shining her up so we can appreciate the fantastic driver-grade patina even more--this is wonderful.
i love imperials. they're old-school and badass and a little bit different, and collectors don't really care about them, which means i could probably afford one.
i'm curious: does that house back up to a hillside? it looks like it has a nice view.
Great set of photos. I really have a soft spot for these, they look great still and I'd drive one every day. In the Pretenders song "Precious", the line I love is when she sings "I had my eye on your Imperial". Yeah, If Chrissie Hynde get turned on by these, that's saying something! Nice to see the original Washington plates and the wasp seems happy you captured his good side!
Man! This blog gets better and better every day! First Tony comes along with the Datsun pickup, and now Ben wows us with an honest-to-goodness Imperial! I sure wish I had these pics when I drew a portrait of a '68 Imperial ragtop that my neighbor lady once owned. This car is awesome! I like its completeness, lack of dents, and shiny chrome trim. I really could see myself owning one. Gotta go guys! Time to wipe the drool off my keyboard!
I talked to experts about this before on another site and they said it's an Imperial Crown not a Chrysler Imperial Crown during this time. Although it does say Chrysler Corporation. So which is it really?
These were Imperials through '69, then they changed everything from the bodystyle to the name. All cars built after '69 were Chrysler Imperials. They shared the same body with the New Yorker except for the Imperial facia at each end. Sadly, they shared the same quality issues too. By 1975, there wasn't much left to do but end production. The marque had outlived its usefulness. I recall too that Chrysler revived the Imperial in '81, but too few people cared. I think only a few thousand were sold before production ceased.
Despite the little "by Chrysler" badges that appeared in 1972-73, Imperial was its own marque from 1955 through 1975, and again for the 1981-83 coupes.
Sharing a platform with Chrysler Division models does not define how Chrysler marketed the brand (after all, Dodge and Plymouth models also shared body shells with Chrysler models). Chrysler did do a lot to confuse people with this, but it did remain separate through 1983. (There are no Chrysler badges on the '74-75 or '81-83 models, by the way.)
It wasn't until the 1990 model that Imperial was again a model within the Chrysler Division. But this 1967 Imperial (not the '69 model) is the first year it used the Unibody that was shared with the other divisions.
Chrysler Division ≠ Chrysler Corporation. The Division is the brand of car, the Corporation is the holding company for all the Divisions (Dodge, Plymouth, Imperial, Chrysler, etc.)
I always had a respect for Imperials. I think 1966 was the last year for (However you want to word this) the truly unique independent Imperial. Anyway though the 67' and 68' Imperials were very clean looking cars. Even though I've never sat in a Imperial. Just from what I've observed peering inside Imperials, I have to admit I think they probably have the most luxurious interiors compared to the other two (Cadillac and Lincoln). I think if the Chrysler Corporation would've dropped the Imperial this particular year 1967 & decided to make that exact car a top of the line New Yorker-hence- Deluxe, Royal, Brougham exc, The car probably would've sold very well & probably would of won over some Buick/Oldsmobile owners.
Well Richard, I did! I owned a '58 Crown 4-door HT. And it came with all the trimmings like the special stainless steel half roof (the part behind the stainless steel insert matched the color of the car) anodized gold trim such as the eagles on the front fenders just above the headlamps, and the bars that made up the grille, and side badging as well. Inside, there was that gorgeuos leather and jacquard interior, which also housed a brightly trimmed instrument panel that also held the FM/AM radio wth foot switch. And who could forget those famous Imperial pushbuttons. The ride was superb. Felt as though you were riding on a cloud. Yeah, the handling was wishy- washy, but this was a 5,600 pound barge! I seem to recall that the power steering unit would squeal loudly if pushed too hard. This car was a smooth and powerful cruiser with a great sense of style. I could kick myself for trading it for a '66 Chevy Caprice SS, but that's another story!
I have to confess I had forgotten this, but I did sit and go for a ride in an Imperial once. It was a 1964 crown four-door hardtop. It was in 1984-85 somewhere in Westchester County New York. My father was thinking about buying the vehicle. At that point the car could have gone either way. It's wasn't necessarily a show car, & could've been just a classical 20 year old car to get around. The idea of getting a classic car never panned out ( I was pushing that idea). Instead in the spring of 1985 he bought a brand-new Chrysler LeBaron.To bad it couldn't of been Imperial LeBaron 20 years it's senior.
Though the 1967 and later Imperials adopted the corporate uni-body construction, they retained a longer wheelbase (cowl forward) and their own 5on5 wheel bolt pattern through 1973.
The wheels (and brake rotors/drums) on these cars will not interchange with any other Chrysler product except maybe Dodge half-ton trucks.
Imperial ceased production in 1975 primarily as a result of the Arab oil embargo which started at the end of 1973. All luxury car sales suffered, but Imperial, always a low-volume seller, suffered most.
Sales leaders Dodge Dart, Plymouth Valiant, and the new "small Chrysler" Cordoba really kept Chrysler afloat following that first gas crisis.
Best of OPC. 
16 comments:
shining her up so we can appreciate the fantastic driver-grade patina even more--this is wonderful.
i love imperials. they're old-school and badass and a little bit different, and collectors don't really care about them, which means i could probably afford one.
i'm curious: does that house back up to a hillside? it looks like it has a nice view.
These are wonderful photos. I love all of them but especially appreciate those which include the owner. Really sweet.
