1956 Imperial Series C73

From 1955 through 1975, the Imperial automobile was Chrysler's masterpiece. The Imperial was seen again in 1981 through 1983, but it was short-lived. The Imperial name had been used by Chrysler since the 1920s, serving as its luxurious model. By 1955, the Imperial was made its own division, meaning it became its own separate make within the Chrysler Group. The design of this new line of vehicles was created by Virgil Exner using his 'Forward Look' styling. In the early 1950s, Exner and Chrysler debuted their Parade Phaeton show cars, which are said to have been the design inspiration for the new Imperials. The body designs were shared with Chrysler's top-of-the-line vehicles, but there were differences that distinguished the two marques. The Imperials had split egg-crate grilles with uniquely styled taillights that resembled a sight on a gun. In the front was a wrapped windshield that gave the vehicle the illusion of being in motion, even while standing still. Chrome was used extensively but tastefully. There was a two-door Newport model which was a hardtop coupe. The other model was a four-door sedan. Under the hood was a 331 cubic-inch Chrysler Hemi V8 engine with 250 horsepower. The gearbox was a two-speed PowerFlite automatic which sent the power to the rear wheels. Total production for the Imperials reached nearly 11,500 in its inaugural year.

In 1956, Chrysler added a four-door Southampton hardtop sedan. It had a factory price of $5,225 and accounted for 1,543 sales for Imperial. The most popular Imperial of this year was the four-door sedan which saw production reach 6,821 units. The Hemi was bored to 354 cubic inches which increased the horsepower by 30. Another mechanical change was the PowerFlite was changed from a dashboard lever to pushbutton controls.

by Daniel Vaughan | Jun 2011