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Extreme Veteran
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Location: Wichita, Kansas | I recently picked up a clean old orphaned 60 Dodge Seneca sedan. It is a plain-jane slant 6 car with almost no options other than automatic and power steering. The one thing it has that makes me wonder what the heck is factory power vacuum door locks. On a mostly optionless base model 4 door sedan one just would not expect PDL. I am not a 60 Dodge expert, so I was wondering if this was a fairly rare option on 60 Dodges as I have a 60 Polara and Matador and they both do not have it.
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Exner Expert 19,174 posts. Neil passed away 18 Sep 2015. You will be missed, Neil!
Posts: 19146
  
Location: bishop, ca | Matt, from the P/T plate numbers, when was your car 'Scheduled' to have been built?
If it is of late production, the factory might have arranged to include that option as a way of using up its surplus
non-popular optional equipment.
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Extreme Veteran
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Location: Wichita, Kansas | Well, Neil, unfortunately the P/T plate is missing. Only an outline of where it was. VIN plate is still on the jamb, though. I can say that the setup is 100% complete, and is definitely original to the car. |
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Exner Expert 19,174 posts. Neil passed away 18 Sep 2015. You will be missed, Neil!
Posts: 19146
Location: bishop, ca | Well, is the VIN a high number?
At the end of the MY's, the factory did install unusual items on cars.
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Location: Parts Unknown | The answer to your question is, yes, it is a very unusual option. I regret not snapping up
a Seneca 4s years ago. Little granny mobile in light green. Dog dishies on blackwalls and
body colored wheels, six-n-three. Just cute as a bug. A major influential car for me ...
... this and a 58 Plaza really swayed my to seeing the "cool" in stripper, bottom-of-the-line
cars. 
Maybe Grandma watched the grandkids a lot and had those locks put in special to keep them
little booger-eaters from falling out ?
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Extreme Veteran
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Location: Wichita, Kansas | Neil, oddly the VIN is not a high number. The last 6 are 108718. It was built in LA, so maybe someone just wanted to show off their awesomess with PDL and ordered them, but couldn't pony up for much more.
Doc, you are right, I do llike the ultra loaded high end cars, but like the no-nothing bare bones cars just as well. One of my favorite cars I have is a two-tone pink/coral 59 Corornet 2d sedan, flat 6, manual everything, painted rear upper fin coves instead of chrome, silver painted horn ring, no radio, body colored wheels. The only options are two-tone and tinted glass. Too bad on that green grandma Seneca, that would have been a very neat car to have.
Matt |
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Location: Parts Unknown | Well, the good news on that lost Seneca, is the other influential car, ... a light green 58 Plaza 4s
at the bottom of a stack at Ray's Auto Wrecking some 30 years ago was another stripper that caught
my fancy. I put that one on my "to buy" list, should I ever find a good one. Well, last April my friends
here on the FL site tipped me off to one on eBay, and I snagged it.
Monotone seafoam green, dog dishies ... the extreme school district or Forest Service car. But who-
ever ordered it ponied up for 318, TF, PS, PB, and A/C ! So, I get all the poverty looks and some nice
driver comfort items. I plan to hit this one hard when I get home, as it really is a nice car to start with.
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Expert
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Location: Vancouver, BC | d500neil - 2012-03-21 8:12 PM
Matt, from the P/T plate numbers, when was your car 'Scheduled' to have been built?
If it is of late production, the factory might have arranged to include that option as a way of using up its surplus
non-popular optional equipment.
Chrysler pushed their power door locks ($29.85 option on all 4 door models) as a great way to keep the kids inside the car while on the road. This car may have been ordered by a family man with a back seat full of boisterous kids. Would explain the Torqueflite, power steering and power door locks. Had an uncle who would have ordered the car that way if it was a four door. Surprised it has no heater, though.
That's the neat thing about options. They personalize a car. Someone might be into power steering and power brakes but order the car with a manual transmission under the belief that automatics are not as economical on gas. A very important factor in the days of $0.25 a gallon gasoline, believe it or not.
My father used to buy cars with hub caps and not wheel covers due to the troubles he had with them on his 1955 Dodge Regent. If he ordered a new car that way my mother would make sure the car came with wheels painted body colour, which was an option starting in the 1960's, and not black.
With a valid VIN and a title (or some legal proof of ownership) you can check with Chrysler Historical for a build record.
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Expert 5K+
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Location: Victoria, BC, on Vancouver Island, Canada | I've only seen one car with the vacuum locks, and it was on a Canadian built 60 Polara sedan back around 1975 or so ( not on my ex-Polara!) I have never seen them working but from what I understand they would automatically lock the doors once car was rolling, from engine vaccuum activating them. When you exit the car though I believe you could lock all the doors by pushing the dash switch but still had to lock the driver's door with the key once you shut it.
