Crown Imperial limousine

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Crown Imperial limousine
Production period: 1955-1966
Class : Upper class
Body versions : Pullman limousine
Previous model: Chrysler Imperial

The Crown Imperial Sedan was a four-door representative vehicle that the American Chrysler Group offered from 1955 to 1966 under the Imperial brand . The cars were extended and high-quality versions of the regular Imperial models and made all stylistic and technical changes to the production models. They were handcrafted by various factories in the USA, Italy and Spain, including the Carrozzeria Ghia in Turin for a few years . This is the basis of the repeatedly used alternative name Imperial Ghia . The Crown Imperial sedans were intended to compete with Cadillac's Pullman Series 75 sedans , but never came close to their production numbers. They did not attain the status of a state car in the USA, although some African or Near Eastern rulers occasionally used imperial limousines, among them the Shah of Persia .

background

Imperial's trademark: "imperial" eagle

At the beginning of the 1950s, the Chrysler Group was set up on four tracks. In the upscale market segment, the group entered with the Chrysler brand, including the Dodge , DeSoto and Plymouth brands. Unlike General Motors and Ford , Chrysler did not have an independent brand in the upper class at that time. Instead, this segment was served with high-quality variants of Chrysler vehicles, which were sold under the Chrysler Imperial model name, which had been used since 1926 . The affiliation of these models to the mass manufacturer Chrysler had an adverse effect on sales because the name Chrysler was given less radiance than Cadillac or Lincoln, for example . Therefore, from 1955, Chrysler made Imperial an independent fifth brand in the group. Unlike Cadillac and Lincoln, Imperial did not initially distance itself technically and stylistically from the vehicles of the other group brands, which on the one hand promoted sales of the cheaper mass-production models of the other group brands, but on the other hand prevented the Imperial brand from developing an independent personality. The press and the public largely thought the Imperial models were "great Chryslers". In order to underline the high-class claim of the brand, Chrysler introduced an extended chauffeur-driven limousine, which was called the Crown Imperial , in its range from the start. The terminology gave cause for confusion, as the very similarly named Imperial Crown represented the middle equipment level of the standard - short - coupés, convertibles and sedans at the same time.

The series

1955 and 1956: Manufactured at Chrysler

Base of the Crown Imperial with short wheelbase: Imperial Four Door Sedan (1955)

The first generation of models from the newly established Imperial brand (factory designation C-69) were available from November 1954. The series program consisted of a two-door coupé and a four-door sedan (1956) or Southampton Sedan (1956). Both models were technically and stylistically very similar to the current Chrysler models. Right from the start, Imperial also offered a representative limousine with an extended wheelbase, which was called the C-70 in-house and was given the name Crown Imperial. The wheelbase was 3797 mm; so the C-70 was a total of 6192 mm long. Technically and stylistically, the Crown Imperial resembled the brand's short sedans. However, between the rear doors and the C-pillar, as a rule - but not without exception - it had a third, fixed window, and the C-pillar was shaped differently. While the Southampton Sedan had a rear panoramic window pulled into the sides of the car, the C-pillar of the Crown Imperial was wide. The rear window was much smaller than on short models. Unlike the regular hardtops, the entire roof section of the Crown Imperial was not made of metal, but of plastic. The Crown Imperial was offered as a six- and eight-seater; the eight-seat sedan had two folding seats in the rear. In the 1956 model year, the model was updated. It is true that the Crown Imperial took over the eight-cylinder engine, now called the C-73, which was enlarged to 5.8 liters; Apart from that, nothing changed with the representation limousine.

Like the Standard Imperial, the Crown Imperial was produced in Chrysler's Jefferson Avenue Assembly in Detroit . In both years the production volume was small. It reached no more than a tenth of the competing Cadillac Series 75 sedans, which were about US $ 1,000 cheaper than the Imperial. In 1955 Imperial sold 172 sedans, including 45 eight-seaters, in 1956 there were 51 eight-seaters and 172 six-seaters. Prices were $ 7,000 in the first and $ 7,700 in the second year of production.

The Crown Imperial of the 1955 and 1956 model years was the last representation sedan that the Chrysler Group produced itself.

1957 to 1964: Ghia

Crown Imperial Limousine (1958)

The second generation of the Imperial models appeared in the 1957 model year ; with a few stylistic changes it remained in the program until 1963. There were also regular Crown Imperial sedans of this generation.

In contrast to the sedans of 1955 and 1956, the second generation was no longer produced by Chrysler in the USA, but by hand at Ghia in Italy, where a number of show cars and small series models had already been manufactured for Chrysler in previous years. Production was relocated for cost reasons: While the conversion of the US factory to the new model generation would have cost US $ 3.3 million according to initial calculations, Ghia charged only US $ 15,000 for the preparation of production. However, Chrysler had to cover the costs of transporting the mechanical components as well as the standard sheet metal parts and the transport costs of the finished cars.

The production process was complex: In preparation, Chrysler put together half-finished kits at the Detroit plant. They comprised the complete body of a hardtop coupé (1957 to 1962) or that of a four-door sedan (1963 and 1964). It was mounted on the stiffened chassis of a convertible, which was also equipped with reinforced springs. This ensured that the Crown Imperial would take on the standard imperials' annual changes in style and technology. These kits were transported to Italy by ship. In Turin, the Ghia mechanics cut through the body and chassis, lengthened it by 520 mm (20.5 inches) and installed a third side window and the necessary extension plates in the middle section. The rear roof structure has also been redesigned; here Ghia did without the regular panorama window. In some cases, Ghia also installed particularly luxurious interiors that differed from the regular patterns. A partition was optionally installed between the driver and the passenger compartment. The manufacturing process for a sedan took about a month.

