Low Miles and No Reserve: 1973 Imperial LeBaron
The Imperial is a bit confusing regarding its historical spot in the marketplace, as the car began life almost a century ago as the top dog in Chrysler’s lineup but by the mid-fifties the corporation felt it would be advantageous for the Imperial to become its own brand to better compete with the Lincoln and Cadillac offerings of the period, which it did beginning in 1955 and remained so for nearly the next three decades. The 1973 Imperial LeBaron such as the one for sale here on eBay provided families with not only plenty of room but lots of luxury and comfort as well, although it didn’t take long for the oil embargo of the same year to begin putting a damper on the sellability of cars that were deemed not very fuel efficient. This one’s located in Soto, Kansas, with the no-reserve auction presently sitting at $1,847.
The seller says his Imperial is a one-owner vehicle with an all-original, never-wrecked body that’s still wearing the original Dark Blue Metallic factory finish, or at least some of it anyway. There’s quite a bit of surface fading, or patina as the seller likes to call it, but also an area on the driver’s fender where he test-polished a small section which brought back a lot of luster and color, so I’m guessing if the panels that are still holding paint were all buffed the shine would be significantly brighter. The vinyl top has a few torn sections underneath the rear glass and the tires are older, but the seller feels confident the rollers remain good enough to drive this car anywhere.
The roomy interior provides lots of passenger space along with several amenities you’d expect to find on most cars these days yet not as common back in 1973, such as power windows, door locks, a tilt and telescopic steering wheel, cruise control, and a pair of speakers in the back. The seats are showing moderate wear but the dash appears to be well-preserved, and it must have been a blast to have an 8-track tape player back in the day to enhance your music enjoyment!
Only one engine was available in the 1973 Imperial, a 440 which by this time was rated at just slightly over 200 horsepower, down a few numbers from its glory days but still capable of pushing the two-and-a-half-ton sled around nicely. The seller says the big block here is running as smooth as it gets and also mentions a new exhaust system down below, so if the claimed mileage of 66,000 is correct there may be some good life remaining to be enjoyed here. I can certainly understand the appeal this one must have had 50 years ago, and it’s still pretty cool if you’re in the market for a large mid-seventies hardtop to go out and have some fun with. What are your thoughts on this 1973 Imperial LeBaron?
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Comments
I was always more of a fan of the generation of Chryslers before the fuselage ones. However as time goes buy these are growing on me more and more and brings back memories of my childhood. This does look like a pretty solid car. It may be just the shadowing in the photos but the rear quarter panels and rockers may be starting to rust. Personally I wouldnt have just compounded out a tiny spot to show what the paint might look like if you buffed it out I would have carefully done that to the whole car wherever there is paint. The interior is holding up very well for the age and might respond to some cleaning and leather conditioner.
Always loved LEBARON, all time favorite is 1961 LEBARON. Grand finale for Exners fabulous finned fantasies for Chrysler. The Fuselage design just didn’t work for me, but was best on Imperial. With a lot of work and money, this could be a rare monument to Luxury vehicles that will never be built again.
The wear on the seats looks like the wear of 166k, unless it was used by the NFL for the linebacker squad.
I’d clean it up and enjoy it for what it is, a huge monster of a luxury car with a nice ride, and lots of steel around you.
The front and overall body shape of of this Imperial LeBaron brought this to mind:
https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/starwars/images/a/ad/SenateLimousine-Andor104.png/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/1000?cb=20230323001637
I had a 1973 same blue exterior except mine had a matching blue vinyl roof and blue brocade interior. Even at 5000+ pounds curb weight the 440 under hood would get up and go.
My guess is that this boat has 166K miles based on the presentation and the car’s physical shape. About $10K of work is needed to make this car the cool cruiser it is meant to be. Even if this is turnkey I wouldn’t pay more than $3K.
Well, 66K miles seems a lot more believable than 166. Cars from the 70s just didn’t achieve 166K miles of usage.
Yeah yeah yeah tell me all your stories of high-mileage 70s cars, but 99% of them were lucky to make it to 100K before being crushed. I read something on the interwebs recently that said registered cars in the US are on average older than they have ever been, something like 12 years.
My 2007 Town Car (73,000 miles) is going strong and driving in style! Unfortunately you can’t find a DeSoto, Imperial or even LINCOLN (CAR) dealer to tell them Groucho sent you 😕
My 94 Town car is rolling great at 180k, many in the facebook group have in excess of 300k. The 4.6 engine is a stout plant that doesn’t even develop oil leaks. Can’t say that about any 70’s engine.
Your last point is very interesting. And it says everything you need to know about today’s cars. The 70s was really the last decade for Beautifully designed American cars, and I really miss them. Up until the 60s my family only drove Chryslers. The last was a 1969 Chrysler 300. It was the first year for the fuelsage styling, and I liked it. In fact, the 69 and 70s are my all-time favorite Imperials. My uncle had a 1966 4 door hardtop Imperial Crown. Now that was a beautiful and elegant car. I loved the styling inside and out. It was the first year for the 440 to be the only engine available. It was great and Powerful, and the exhaust sounded great In 66, Chrysler Corporation’s financial situation was yet to show in their car quality. Their çars were still built with premium materials and still had the reputation for the top engineering of the Big Three. Chrysler introduced some of the best automotive ideas that went on to become industry standards. For example, in the mid-50s, it was the Imperial that introduced the first transistor radios, how about that! The American Big Three owes a lot to the Chrysler Corporation, and I’m glad they are still part of the Big Three.
The 1973 Imperial was the last one built on a unique wheelbase. It’s also the longest non-limousine built, at 235.3″.
I really like Imperials. This one could be restored. It’s all there. It seems a little rough though. Is the mileage correct? Maybe it was outdoors most of it’s life? The wear on the front seat is an indicator as well. Anyway, it could be restored. I’d yank the pollution controls off the engine and bring it back to 350 horsepower. I do not like the federal safety bumpers on the ‘73 model, however. Nonetheless, maybe this Imperial will be saved by someone? The price is right.