Yahoo Autos The Imperial Is The Biggest Car You Could Buy In 1958
When Chrysler wanted to compete with Ford's Lincoln and GM's Cadillac in the mid-fifties, they based their range-topping luxury model on a custom-built parade car, launching it in 1955 as the new Imperial–with no Chrysler badges in sight.
By 1958, this model grew into 5600 pounds of excess, offering 'knowing people' the widest and most powerful car money could buy.
Jay Leno has one of the 560 convertibles Chrysler built in 1958, and it's mostly an original car with a resprayed (and slightly rotting) body, a flawless 392 cubic inch Hemi V8, the largest instruments you'll ever seen in a car and the 'Torsion Air' suspension that takes care of potholes and road feel at the same time.
Leno also upgraded to larger radial tires and four-wheel disc brakes courtesy of Wilwood, whose engineers had to figure out how to fit their gear on a car featuring totally unique axles and a weird brake booster. Now, the car will stop in a much shorter distance and in a straight line, which is a luxury Imperial buyers didn't have in 1958.
You Might Also Like
