I suppose if you were ChryCo’s darling race car driver and you wanted to keep up appearances on and off the track, your overlord would want to assist that said driver in always looking his best. And, one way to do that would be to bestow upon King Richard Petty a top-drawer Imperial LeBaron so he could maintain that stellar image when away from the race track as well as motivating to and fro. Anyway, that’s the story here, a 1963 Imperial LeBaron that is claimed to have belonged to Petty Enterprises. I’d suggest that this car is a more intriguing example of celebrity ownership than many encountered these days, so let’s check it out. Looking a bit worn in Asheboro, North Carolina, this example of Chrysler Corporation’s engineering at its best is available, here on craigslist for $2,500. Sam61 gets a tip of the hat for this discovery.

Not much is said about this Imperial’s current condition but the listing does state a bit about its past, specifically, “Lee Petty’s daily driver car own by the pretty’s 1963 Chrysler LeBaron they drive to to NASCAR RACES I have a pic of Richard Petty in this car in 1968 at the race track North Wilkesboro N.C.”  There is also an insurance card included in the sale that attests to this car’s ownership. As to where this big Imperial has been all of these years and how the seller happened upon it, is not disclosed.

It’s a rough-looking hardtop with faded paint, surface rust, and some rust-through but how extensive the body damage is, or its underside condition, can not be ascertained from the included images. Some of the stainless trim and those distinctive Imperial wheel covers are, unfortunately, MIA.

Running? No word, maybe, maybe not. Power should be provided by a 340 gross HP 413 CI V8 engine utilizing a TorqueFlite automatic transmission but nary a word is stated regarding the powertrain. As for the interior, there is one barely detailed image of it, taken through the driver’s side window, and all that is visible is cracked leather upholstery – a pointless exercise. It’s these non-disclosed important details that tend to detract from a car’s credibility – celebrity ownership or not.

Unfortunately, more emphasis is placed on this car’s provenance than there is on its existential condition and what it would likely take to make it road-worthy again. And then there’s that entire matter of authenticity. I understand that Richard Petty is a pretty approachable guy, I suppose, just for surety, an interested owner could pass this listing by him and ask for it to be authenticated. It’s not that the listing shouldn’t be trusted, but with that trust, there’s always room for some verification too, right?