An entry-level full-size car heavily based on the Dodge Coronet, the Firesweep debuted in 1957 in four body styles: two-door hardtop, four-door hardtop and sedan, and station wagon. In 1958, DeSoto added a two-door convertible to the lineup.

The Firesweep was quite successful in its first year on the market. With 41,269 units delivered, it outsold the Fireflite and Firedome to become DeSoto best-selling nameplate. It also retained its number one spot in 1958, but sales dropped dramatically to only 19,414 examples. The following year, the Firesweep moved 20,834 cars before it was sent into the history books. DeSoto would be discontinued altogether two years later.

Albeit short-lived, the Firesweep isn't exactly rare. However, certain body styles are quite hard to find, especially since many DeSotos were abandoned in junkyards and barns. With only 1,296 examples built over two model years, the convertible is arguably the rarest. The drop-top is followed by the station wagon, which moved 8,131 units in three years. That's only 10% of the total production.

But this figure becomes much smaller if we split it into model years and by passenger capacity. You see, DeSoto offered two wagons each year: the Shopper with six-passenger seating and the Explorer with nine seats. The green grocery-getter you see here is one of only 1,305 Shoppers built in 1958.

Sure, this figure is still rather high to consider this wagon a super-rare classic, but there are two things to consider. First, only a few of these grocery-getters are believed to be around still. Second, this one is almost a fully-fledged survivor.

And I say "almost" because the previous owner tinkered with the suspension and swapped the original engine. But the first mod is reversible, and the numbers-matching unit is still with the car, albeit needing a complete rebuild. Other than that and some redone fabric on the seats, this 1958 Shopper is quite original.

The wagon still sports its factory paint job, which is a lovely Spruce Green combined with a Willow Green top and side inserts. There's lots of patina to talk about, but the original paint still covers most of the body. The white and silver interior is still in place, while the headliner has taken decades of storage like a champ.

Fortunately, this mostly unknown grocery-getter is now in good hands. Although the Shopper runs and drives, the new owner wants to return it to its original specifications. He may not opt to fix the factory-correct 350-cubic-inch (5.7-liter) V8 engine, but to see this vehicle back on the road is as exciting as it gets if you're a DeSoto enthusiast.