1960 Imperial Crown Convertible

'America's Most Carefully Built Car'
In an effort to establish itself as a legitimate contender in the Cadillac class, Imperial became a stand-alone division of the Chrysler Corporation in 1955. An Imperial-exclusive assembly line was the inspiration for the 1960 ad theme, 'America's Most Carefully Built Car.'

The 1960 Imperial continued to play off the successful 'Forward Look' styling themes introduced in 1957, but rooflines and below-the-beltline body panels were all reshaped. In this carry-over year for Cadillac and Lincoln, the 1960 Imperial was promoted as 'America's Only All-New Luxury Car.' But while the rest of the Chrysler line shifted entirely to 'Unibody' construction, the Imperial retained its 1957-vintage body-on-frame platform.

Powered by a 413 cubic-inch, 350 horsepower, 'Golden Lion' Hemi V8, pushbutton Torque-Flite transmission, and torsion-bar suspension, the mighty Imperial was highly regarded as the 'road car' in the luxury class. A 'jet-age' feature that remains fascinating today is the 'Panelscent' (electroluminescent) instrument lighting. 'Auto-Pilot' cruise control was also introduced in 1960.

Only one Imperial open model was offered in 1960; the Crown Convertible. This Alaskan White example, number 48 of 618 built, rolled off the assembly line on October 7, 1959.