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Dual-Ghia |
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| Dual-Ghia 1956-1958 | |||
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Dual-Ghia L.6.4 1961-63 This car was made by Casaroll and company. Production was only 26 cars, built only as a glassy two-door hardtop with styling by Ghia. The front was like the earlier Dual-Ghia. The model designation relates to the displacement, in liters, of the Chrysler 383-cid wedgehead V8, but there were fewer Mopar components (including the separate chassis, which was now a special design as Chrysler had switched to unit construction for all its cars except Imperial in 1960). Twice as costly as its predecessor and faster but softer riding, with handling not as taut as that of the earlier cars. But svelte good looks made up for a lot, and everybody who was anybody wanted one. Again, however, incredibly high overhead costs plagued the project, and Casaroll called it quits after a mere handful of cars were built. He would go on to play a role in the project that led to a new Stutz, born out of Virgil Exner's proposal for a modern Duesenberg. SPECIFICATIONS Length (in.) 210.0 Wheelbase (in.) 115.0 Weight (Ibs.) 4200 Price (new) $13,500 ENGINES cid/type 383/ohv V8 bore x stroke 4.25 x 3.38 bhp 335
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This car was produced by auto transport contractor Eugene Casaroll, who
formed Dual Motors in Detroit to build this limited-production
convertible based on Virgil Exner's Dodge Firebomb/Firearrow
Show cars of the early 1950s. When Chrysler decided not to put the
basic design into production, Casaroll bought the original
Firebomb show car, had it reengineered, and contracted to buy
complete Dodge chassis, including the hot D-500 V8. The plan
was to build 150 Dual-Ghias per year. Chassis were shipped to
Turin, Italy where the Ghia coachworks hammered out the steel
bodies by hand over aluminum dies. Designer Paul Farago had
added extra passenger ad cargo space to enhance liveability.
Quality was the watchword: My moldings were held in place with
chrome-plated brass clips, aM interiors were swathed in genuine
Connolly hides. Ghia fitted body to chassis, and the completed
assembly was returned to DebDit where Dual Motors installed the
drivetrain and the interior trim. Despite all its custom
craftsmanship, the Dual-Ghia was priced less than a contemporary
Cadillac Eldorado and Continental Mark 11. Hollywood personalities
(notably Frank Sinatra, Peter Lawford, and other members of the
"Rat Pack") vied with one another to get on the waiting list. But
mounting costs combined with Casaroll's rehul to compromise
quality lost the company money on every car. Distinctive and quite
fast, with a top speed of 120 mph reported in a contemporary road
test. The first-generation Dual-Ghia venture ended in 1958.
SPECIFICATIONS Length (in.) 203.0 Wheelbase (in.) 115.0 Weight (Ibs.) 3800 Price (new) $7741 ENGINES Cid/type 315/ohv V8 bore x stroke 3.63 x 3.80 bhp 230-285
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