Dodge Custom 880

Dodge Custom 880
1964 Dodge 880 four-door sedan
Overview
Model years	1962–1965
Body and chassis
Platform	B-body
Related	Plymouth Belvedere
Powertrain
Engine	361 CID 265 hp (198 kW) 265hpV8
Transmission	3-speed manual 3-speed Torqueflite automatic
Dimensions
Wheelbase	122 in (3,099 mm)
Length	213.5 in (5,423 mm)
Width	79 in (2,007 mm)

The Dodge Custom 880 is an automobile that was marketed by Dodge from 1962 through the end of the 1965 model year. It was to fill Dodge's product offer in the mid-price full-size market segment, as well as to help fill the void in Chrysler's lineup left by the discontinuation of DeSoto in 1961.

The Custom 880 was developed to fill consumer demand for a full-size Dodge passenger car during the 1962 model year.

The 1962 Dodges introduced in the fall of 1961 had their origins in a rumor heard by a Chrysler executive that Chevrolet was planning to downsize their full-sized automobiles for the 1962 model year, which debuted as the GM "A" body in 1964. Not wanting Chrysler to play catch-up, and wanting to beat Chevrolet at its own game, Plymouth and Dodge designs were placed in an emergency downsizing program that took the previously approved full-size designs and shrank them to smaller vehicles that would compete head-to-head with the rumored smaller Chevrolet.

But to Chrysler's shock and dismay, Chevrolet's 1962 full-size lineup emerged slightly larger than the 1961 models, with the mid-range Chevrolet Bel Air (on a 119 in (3,000 mm) wheelbase) growing a .5 in (13 mm) longer in its body, although the car weighed 45 lb (20 kg) less than its 1961 predecessor. The rumored "small Chevrolet" turned out to be the new GM "X" body Chevy II compact, which was intended to bolster Chevy's position where the Corvair had faltered in that segment of the market.

The "full-size" Dodge Polara and Dart that emerged for 1962 were built on a 3 in (76 mm) shorter (116 in (2,900 mm)) wheelbase and were 7 in (180 mm) shorter overall than the comparable Chevrolet, placing Dodge in the precarious position with consumers of not offering a true full-sized automobile. Ford also brought their new intermediate- or mid-size Ford Fairlane and Mercury Meteor to market for 1962 with a 115 in (2,900 mm) wheelbase (116.1 in (2,950 mm) on all Meteors but wagons). They were roughly the same size as the new standard-size Dodges, which made the new Mopars intermediates by default. The AMC Rambler was also similarly sized and was introduced to North America in 1961.