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1941 Chrysler Series 28 Six

Walter P. Chrysler worked as plant manager at Buick for nine years and then took over the management of Wills-Overland. He remained there for two years, then moved on to try to salvage a badly faltering Maxwell-Chalmers. In 1924 he established a company bearing his surname, aided by the help of three wizard engineers Fred Zeder, Owen Skelton, and Carl Breer. A prototype Chrysler was in the works by mid-1923 and the finished car was introduced to the automotive world in January 1924 at New York's Hotel Commodore and caused a sensation.

1941 Chrysler Series 28 Six photo
Windsor LWB 9-Passenger Town & Country Station Wagon
Chassis #: 7706908
View info and history
Auction entries : 2
The new car was powered by a six-cylinder engine with a 201 cubic-inch displacement developing 68 horsepower thanks to a high compression ratio. Four-wheel hydraulic brakes, aluminum pistons, full-pressure lubrication, and tubular front axle, all for only $1,395, represented a tremendous value. The public responded by buying 32,000 Chryslers in 1924 - a first-year sales record for the industry at that time.

Styling and engineering excellence helped the Chrysler company weather the worst of the Depression in relatively good form, but stumbled badly with the 1934 Airflow, a car of dramatic streamlined style and highly advanced construction which nevertheless was a bit too advanced to sit well with the public's taste of that time.

Wearing designs by Raymond Dietrich, the 1937 Chrysler models helped the company recover its market share. Chrysler startled the automotive world in 1940/1941 with the Newport Concept wearing a design by Ralph Roberts of LeBaron.

1941 Chrysler Series 28 Six photo
Windsor LWB 9-Passenger Town & Country Station Wagon
Chassis #: 7706908
View info and history
Auction entries : 2
In February 1942, Chrysler, with the rest of the U.S. auto industry, halted automobile production to concentrate on producing materials for the war effort.

The 1941 Chrsyler
The 1941 Chrysler lineup ranged from modest sixes to semi-custom eights, covering an unusually broad spectrum of the luxury and near-luxury market. They were the eighth largest producers of American cars and the tenth best seller in the calendar year, with a strong foundation and reputation for engineering, attractive subtle styling, an extensive list of standard and optional features, and sound value for the money.

Chrysler models included the Series 28 Six, Series 30 Eight, and Series C-33 Eight. The Series 28 Six rested on a 121.5-inch wheelbase (139.5 inches for the long-wheelbase version) and was divided into three trim levels Royal, Windsor, and Windsor Highland. The Series 30 Eight had a 127.5-inch wheelbase and included the Saratoga, New Yorker, and New Yorker Highlander. The top-of-the-line Series Imperial Eight rested on a 145.5-inch wheelbase and shared its 323.5 cubic-inch inline-8 developing 140 horsepower with the Series 30. The Series 28 was equipped with a new 'Spitfire' L-head inline-6 with a 241.5 cubic-inch displacement, four main bearings, solid valve lifters, a Carter carburetor, and delivering 108 horsepower at 3,600 RPM (as much as 115 hp depending on the compression setting). The engine offered reasonable fuel economy with plenty of torque, ensuring that regardless of the coachwork, the performance would be excellent yet refined, delivering comfort and safety that rivaled the best offerings from Detroit. The engine was backed by a three-speed Fluid Drive transmission with a conventional clutch and column-mounted gearshift. Four-wheel hydraulic drum brakes provided the stopping power.

1941 Chrysler Series 28 Six photo
Windsor LWB 9-Passenger Town & Country Station Wagon
Chassis #: 7706908
View info and history
Auction entries : 2
Styling of the 1941 Series 28 was similar to the previous year, with the bodies having grown slightly wider. In the front were recessed, sealed beam headlamps, a steeply raked vee-shaped windshield, a sharply pointed hood, and horizontal grille bars that extended across the lower half of the radiator and fender aprons, however, the number of bars had decreased from nine to six, and the spaces between them had grown wider. The model name appeared on either side of the hood at the forward end. The grilles carefully blended into the sculpted fenders, with bright beltline moldings and chrome parking light housings mounted atop the front fenders.

The 1941 Chrysler vehicles continued on with the design principles of the Airflow, offering a spacious and low-slung interior, allowing occupants to sit low and securely inside, with adequate headroom, legroom, and shoulder room. The upholstery fabrics were utilized in many colors and weaves to harmonize with the exteriors. An attractive new instrument panel completed the color scheme with the then-revolutionary handling of colored plastic paneling to match the interior color theme. The same type of plastic was used for the garnish moldings on all doors and rear quarters.

New mechanical innovations included an Automatic Safety control gearshift, a steering wheel without spokes in the upper half which improved driver visibility, and an inside hood lock.

1941 Chrysler Series 28 Six photo
Windsor LWB 9-Passenger Town & Country Station Wagon
Chassis #: 7706908
View info and history
Auction entries : 2
Standard equipment included hydraulic brakes, dual windshield wipers, dual taillights, dual sun visors, and Solar Spark ignition. Optional equipment included conventional running boards or streamlined chrome-trimmed rocker panels, two-tone paint jobs, and a high-compression engine with the 'Silver Dome' aluminum head. A Fluid Drive transmission with 'clutchless' shifting was standard and a new 'Vacamatic' semi-automatic transmission was optional.

The Royal rested on the standard and long-wheelbase chassis, with the longer platform reserved for the eight-passenger sedan priced at $1,345, a limousine at $1,415, or as a bare chassis. The standard chassis carried a coupe priced at $995, a club coupe at $1,085, a luxury brougham at $1066, a sedan at $1,090, and a town sedan at $1,140.

