1934 Desoto Airflow Sedan - Original One owner from new

1934 Desoto Airflow 4 Door Sedan, 84,678 Original Miles, one family owned since new, all original.

About a year ago, I purchased this Desoto from the original owner in Le Mars, Iowa, who’s father purchased the car brand new in 1934. I have a small collection of cars and I always thought that these Desotos were very interesting, so when the opportunity came to put one in my garage I had to jump on it. The car is completely original as far as I can tell and before my purchase, had spent the past 20 years in the original owners garage. She sold the car because she was approaching her 80’s, her husband had just recently passed away and she decided it was time to part with the car (as well as the 1951 Cadillac that she owned as well).

With the lengthy time it had spent in storage, as soon as I got it home, I took it to my long time mechanic who did a full service and going through on the car. I was actually surprised at how well the car cleaned up and how good of shape it was actually in! The car runs and drives great for its age and I’ve never had any problem with the car aside from the normal maintenance that you’d expect from a 30’s car. The paint and interior are in great shape as you can see from the pictures, and there are no rust issues with the car.

The car is original, and I have not done anything to the car to break from that originality. However, the seats do look like they were re-covered at one point, but look to be pretty old. I’d say probably over 20 years ago before it was put into storage, but in great shape. The speedometer is missing the needle and the glass lens, but i’ve only ever taken around my neighborhood so that never bothered me. It also is missing the windshield wipers, but i’ve never had it in the rain so I didn’t ever get around to looking for a set of those. These cars a getting to be very hard to find, so parts may prove to be an issue, but these cars share a lot with their Chrysler based sister so I’m sure some substitute parts would prove useful.

Other than that, I have no other major Items to fault this car on. It is an original example of a 30’s car so I’ve learned to have a realistic expectation for what you get with that. Its been a great car to take out for a little drive and have fun in, and to have one with such a good history is fascinating to me and only adds to the value. You’ll even see in the pictures that the original owner’s daughter had me take a picture in front of the car before she let me leave with it. Very interesting to hear from her and the stories she had about this car. These desotos are getting pretty rare, so I imagine they are only going to go up as they get older and harder to find (I may find myself regretting selling it in years to come!). This car would make a great collector car for someone as it sits, or if financially suitable, a great prospect for a full nut and bolt restoration as it has the history to go along with it.

It is located in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and I can keep it for a couple weeks or a month after the auction if you are distant and need some time to organize a shipper or plan logistics, I have no problem with that. I know a couple truckers I have used in the past for my cars, so if you’d need assistance with that I could help arrange it too, or at least help you find someone if you’d like. Message me with any questions about the car, if you’d like to have it inspected, or come see it yourself. I’d be happy to answer any questions!