Chrysler LeBaron (M-Body)
| Chrysler | |
|---|---|
 Chrysler LeBaron Sedan (Series 1)
|
|
| LeBaron | |
| Production period: | 1977-1981 |
| Class : | upper middle class |
| Body versions : | Sedan , station wagon , coupé |
| Engines: |
Petrol engines : 3.7-5.9 liters (62.5-125 kW) |
| Length: | 5123-5225 mm |
| Width: | 1885 mm |
| Height: | 1354-1410 mm |
| Wheelbase : | 2865 mm |
| Empty weight : | 1454-1691 kg |
| successor | Chrysler LeBaron |
The Chrysler LeBaron , based on the M platform (also: M-Body) , was a vehicle produced from 1977 to 1981 with which the American Chrysler group entered the compact luxury vehicle segment for the first time. The well-equipped car was the smallest vehicle in the history of the Chrysler brand. It competed against the Cadillac Seville and the Lincoln Versailles . It founded a model family that - with a few modifications - was produced until 1989.
background
The first oil crisis in the USA in the mid-1970s led to increased interest in smaller, but well-equipped vehicles. After a few imported vehicles such as the Mercedes-Benz "Stroke Eight" had initially served this market alone, General Motors, with the Cadillac Seville and the Ford Motor Company, began in 1976 with increasing success with local designs in this segment. Chrysler added its LeBaron to the Seville and Versailles from 1977. The model name referred to a pre-war American body manufacturer of the same name , which was taken over by Chrysler in 1935.
Technology and design
With the LeBaron, Chrysler founded a new model family that was internally grouped under the name Chrysler M platform. Regardless of this, the LeBaron was no more a new development than its competitors from General Motors and Ford were. While the Cadillac Seville was derived from the Chevrolet Nova and the Lincoln Versailles was derived from the Ford Granada , the LeBaron largely relied on Chrysler's F platform . He was technically and externally closely related to the Dodge Aspen and the Plymouth Volare .
technology
The LeBaron used the same suspension as the Aspen / Volaré; Brakes, wheelbase and body-in-white were also identical. Initially, only a 5.2 liter eight-cylinder engine served as the drive; From 1978 to 1981, the Slant Six in-line six- cylinder with 3.7 liters displacement was also available as an alternative . In the 1978 and 1979 model years, a 5.9-liter eight-cylinder engine was also available.
design
In terms of style, the LeBaron was largely identical to the Aspen / Volaré. Numerous body parts such as doors and fenders as well as the glazing could be interchanged. However, the Chrysler designers were able to conceal the “Plebejan Origins” (the “bourgeois roots”) of the LeBaron better than the Lincoln designers had succeeded in the case of Versailles. The front section of the LeBaron was designed entirely independently. In addition, the indicators were mounted horizontally above the front headlights. Such positioning was unique among American automobiles of the 1970s. The LeBaron was available as a sedan, coupé and - from 1978 - also as a station wagon, which received the traditional name Town & Country . Until 1979, all body versions were based on the same wheelbase; with the facelift in 1980, however, the LeBaron Coupé received a wheelbase that was 10 cm shorter.
In 1980 the LeBaron received a major facelift with a completely new roof line. The C-pillar was now significantly steeper, and the rear end, including the light unit, was completely redesigned. The grille was also new. The LeBaron now sported a Waterfall grill that had appeared in 1974 on Chrysler's then top model Imperial LeBaron and had been used by the large, exclusive New Yorker since 1975 . The side position lights have been repositioned. In addition, the rear fenders of the coupé were now designed in a straight line.
The equipment variants were the basic model, the LeBaron S or Special as an entry-level model with reduced equipment and the top models LeBaron Salon and LeBaron Medallion.
Special model: LeBaron Fifth Avenue Edition
A special model that was only offered in 1980 was the LeBaron Fifth Avenue Edition . The car had a special vinyl roof that, in the style of a Landau, only included the rear part of the vehicle roof in the area of the C-pillar. In addition, the fixed triangular window in the rear doors was covered with vinyl. Between the vinyl cover and the roof, which was painted in the same color as the car, ran a wide chrome strip that served to visually separate it. The vinyl construction was developed by the American Sunroof Company (ASC), which specializes in convertible conversions; the modifications were also carried out there. In the 1980 model year, only 650 LeBaron Fifth Avenue vehicles were produced. In 1981 this version was no longer available. The design concept, however, was used almost unchanged for the Chrysler New York Fifth Avenue and its successor Chrysler Fifth Avenue .