The standard Windsor chassis included a coupe, club coupe, convertible coupe, luxury brougham, sedan, and Town sedan with prices that ranged from $1,045 to $1,315. The long-wheelbase Windsor chassis carried a 6- and 9-passenger Town and Country, an eight-passenger sedan, and a limousine.

1941 Chrysler Series 28 Six photo
Windsor Convertible
The Windsor Highlander was the most expensive and prestigious of the entry-level Series 28 and distinguished by a standard solid moleskin leather interior with inserts of Scottish tartan plaid. It was part of a trend toward unusual interior fabrics and materials in Chryslers of this era, which also saw additional optional packages based upon, among other things, Navajo blankets. Prices ranged from $1,065 to $1,340 for the standard-size chassis while prices on the long-wheelbase began at $1,430 for the eight-passenger sedan and $1,500 for the limousine.

Chrysler's engineers had developed the first concepts for what would eventually become the Chrysler Town & Country around 1939 and eventually brought to market by Chrysler Corporation General Manager Dave Wallace. This body style was designed as a limited-production vehicle meant to fulfill a specific niche and growing trend for wood-bodied wagons within the market. The unique wood-bodied car was introduced in 1941 on the six-cylinder Windsor line. Its fastback profile with twin hinged doors at the rear was neither a sedan nor a station wagon. In contrast to most wood-bodied utility vehicles, the new Town and Country Car, as the company initially called it, had lavishly varnished wood inside and quality upholstery.

Chrysler called its first edition of the Town & Country the 'barrel-back,' due to its rounded rear styling combined with 'clamshell' rear doors. The interior contained a large and useful storage area behind the rear passenger seats. The design was functional and rather clever, with the rearmost seat able to be stowed in a forward position, enlarging the cargo area, or placed rearward, increasing passenger legroom. The nine-passenger version had a limousine-type folding bench seat between the two rows of standard seats.

1941 Chrysler Series 28 Six photo
Windsor LWB 9-Passenger Town & Country Station Wagon
Chassis #: 7706908
View info and history
Auction entries : 2
Chrysler built exactly 999 examples, including 200 in the six-passenger configuration and the rest as nine-seaters. Additionally, a single prototype was built on an eight-cylinder chassis. A similar lineup was continued into 1942, with nearly identical production despite the war-shortened model year.

The response was positive, and Chrysler management planned to expand the range for 1946. A single two-door Brougham was built, along with seven prototype hardtop coupes, but a planned roadster never made it past the drawing boards. Once the assembly lines started rolling following World War II, only an eight-cylinder convertible coupe joined the sedan, available in both six- and eight-cylinder forms. The long-wheelbase eight-cylinder sedans, however, were discontinued after 100 had been completed. The first all-new post-war designs, introduced in 1949 and known as the second series, dropped the Town and Country sedan, and for 1950 the model retreated to an eight-cylinder hardtop coupe with painted insert panels. Chrysler would continue to use the 'Town & Country' designated a long succession of steel-bodied station wagons.

The combined production of the Series 28 was 136,699 units. The combined production of the standard size Royal was 78,337 units with the most popular being the 51,378 examples of the sedan, followed by 10,830 of the club coupe, 8,006 of the brougham, 6,846 of the coupe, and 1,277 of the town sedan. The long-wheelbase Royal accounted for 331 sales with the majority coming from the sedan, with 297 sales, followed by 31 of the limousine and three of the bare chassis. The combined Windsor and Highlander production reached 56,864 and production of the long-wheelbase versions was exclusive with 1167 examples built. Within the long-wheelbase Windsor production, the nine-passenger Town & Country was the most popular with 797 sales, followed by 200 of the six-passenger Town & Country. Combined long-wheelbase Windsor and Highlander production included 116 of the eight-passenger sedan and 54 of the limousine. The most popular body style was the sedan with 36,396 examples built, followed by 8,513 of the club coupe, 4,432 of the convertible coupe, and 2,898 of the brougham.


by Daniel Vaughan | Feb 2021

Related Reading : Chrysler Windsor History

Known for developing high-quality vehicles, the Chrysler Corporation was established by Walter Percy Chrysler on June 6, 1925. Existing as an independent company from 1925 until 1998, it was then purchased by Daimler-Benz. Labeled as the Chrysler group, the full-size Chrysler Windsor was introduced in the 1940s. Larger than a mid-size and sitting on a wheelbase of more than 2.79 meters, the full-size....
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Related Reading : Chrysler Windsor History

Formerly a U.S.-based automobile manufacturer, the Chrysler Corporation and all of its subsidiaries are now part of the American and German-based DaimlerChrysler AG after being acquired by Daimler-Benz in 1998. All previous production records were shattered during the Second World War when Chrysler Canada plants produced 180,816 military trucks and other vital war materials. In 1945, peacetime....
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1941 Chrysler Series 28 Six Vehicle Profiles

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1941 Series 28 Six
$1,507-$11,205
1941 Chrysler Series 28 Six Price Range: $995 - $1,507

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Other 1941 Chrysler Models

Windsor

Specification Comparison by Year

Year
Production
Wheelbase
Engine
Prices
122.50 in., 139.50 in.
6 cyl., 241.50 CID., 108.00hp
$935 - $1,350
136,699
121.50 in., 139.50 in.
6 cyl., 241.50 CID., 115.00hp
$995 - $1,507

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