Seldom do model names get so confused as Dodge’s use of “Custom,” “Royal,” and “Lancer.” This car labors under the burden of all three.

“Custom” was an upscale level of trim, “Lancer,” was initially Dodge’s name for a pillarless “hardtop” coupe or sedan.

“Royal” was a V-8-only series, the top line until “Custom Royal” upstaged it in 1955.

That year, also, the Lancer name was applied to three of the four Custom Royal body styles, a sedan and a convertible as well as the hardtop coupe.

This 1955 Custom Royal Lancer Convertible is an accurately presented example of Dodge’s top-of-the-line offering in the first year of Virgil Exner’s widely acclaimed “Forward Look” styling campaign.

Interestingly, the 1955 Dodge lineup remained the purview of designer Maury Baldwin, although Exner’s overarching styling philosophy undoubtedly impacted the final product (and its approval).

Baldwin’s implementation of a wraparound windshield and complex grille shapes further suggests Exner’s influence.
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