Prices
The LeBaron Sedan V8 was offered in the 1977 model year at a base price of US $ 4,898, the better-equipped Medallion version had a price of US $ 5,496. A comparable motorized Plymouth Volaré cost US $ 3,500. The Cadillac Seville and Lincoln Versailles were more than twice as expensive (US $ 11,200 and US $ 13,595, respectively), while the 600 mm longer and significantly heavier Chrysler Newport was the same price as the LeBaron.
Over the years the prices for a LeBaron Medallion have increased significantly. In the 1979 model year, the technically and externally unchanged car already cost US $ 6,556, and in 1980, after a facelift, the retail price increased to US $ 7,424.
production
From 1977 to 1981, a total of 431,616 copies of the LeBaron were made. With the conversion of the model range to the front-wheel drive K-Car family , Chrysler passed the name LeBaron on to an extended version of the Plymouth Reliant from 1982 onwards .
Nevertheless, the M-Body sedan continued to be produced until 1989. The car took on the role of the top model of the Chrysler Corporation from 1982 and was sold under various names - Chrysler New Yorker (model year 1982), New Yorker Fifth Avenue (1983) and Chrysler Fifth Avenue (1984 to 1989) - in almost 500,000 copies.
Parallel models
The Dodge brand belonging to the Chrysler Group offered its own, slightly more simply equipped version of the LeBaron from 1977 under the name Dodge Diplomat . The diplomat was cheaper than the LeBaron, but sold significantly worse. In addition, a Plymouth version called the Caravelle was also available on the Canadian market .
Technical specifications
| Chrysler LeBaron | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 3.7 liter R6 | 5.2 liter V8 | 5.9 liter V8 | |
| Construction time: | 1978-1981 | 1977-1981 | 1978-1979 |
| Engine: | Six-cylinder in-line four-stroke engine |
Eight-cylinder V-engine (four-stroke) | |
| Displacement: | 3678 cc | 5210 cc | 5898 cc |
| Bore × stroke: | 86.4 x 104 mm | 99.3 x 84.1 mm | 101.6 x 90.9 mm |
| Performance at 1 / min: | 85 hp 90 hp |
120 hp 160 hp |
170 hp |
| Compression: | 8.4: 1 | 8.5: 1 | 8.4: 1 |
| Mixture preparation: | Single carburetor optionally double carburetor |
Double carburetor optionally quadruple carburetor |
Quadruple carburetor |
| Valve control: | underlying camshaft | ||
| Cooling: | Water cooling | ||
| Transmission: | Three-speed automatic 1979 optional three-speed manual gearbox with overdrive |
Three-speed automatic | |
| Front suspension: | Wishbone torsion bar springs |
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| Rear suspension: | Rigid axle leaf springs |
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| Brakes: | Front disc brakes, rear drum brakes |
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| Body: | Steel self-supporting | ||
| Wheelbase: | 2863 mm Coupé (1980–1981): 2761 mm |
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| Dimensions (length × width × height): |
5235 × 1849 × 1405 Coupé (1980–1981): 5110 × 1885 × 1405 |
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| Empty weight: | 1454-1691 | ||
| Top speed: | 155-160 km / h | 165-170 km / h | 185 km / h |
literature
- Albert R. Bochroch: American Cars of the Seventies . Warne's Transport Library, London 1982. ISBN 0-7232-2870-1 .
- Richard M. Langworth: Encyclopedia of American Cars 1930-1980 . New York (Beekman House) 1984. ISBN 0-517-42462-2 .
Web links
- Model history on the website www.allpar.com
- Sales brochure Chrysler LeBaron 1978
- Sales brochure Chrysler LeBaron 1980
- Chrysler LeBaron 1981 sales brochure
Individual evidence
- ↑ Langworth: Encyclopedia of American Cars 1930–1980, p. 197.
- ↑ Langworth: Encyclopedia of American Cars 1930–1980, p. 278 (on Lincoln Versailles).
- ↑ Illustration of an advertisement for the Chrysler LeBaron Fifth Avenue (1980)
- ↑ Price information from Langworth: Encyclopedia of American Cars 1930–1980, esp. P. 210 f.
- ↑ The technical data were taken from the auto catalog numbers 21 (1977/78) to 25 (1981/82).