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. Origins The Custom 880 was developed to fill consumer demand for a full-size Dodge passenger car during the 1962 model year. Chrysler's president overheard and misunderstood Chevrolet chief Ed Cole to have said Chevrolet's largest cars would be downsized for 1962. Chrysler designers were forced to take the planned 1962 Dodge full-size line and shorten the design to fit a more compact wheelbase in a last-minute effort to compete with what was supposed to be a smaller new Chevrolet. GM was developing a new mid-sized automobile that would become the 1964 Chevelle. 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 wheelbase) growing a longer in its body, although the car weighed less than its 1961 predecessor. The rumored "small Chevrolet" turned out to be the new A-body Chevrolet Chevelle mid-sized platform, 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 shorter () wheelbase and were 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 wheelbase ( 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. Compounding the size issue were the designs themselves, which did not translate well from their full-size origins to what amounted to intermediate size. The proposed curved side glass was deleted in favor of flat glass, which did not match the curve of the body sides. They also reduced the total glass area, which made the cars look smaller. An unpopular design for the second year in a row, the 1961 models had awkward-looking "reversed" tailfins and a pinched grille, among