The race to the top in automotive luxury is almost as old as the car itself, but the zenith of excess belongs to the 1920s. Chrysler jumped into the game in 1926 with its Imperial. As competing makes fell by the wayside through the years, the 1950s saw Chrysler facing Lincoln’s Continental and GM’s Cadillac. Differentiating the Imperial required a bold move. Virgil Exner gave the Imperial what it needed: the Forward Look. By 1957, the model was sporting quad headlamps, a two-tone canopy roof, tall vertical fins with “gunsight” tail lamps, and a “FliteSweep” deck lid with faux continental kit styling. Maximizing production was never the point, though Chrysler might have sold more copies had it invested in a stand-alone dealer network. Instead, the Imperial was a halo car, leveraged to move lesser Chryslers. Here on eBay is a 1957 Imperial Southampton (translation: hardtop) sedan, bid to $8500 with no reserve. This car is located in Alderson, West Virginia and the buyer will need a trailer as we’ll see in a minute.
The Imperial was a heavy beast, with the base car coming in at more than 4500 lbs. Motivating all that heft required some serious horsepower, specifically 325 of them, provided by this 392 cu. in. Hemi V8 paired with a Carter four-barrel carburetor. The only transmission available was the TorqueFlite push-button automatic – and therein lies the rub. This car belonged to the seller’s father, who passed away before finishing a repair to that transmission. It is partially disassembled, with parts to complete the job included in the sale.
The carpet has been replaced with an incorrect but serviceable set. The upholstery is in fair condition, but the dash, headliner, and trunk look fine. The Imperial came in three trim levels in ’57 – the base model, the Crown, and the Le Baron. Differences mostly amounted to seat foam, fabric choices, and available accessory options, though some Le Baron models had stainless roofs, like the Eldorado Brougham. The seller says the car’s electrical items – windows, locks – work well.
Chrysler gave the Imperial its own platform in 1957 but retained the body-on-chassis construction method for this model alone. Our subject car’s underside is straight but with rust cropping up in some areas through the exterior paint, I’d give the dirty side a thorough inspection with a flashlight. The seller provides detailed photos of various nicks, scrapes, and missing paint on the car’s top side, most of which are forgivable, especially if you have your heart set on this model. They’re rare. Here is a project car that sold for over $13k, though the two-door style deserves a premium. What do you think of our slightly needy Imperial – good buy, or pass?
Nice one, Michelle. The Southhampton roof line is my favorite from ’57. The instruments aren’t quite as amazing as 60-63 but they do have a cool purple glow. ImperialClub says, “With the purple letters and green bezels and orange pointers, the dash looks like Las Vegas.” I’ve considered owning one of these. https://www.web.imperialclub.info/Yr/1957/Dashboard/index.htm
These photos and texts come from my car (’57 Crown convertible) ! It was so long ago (1998…) and it should be noted that the lighting is still less bright than in the photo. see ….ch300imp.com/compteur_us.htm
I’m amazed that this has a (hopefully it’s own) original 392 HEMI intact! Considering how highly sought after they were in the ‘60’s before NHRA allowed the the 426 and even afterwards as they were so much cheaper to buy, to find one intact in a vintage ride like this is cool.
With that, this is the first ‘50’s vintage car I’ve noticed to have backup lights integrated in the bumper. I knew they became mandatory in 1966 (worldwide?) as my friend didn’t have them on his stripper ‘65 Mustang but it’s the first I’ve noticed them on anything of this age.
Nice find, Michelle. Hoping the new buyer will finish up where the sellers FIL left off with taking it back to stock but, regardless, PLEASE replace those Gawd-awful wheels and carpet!
Wowee, what a car. Amazing colors and style and It’s a Hemi! A price that seems like a bargain until you factor in the rust. And a possible repair on the RH front fender with the door gap and mismatched paint. I love the 57 style.
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These are monsters with finicky habits. Parts are tough as are mechanical items for those engines. Brakes can be an adventure, drums, shoes, and so on. These are not units to to used frequently any longer. They are great in the styling department.
392 Hemi! That’s the motor that put hemi on the map thanks to Big Daddy !
“Differences mostly amounted to seat foam, fabric choices, and available accessory options, though some Le Baron models had stainless roofs,”
Some hardtop models (Southamptons) did have “stainless roofs” but not in ’57. The option wasn’t offered until 1959 (Silvercrest Roof/Silvercrest Landau Roof) and wasn’t limited to Le Barons.
“Chrysler gave the Imperial its own platform in 1957 but retained the body-on-chassis construction method for this model alone.”
True from 1960-66, but in ’57 Chrysler hadn’t yet gone to unibody construction for its other models.
From when cars had style and class, and you could tell them apart from a distance.
Wow what a beautiful car I have always loved the cars from the 50s. The chrome and the style and the color combinations. Weather you figure the selling price by the pound or by the inch it’s worth the price the seller is hoping to get. I do hope the buyer keeps it original and enjoys it for years to come. GLWTA
One look at the frame pics and you can see why these were banned in some demolition derbies. And it is a surprise nobody raided the 392 when this was just an old car. This one is going to make somebody happy, because they don’t build them like this anymore.
My dad had one of these in white from new to 1961. Reason for sale: sudden transmission failure. It was a great highway car, lots of passing power, bumps tolerance, but oh so thirsty. I think the 392 was the upper limit of torqueflite. Also I think this was the highpoint of Chrysler. None of my dad”s subsequent Imperials or Chryslers were as nice. He switched to Lincolns after the 1965 model, a Chrysler New Yorker.
It looks too much like a Plymouth, especially the front end.
The last time i saw a vehicle with a 392 Hemi in it was a 1970 Road Runner that was for sale at a muscle car swap meet i went to.Aside from only a single four barrel carb the distributor was in the rear unlike the 426….
Hard to believe that this guy can’t take the initiative to have someone fix the trans before he puts it up for sale. Obviously had no respect for his father.
SOLD for $8,700.
Christine’s rich aunt.
Fair deal in my opinion. Some of the frighteningly expensive items to fix – chrome plating, steering wheel cracks, dash pad, etc are in good conditon. The transmission needs a specialist, mostly since few are around that know its quirks. These have some finicky aspects but overall are much more robust han the Cadillac or Lincoln competition of the era, and even today are great road cars with good brakes and handling in addition to the Hemi power. I have a ’58.