Garage Find Hemi! 1956 Imperial by Chrysler
To give the Imperial a perceived boost against Cadillac and Lincoln, Chrysler spun the nameplate off as its own brand in 1955. In the process, the car got a design facelift with the “Forward Look” Chryslers just around the corner. This example from 1956 had an engine rebuild long ago, but it’s been sitting for the last five years without a start-up. Located in a heated garage in Beaverton, Oregon, this luxurious land yacht is waiting for someone to come along and bring it back to life. It’s available here on craigslist where the buyer who makes the best offer over $10,000 will get to take the automobile home. Kudos to T.J. for the nifty garage find!
After a successful rebirth in 1955, the Imperial was little changed the following year. The 331 cubic-inch “Hemi” V8 got a boost to 354 CI and received an extra 30 hp in the process. And the shifter for the automatic transmission moved from a dashboard lever to the push button variety that Chrysler would use into the mid-1960s. The seller indicates that fewer than 2,100 of the 2-door hardtops were built in 1956 and that number is verified.
As the story goes, this Imperial was the pride and joy of his father. Nearly 50 years ago, the Hemi was rebuilt, and the seller believes it was bored slightly over and the crankshaft a tad under. Since then, the Imperial was driven only 25 miles before being put up and then only started occasionally thereafter. We’re not told if the vehicle will start now, but it won’t stop, so this will be a cautious roller until the buyer can treat the automobile to some shop time.
The white over turquoise paint looks good from what we can see, but the seller indicates “some light body work” is needed and mentions the paint and front seats will also require some attention. He/she thought about keeping and restoring the car, but the available space and HOA rules won’t permit the project to take place. If you’re the top bidder, you’ll also get a trunk full of parts and some leftover upholstery materials from the 1970s.
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Comments
The body looks really solid. Nothing unusual about having to rebuild the motor and brake system on a 65+ year old car. For 10K I’d take it in a heartbeat if I was anywhere near it. Boyd Coddington built one of these way back, always wanted one after I saw that.
This is a nice car and as the mechanic I knew when I was a kid said, If you don’t have a good body you don’t have anything.
Bargan. Nice paint, chrome, interior. Would be worth 10 K with the engine missing
I just read the Craigslist posting. The engines been rebuilt, should run like new. The brakes need bleeding or some work due to being in storage for many years If I didn’t have 30 cars I’d bid $15,000
Interesting way to go about selling this. Thirty days opportunity to place an offer for over 10K. No BIN price. I’d want more information especially photos before submitting an offer. From what I can see this seems like a solid vehicle that needs work from sitting so long. At 10K it’s reasonably priced. These are nice cars. I had a similar one; a 1955 DeSoto. GLWTS.
Lve these 1955’s and 1956’s. I travel around California and have a few of these spotted and about to go back and visit and see if I can become the proud owner of one or more. Many did have factory air conditioning. Chrysler still had the ac in the trunk and air inlets outside the rear windshield. On the border with Mexico I saw a 1954 Chrysler Imperial hardtop with factory AC. Love to find that car again. I have a 1955 spotted up near Kelseyville, Ca. Want that one also. I have a collection of 1:18 scale model cars, almost 600 of them and several Imperials in the collection.
I didn’t say that they need my endorsement. I was simply noting that this method of selling was different than what we usually see.
Pretty sure the Imperial enthusiasts would object to the “Imperial by Chrysler” in the title. We don’t say “Plymouth by Chrysler,” after all.
Chrysler Corp. should have had the Imperial cars stand out above the other makes much higher. From a galloping horse a New Yorker could be more impressive than an Imperial. Chrysler suffered from poor quality control also. A very interesting fact about Chrysler Corp. As of 1975 Chrysler Cotp. never had a plant manager retire. They were either fired or the had the”big one”. I was in management at Kelsey Hayes and we sold truckloads of auto components daily to all the auto companies