Fintastic! 1960 Imperial Crown Sedan
Fins of various height and sculpture punctuated the Virgil Exner-designed second generation Imperial from 1957 to 1961, and this 1960 Imperial Crown in Staunton, Missouri (outside St. Louis) wears the most outrageous Imperial fins ever. For 1957, Chrysler established Imperial as its own platform like Dodge and Plymouth, and while most 1960 Imperial owners will bite your head off if you call their car a Chrysler, here’s one listing theirs on Craigslist as a “Chrysler Imperial.” The entry-level Custom and this mid-range Crown model received the curved rear glass and smaller C pillar while LeBaron models granted rear seat passengers more privacy with a limousine-style rear window. Off the roads until recently since 1979, the black sedan shows 53,000 miles and “runs, shifts, and drives,” according to the seller. The asking price of $7500 will put this pinnacle of 1960s luxury in your driveway. Thanks to reader Gunter K. for spotting this Show-Me State cruiser.
The elliptical steering wheel offers an unobstructed view of the twin hooded instrument pods. Even novice enthusiasts know that certain old Chrysler products have the push-button transmission, including this ’60 Imperial. You can just see them stacked vertically behind the steering wheel on the left. Amenities include air conditioning, Automatic Beam Changer (dims high beams when another car approaches), and power radio antennae. Auto-Pilot marked one of the earliest uses of cruise control, including a resume feature. While I never trust a seller who doesn’t show a good picture of the driver’s seat, a number of pictures in the listing show a car remarkably intact after 61 years of use and storage.
The 413 cid (6.8L) V8 used 10:1 compression and wedge combustion chambers to make 350 HP, expelling spent gasses through dual exhaust. Thanks to ImperialClub for some details. The three-speed TorqueFlite transmission is known for its durability. This engine compartment looks original and honest. Thankfully the seller refrained from attacking it with hardware store spray paint.
Imperial not only looked different from its lesser Chrysler siblings, it was physically wider inside and out, boasting 81.7 in (2,075 mm) of width. Front shoulder room of 62.0 in (1,575 mm) makes it the roomiest Imperial of all, with the widest such measurement of any car until 1971, according to Wikipedia. A host of new parts has this heavyweight ready for the highway. For comfort and style I’d take this ride over just about any new car or SUV. A smart valet manager will bump that Escalade to a lesser spot to display this Imperial, even if it’s not perfect. Where can you find more style and luxury for $7500?
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Comments
This car REALLY needs whitewall tires! Black walls were much less expensive and therefore were not used on luxury cars; in addition to the fact that when these cars were designed, they were designed with the whitewalls in mind providing a certain look. This Imperial looks to be a good candidate for a cosmetic restoration. GLWTS!! :-)
Blackwalls give it an “export” look, or even on a black car like this a “funeral” one.
This looks VERY interesting indeed. I kinda liked the earlier floating-headlight versions which a neighbor had.
Free standing headlights were from 61-63.
Also, the article states that Imperial became a stand alone marque in 57, when in fact it was 55.
If anyone’s interested my car is pictured on the wikipedia website in the 1962 section, the silver/grey 2 door with registration number plate XSA-828. I liken it to diving an aircraft carrier, it’s still LHD, all of the cars in Australia are RHD but we have a special dispensation to drive LHD, it also makes it easier to abuse the other drivers ‘cos they’re on your side right next to you!
I think these were far more tasteful looking than what Cadillac and Lincoln were offering and I say this as someone who isn’t a Mopar fan. They were attractive cars.
As I looked at the picture of the steering wheel and dash, it suddenly occurred to me where Jim Henson got the inspiration for Oscar The Grouch.
To me the back of the car looks like some newly discovered deep sea species. Very Intimidating with those red taillights only to open its enormous trunk and swallow its prey! Love it!!
Its just they still drive with it.
Most outrageous Imperial fins on the ’60? Nah, I’d say the ’61 takes the honors there.
We had one of these bought new when I was a kid. Crown Southampton 4-door. Which meant it was the hardtop, not the sedan. A fantastic long-distance highway cruiser, especially when equipped with “Airtemp” factory a/c. 80 mph in total comfort. I likened it to a ride on the Super Chief.
If you look up the wikipedea link under the 1962 section that’s my silver/grey 2 door at the V8 Supercars street race event in Adelaide, S. Australia. It’s still LHD as we can still drive them as long as they’re over 30 years old, makes it easier to abuse the guy next to you ‘cos he’s on your side at the traffic lights!
Pretty amazing to some, I bet, at one time, our roads were graced by these seemingly, by today’s standards, oversized cars. The mindset here was, the bigger the car, the safer a car was. Trouble was, when 2 of THESE cars collided, it wasn’t pretty and with mostly 2 lanes at the time, and no safety restraints, head-on collisions were an everyday thing with dire results. Like all these really big cars( Scottys Lincoln comes to mind) they are a nightmare to restore. Electrical probably the biggest chore. From a time when, someone felt they needed the biggest car made, as some sort of financial prowess. Not sure that applies today, and a getting around in a car like this, may make you think otherwise. Nice find, and I tell you what, you have any plans for an airline trip, personally, I don’t ever plan to fly again, not for the safety, they say, you have a better chance of an accident on the way to the airport, but I just won’t stoop to those searches, lines, transfers, cancellations, and the cost, when a car like this, would be a sweet ride down the boulevard, left lane, passing all the KIAs, Tom Petty blasting, with NONE of the airport schtick. Your choice, I guess. It’s a cool find, and some how escaped the demo derby before Imperials were banned,,,for obvious reasons, the Imperial usually won.