And it looks like you were able to engage with him - nice shot of the wasps nest - kudos.
Really great work Ben.
Great set of photos. I really have a soft spot for these, they look great still and I'd drive one every day. In the Pretenders song "Precious", the line I love is when she sings "I had my eye on your Imperial". Yeah, If Chrissie Hynde get turned on by these, that's saying something! Nice to see the original Washington plates and the wasp seems happy you captured his good side!
The shots of the grill, honeycomb and "PERFECT CIRCLE" are great. "PERFECT CIRCLE" would make a good album cover.
I agree Justin.
Imperial is the make not Chrysler from 1955-75.
Man! This blog gets better and better every day! First Tony comes along with the Datsun
pickup, and now Ben wows us with an honest-to-goodness Imperial! I sure wish I had these
pics when I drew a portrait of a '68 Imperial ragtop that my neighbor lady once owned. This
car is awesome! I like its completeness, lack of dents, and shiny chrome trim. I really could see
myself owning one. Gotta go guys! Time to wipe the drool off my keyboard!
Justin, that was an excellent observation!
I talked to experts about this before on another site and they said it's an Imperial Crown not a Chrysler Imperial Crown during this time. Although it does say Chrysler Corporation. So which is it really?
These were Imperials through '69, then they changed everything from the bodystyle to the
name. All cars built after '69 were Chrysler Imperials. They shared the same body with the
New Yorker except for the Imperial facia at each end. Sadly, they shared the same quality issues too. By 1975, there wasn't much left to do but end production. The marque had
outlived its usefulness. I recall too that Chrysler revived the Imperial in '81, but too few people
cared. I think only a few thousand were sold before production ceased.
Despite the little "by Chrysler" badges that appeared in 1972-73, Imperial was its own marque from 1955 through 1975, and again for the 1981-83 coupes.
Sharing a platform with Chrysler Division models does not define how Chrysler marketed the brand (after all, Dodge and Plymouth models also shared body shells with Chrysler models). Chrysler did do a lot to confuse people with this, but it did remain separate through 1983. (There are no Chrysler badges on the '74-75 or '81-83 models, by the way.)
It wasn't until the 1990 model that Imperial was again a model within the Chrysler Division. But this 1967 Imperial (not the '69 model) is the first year it used the Unibody that was shared with the other divisions.
Chrysler Division ≠ Chrysler Corporation. The Division is the brand of car, the Corporation is the holding company for all the Divisions (Dodge, Plymouth, Imperial, Chrysler, etc.)
I always had a respect for Imperials.
I think 1966 was the last year for (However you want to word this) the truly unique independent Imperial. Anyway though the 67' and 68' Imperials were very clean looking cars. Even though I've never sat in a Imperial. Just from what I've observed peering inside Imperials, I have to admit I think they probably have the most luxurious interiors compared to the other two (Cadillac and Lincoln). I think if the Chrysler Corporation would've dropped the Imperial this particular year 1967 & decided to make that exact car a top of the line New Yorker-hence- Deluxe, Royal, Brougham exc, The car probably would've sold very well & probably would of won over some Buick/Oldsmobile owners.
Yeah I got distracted from the Imperial marque by watching this fun video about Jay Leno's Imperial, definitely watch it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fMtsCfYZlog
that was a great episode. you can see the corners of jay's mouth turning up in a smile that he just can't suppress. he really, really loves that car.
Well Richard, I did! I owned a '58 Crown 4-door HT. And it came with all the trimmings
like the special stainless steel half roof (the part behind the stainless steel insert matched the color of the car) anodized gold trim such as the eagles on the front fenders
just above the headlamps, and the bars that made up the grille, and side badging
as well. Inside, there was that gorgeuos leather and jacquard interior, which also housed a brightly trimmed instrument panel that also held the FM/AM radio wth foot
switch. And who could forget those famous Imperial pushbuttons. The ride was
superb. Felt as though you were riding on a cloud. Yeah, the handling was wishy-
washy, but this was a 5,600 pound barge! I seem to recall that the power steering
unit would squeal loudly if pushed too hard. This car was a smooth and powerful
cruiser with a great sense of style. I could kick myself for trading it for a '66 Chevy
Caprice SS, but that's another story!
I have to confess I had forgotten this, but I did sit and go for a ride in an Imperial once. It was a 1964 crown four-door hardtop. It was in 1984-85 somewhere in Westchester County New York. My father was thinking about buying the vehicle. At that point the car could have gone either way. It's wasn't necessarily a show car, & could've been just a classical 20 year old car to get around. The idea of getting a classic car never panned out ( I was pushing that idea). Instead in the spring of 1985 he bought a brand-new Chrysler LeBaron.To bad it couldn't of been Imperial LeBaron 20 years it's senior.
Though the 1967 and later Imperials adopted the corporate uni-body construction, they retained a longer wheelbase (cowl forward) and their own 5on5 wheel bolt pattern through 1973.
The wheels (and brake rotors/drums) on these cars will not interchange with any other Chrysler product except maybe Dodge half-ton trucks.
Imperial ceased production in 1975 primarily as a result of the Arab oil embargo which started at the end of 1973. All luxury car sales suffered, but Imperial, always a low-volume seller, suffered most.
Sales leaders Dodge Dart, Plymouth Valiant, and the new "small Chrysler" Cordoba really kept Chrysler afloat following that first gas crisis.
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