Cars with History: Dodge Deora

The Dodge Deora deserves a place on a list of the 10 strangest concept cars ever built, although the truth is it has its charm due to its futuristic shape, in which they tried to capture what a pick-up of the future would look like. Not for nothing was this concept planned in 1964, a time when many manufacturers and coachbuilders had a prodigious imagination regarding the cars that were supposedly going to be seen on the streets in the years to come.

The Deora was designed by a GM designer, Harry Bentley Bradley, and built by two renowned Detroit customizers named Mike and Larry Alexander, the equivalent today of mentioning Chip Foose. Initially, they tried to get GM’s support to provide everything needed for its construction, but without success; another vehicle had to be sacrificed to bring the Deora to life, and that vehicle was none other than the Dodge A100 pick-up.

The idea was to cut a section of the roof pillars of the Dodge A100 to reduce its height and give the impression that the whole vehicle was lower. The rest of the components could be taken from other models, so the Deora became a sort of Frankenstein; the design also included the use of the tailgate of a 1960 Ford Station Wagon to allow front access to the cabin; while the door pivoted to allow two people to enter, the upper part of the windscreen could be raised by an electric motor.

The engine originally placed at the front of the original Dodge A100 had to be relocated to what corresponded to the cargo area; the radiator was kept at an acceptable temperature thanks to electric fans, while the fuel tank was moved behind the cabin. All of this was conveniently hidden by the cover over the load bed.

The Deora was presented at the 1967 Autorama and kept as a show car for two years before being sold in 1970. Over the years, the car stayed in the hands of the same owner, which explains why it still remains in quite respectable condition, despite having been restored once, in 2002.

The Dodge Deora is a clear example of days when imagination came before figures for fuel consumption, emissions or safety. One of the strangest concepts in the world, and one you may have known through the famous HotWheels scale model.