My dad had the elliptical steering wheel on his (Canada only) 62 Chrysler Saratoga. His was opaque plastic. and I as a youngster, thought it the epitome of cool at the time. The push button transmission seemed so Jetson-y to me as well.
The most amazing feature of these Imps was the electroluminescent dash that they used. My Dad had a 63 Crown that had its entire dash light up at night. 60 years on and I still marvel at the memory of it.
Twinstick, try messing with the dash electrics on these with the battery still connected, my ’62 has bitten me more than once, the inverter is putting out 220 plus volts to power the electroluminescent light panels, a friend’s ’61 New Yorker did the same thing one time, not happy jack!
I’m a CANUCK from Toronto, and my Chartered Accountant dad had a 1963 Plymouth Fury four door slant six that was sold for $100.00 CDN in 1971 because it was junk that stalled out in the rain, and had peeling chrome on the front and back bumpers.
Dodge/Plymouth slant six was terrible IMHO. The push button transmission was the only cool thing about the 63 Plymouth too.
I could only wish that my dad owned an Imperial, but he was far too cheap for that.
And if my dad was smart he would have bought a 68 Charger instead. Then I could have owned that car at 16 instead of the 1971 Maverick Ford 200CID inline six that I got stuck with instead.
Bob
Buy of the day, especially if priced by the pound!
Couple of you hit the nail on the head.
I never owned a 60 Imperial. But, 59 and 61’s are my favs.
I drive a 61 LeBaron as a daily driver, and with 505,000 miles.
Never fully restored. Repainted by my shop, myself, twice.
Drivetrain complete twice.
Yes, 61 was the most extravagant fins with the Tail Lite Under the fin. Has the first side lite also.
Tail lite has two red lenses, a rear as usual, and one on the housing in front next to the body, under fins.
The 60 Imperial had two steering wheels.
An almost round, and a squarish square rectangle.
Not everyone buying was comfortable with the square wheel.
I have some NOS 60 Round Steering Wheels left. Black Frost.
The Auto Pilot is much better than todays cruise control.
Also, 60 had the last sedans. Then 61-66 were only hardtops.
Sedans returned in 67.
FLAT was the term Imperial used for the steering wheel
I was making sales calls in Southern Illinois and passed a guy who had welded three of these together and called it the “Imperial death star”.
He was traveling south on 57, I turned around to catch him and take a photo…but traffic and time let him get away. It had to be over 30 feet long!
Good one!! Sounds like something a Yooper would create.
Geeze Louise I wonder how many parking meters you’d have to feed when you wanted to dock that barge!?!?
The steering wheel style + dash in front of the driver has kind of a robotic face staring back at you! Odd.
I wonder if such a steering wheel, or worse, the one on the new Vette, could be a safety issue/concern.
The Wikipedia link referenced above is confusingly worded, in that it fails to make clear that under the visible exterior sheetmetal, all 1957-1966 Imperials were built on the same D-body platform including the cowl structure & all underbody framing (usually called “black metal parts”, not just the frame: thus the windshield and side glass also interchange for most of the period. As such, the interior dimensions were pretty-much identical throughout the period.
I’ve always had a soft spot for the big Imperials, so much that I’ve owned at least one of each year, 1955 to 1968, including a couple of limousines as well. Loved ’em all. After 68, for me they were just another Chrysler.
Twinstick, try messing with the dash electrics on these with the battery still connected, my ’62 has bitten me more than once, the inverter is putting out 220 plus volts to power the electroluminescent light panels, a friend’s ’61 New Yorker did the same thing one time, not happy jack!
Tony [and everyone reading this message],
Always disconnect the battery, or at least remove the fuse for the instruments before working on them, first, because the power transformer DOES put out a powerful jolt, but also because you can burn it out when that happens. Unless someone is rebuilding them, when I was working on these cars 20 years ago, working transformers were hard to find.
Without a working transformer, seeing the instruments at night requires a flashlight.
That said, when the instruments are working correctly, they are very impressive!
I owned a ’63 Imperial with a 413 c.i. engine. I actually slept in it when camping and a wicked rainstorm hit. Not bad. I could drive up Rt. 95 and watch the gas gauge move down ! Rectangular steering wheel, push button transmission … Sorry. Though you could probably get 7 bodies in the trunk, easy.
Not a joke, someone I know with a small farm on Maryland’s eastern shore, claims he used to rent out an old non-running early 1960s Imperial sedan to migrant workers.
As he used to say; “2 long single beds, plenty of light and windows, and a big storage locker in the back”.
My brother had one these in the mid 60’s. It was burgundy with black interior. Had swivel front seats. Power everything. Awesome car.