Does anyone else on the forum have any information on them or have a car with a working set? Matt do they actually function on your Seneca? I would think after 52 years the rubber lines might be perished etc. |
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Extreme Veteran
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Location: A proud Canadian | Ian, my Canadian built 1960 Desoto Adventurer 2 door hardtop has them (pictured here). The entire mechanism is intact, from the dash switch to the vacuum canister on the inner fender to the inner door workings. However, as you eluded to, the rubber hoses have deteriorated to the point of non-function. I seem to remember the Imperial website having some info on them.
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Extreme Veteran
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Location: Wichita, Kansas | Ian, for some reason I never checked their operating condition, so I just went out and did. It may be hard to believe, but all 4 doors locked and unlocked just fine. The switch on the dash hisses a little, so there may be a gasket or something dry on it, but sure enough they worked. The vacuum can on the core support looks like it should say FOLGER'S on it. |
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Expert 5K+
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Location: Victoria, BC, on Vancouver Island, Canada | Matt, its amazing yours are in working condition. Take the car out on a drive and see if they lock automatically once you start driving, that's what I read somewhere as to what they are supposed to do.
Billy-Jack, if that was my car I would have replaced the hoses by now! Such a neat option. It's probably just the ones running through the engine compt. that are the badly deteriorated ones |
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Extreme Veteran
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Location: Wichita, Kansas | I'll do that, Ian. I need to do some brake work on the right front first, it wants to lock up. Car sat for a couple years, so most likely a hose or cylinder. The switch on the dash hisses and has a small leak, so I have to give the car a little gas to build up enough vacuum. But when I pushed the lever down, I heard all 4 pods in the doors go PFFFUNK. I am amazed that MoPar did not put the rubber hoses in a metal guard in the door jambs, rather they are just exposed and rub when the doors are opened and closed. You'd think this would be the first place the hoses would go bad.
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Expert 5K+
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Location: Victoria, BC, on Vancouver Island, Canada | So when are we going to see some photos of this wonderful car???!!! |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 566
Location: Wichita, Kansas | Ian, if you or someone can give me an ultra quick photo attaching tutorial, I will get some tomorrow! It is a neat little car. |
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Expert 5K+
Posts: 7207
Location: Victoria, BC, on Vancouver Island, Canada | To attach pictures, you have to use the "reply" button within the last post on thread - don't use the quick reply box underneath the last post of the thread. Once you click the reply button then at the bottom left you will notice a small check box that says "attach file before posting" Click the box and then push the submit button and you will be taken to an upload / browse area to load pictures from your computer.
Your photos must be under 200 KB - files over 200 KB ( I think that's max size) are rejected.
Edited by imopar380 2012-03-22 11:14 PM
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Location: Parts Unknown | If I had to put a bet on what color this car is, I'd say tan or beige metallic. So many of the
lo-buckers were.
Do tell, what color is it ? |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 566
Location: Wichita, Kansas | Pics here in a bit, the car is at my shop. Doc, you are correct, sir. It is that flesh-beige color with beige/copper interior. BUT, someone restored the car and painted it blue with a white top, and recovered the seats in blue tweed and white vinyl. They did a very nice job, I must say, but I prefer the flesh-beige color. But for $500 it was a no-brainer. It also came with a full set of wheelcovers and a full set of dog dish hubcaps.
Stay tuned... |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 566
Location: Wichita, Kansas | Here's the little beast. I need to polish out the paint before reinstalling the side trim. The guy painted it and then had to sell the car, so it has sat for a couple years outside. The paint is dull on top, but should polish out nicely. The car has very very little rust, all floor pans and trunk pan are excellent. Just a little bubbling in the rear quarter wheel arches, but all inner panels are like new. Even though the front seats are nicely done, I may have to do something about the blue. Not a very harmonizing color with the rest of the interior, but it beats springs in the rear end.
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Expert 5K+
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Location: Victoria, BC, on Vancouver Island, Canada | Nice. At only $500.00 it certainly was a no-brainer. In fact, if you decide to sell it I see instant profit!! $$
Edited by imopar380 2012-03-23 12:51 PM
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Expert
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Location: Jamaica Plain, MA | Did you get the brakes worked out? Pretty much every FL car I ever had would do that spooky lock-up thing if they sat too long. I either toughed it out and risked mechanical failure...stopping slowly over 20 minutes... Or on the advice of the gurus on here boiled my brake shoes. It was never a hose, leak or spring. Just a weird effect of the shoes sitting and absorbing stuff from the air or something. |
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60 Dodge factory power (vacuum) door locks