The big limousines were very expensive. In 1957, a Crown Imperial cost $ 15,075, more than three times the price of a stock Southampton hardtop sedan and twice as much as a Cadillac 75. A mid-range Dodge at the time was only $ 2,600. In the last year of production, the price of the Crown Imperial had risen to US $ 18,500. The model was never successful. Annual production usually only reached very low double-digit figures; the weakest year was 1959, when only seven vehicles were built.

The main focus of Ghia production lay in the model generation 1957 to 1963. When Imperial introduced the third generation of models for 1964, Ghia produced another 10 sedans with the new body. After that, the relationship between Chrysler and Ghia ended. The reasons for this are not clear. Some sources attribute the contract termination to the fact that Ghia had no experience converting the self-supporting bodies that Imperial would use from 1967 onwards. According to other sources, the break with Chrysler is related to the death of Ghia boss Luigi Segre in late 1963, as a result of which the company's future was uncertain for a time.

1965 and 1966: Barreiros

Crown Imperial Limousine (1965) from Barreiros production

After the contract with Ghia had expired, Imperial hired the Spanish company Barreiros to manufacture the representative limousines. Barreiros SA has been in close contact with Chrysler since the beginning of the decade. It produced several French and American Chrysler models under license for the Spanish market. At the end of 1964, Barreiros bought the production facilities for the Imperial sedans from Ghia. About 10 copies were made in Spain, which are officially assigned to the 1965 model year. According to some sources, the 10 sedans were based entirely on chassis that were manufactured in 1965, while the majority of the conversion should not have taken place until the 1966 calendar year. As with the sedans produced by Ghia, the rear doors of the Barreiros versions were directly adjacent to the front doors. The extension plates were installed in the area of ​​the rear fenders.

The Barreiros sedans, like their predecessors from Ghia, were listed in the Imperial catalog with a purchase price of US $ 18,500. One of the customers was the Shah of Persia, another the Spanish dictator Francisco Franco .

Successor: LeBaron Stageway Limousine

From 1967, Imperial marketed the representation vehicles under the name LeBaron Limousine. The LeBaron was already the most expensive and high-quality range of the brand's standard vehicles, while the Crown range was the entry-level model of the standard Imperials. With the renaming of the representative limousine, the affiliation to the most expensive model series should be made clear. From 1967, the American specialist Stageway Coaches in Fort Smith (Arkansas) , Arkansas , took over the production of the limousines. By 1970, around 25 sedans had been built with a wheelbase of 4104 mm and were the longest factory-made passenger cars in the United States. The limousines were equipped with two additional seats in the middle of the car and a cupboard-like container that held a television set and a bar. The move from European to domestic coachbuilders resulted in a price cut of more than US $ 2,000. In its final year of production, a LeBaron Stageway cost $ 16,000. At the end of the 1970 model year, Chrysler ended the factory offer of elongated sedans. In the following years, various independent body construction companies built extended limousines based on individual customer requests.

Individual conversions

Parallel to the factory-made Imperial limousines, several independent body construction companies had been producing independent long limousines on an Imperial basis since the 1960s, which were largely tailored to customer requirements. This includes the sedans from Andrew Theodorou Coachbuilders from Chicago . They differed from the factory sedans, among other things, in that the extension parts were installed between the front and rear doors.

literature

  • Richard M. Langworth: Encyclopedia of American Cars 1930-1980 . New York (Beekman House) 1984. ISBN 0-517-42462-2
  • Monte McElroy: The 1961–1963 Imperial Models , Part 1: WPC News, May 1982, p. 3 ff.
  • Monte McElroy: The 1961–1963 Imperial Models . Part 2: WPC News, June 1982, p. 4 ff.

Remarks

  1. ↑ Some models had a fully clad C-pillar that reached up to the opening of the rear doors.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d Richard M. Langworth: Encyclopedia of American Cars 1930–1980 . New York (Beekman House) 1984. ISBN 0-517-42462-2 , p. 387.
  2. ^ John Katz: 1955 Imperial . Special Interest Vehicles No. 129 (May / June 1992), p. 52.
  3. ↑ Time Magazine, November 15, 1954, p. 100.
  4. ^ NN: Imperial LeBaron. Chrysler's Largest has a Stylish New Look . Car Life dated July 2964.
  5. ^ NN: Luxury Automobiles on Trial . Comparative test Imperial Crown, Cadillac Series 60 Fleetwood and Lincoln Premiere of model year 1959, Motor Trend, September 1958 issue.
  6. ↑ Richard M. Langworth: Encyclopedia of American Cars 1930–1980 . Beekman House, New York 1984, ISBN 0-517-42462-2 , p. 388.
  7. ^ A b Sarah Bradley: Imperial Highway. Classic American, March 2001 issue.
  8. ^ A b Stanley Opatowsky: The Eagle Spreads is Wings . Classic American, August 1975, p. 10.
  9. ^ Stanley Opatowsky: The Eagle Spreads is Wings . Classic American, August 1975, p. 11.
  10. ↑ a b c d Monte McElroy: The 1961–1963 Imperial Models , Part 1: WPC News, May 1982, p. 12.
  11. ↑ a b History of the Barreiros-Imperials on the website www.vehiculosclasicos.com (accessed on November 25, 2016).
  12. ↑ Richard M. Langworth: Encyclopedia of American Cars 1930–1980 . New York (Beekman House) 1984. ISBN 0-517-42462-2 , p. 394.
  13. ^ Sales brochure for a Theodorou limousine from 1967 .