The Imperial was the top Chrysler product from its birth in 1926. Wanting to compete better against Lincoln and Cadillac, the company spun off Imperial into its own make and division in 1955. Imperial would see new or modified body styles every two or three years, all with V8 engines and automatic transmissions, as well as advancements in technology that would trickle down to Chrysler’s other models. This 1968 Imperial (by Chrysler) is recently out of storage in Portland, Oregon, it’s been treated to some maintenance and mechanical upgrades. Bidding for the stoic survivor is up to $6,250 (no reserve) here on eBay.
As an independent make, the third-generation production of the Imperial was for two years, 1967 and 1968. The car switched from body-on-frame construction to the unibody platform of other full-size Chryslers (moving more and more back to the corporate fold). The word was that Chrysler had gained enough experience with unibody construction to apply it to the company’s flagship line, although saving money surely had to be a factor. The cars continued to trail behind Cadillac and Lincoln at little more than 32,000 copies for the two years combined.
As the story goes, this Imperial was sold new in the Pacific Northwest around Christmas of 1967. Steady records were kept on the car’s maintenance, at least up until the time it went into storage in Washington State about 1996. More recently, the seller acquired it along with another car as part of a package deal. But that was not before 102,000 miles could be accumulated. The paint, which may or may not be original is said to be in “average” condition with a couple of scrapes and scratches. Rust is not a factor in either the sheet metal or undercarriage.
The original interior is fine, but far from perfect. The carpeting is discolored from age, so it should be replaced at a minimum. The upholstery seems to have held up remarkably well. Once you’re behind the steering wheel, we’re told it fires up with a little coaxing and performs as smoothly as a 1960s luxury car should. Since acquiring the automobile, the list of services the seller has performed includes, but are not limited to, all new fluids, tires, brakes, water pump, rebuilt carburetor, tune-up, battery, and a conversion to a PerTronix electronic ignition system. If you’re into these kinds of Mopars, this should be a nice turn-key cruiser as long as you don’t expect (or want to pay for) perfection.
Minimalist dash styling noted here. Seems like I would be squinting to read the “gauges”.
Sorry, but I really hate this shade of green. It was nice in `68, as my dad’s New Yorker that year was the same color with black vinyl top/interior. Now it just looks like a dirty booger. gag.
Personal preference of course, but I preferred the ’67 front end. A close friend had one almost exactly like this one (same color, everything), and what a pleasure it was to drive. The wooden inlays in the dash and door panels were real wood, too. His had the rear a/c, and you could refrigerate in it. Chrysler’s R-12 Airtemp system was pretty hard to beat. After he passed in ’08, I tried to buy it at his estate auction, but lost out. But if you like a true honest-to-God luxury car with a luxury ride, these are hard to beat. Neither Ford not GM had torsion bar suspension, and it’s easy to tell the difference when you ride in an Imperial. “Luxury” today is defined by speed and gimmicky gadgets… No thanks. THIS is what luxury was meant to be! Thanks for sharing this beauty.
Sound like he put about 3 grand in it and wants out? “Danger, Danger, Warning, Warning”
I had a 2 door much nicer looking 440 only got on it 1 time that baby hunkered down and grabbed some road and took off like A bat out of HeII ! really nice car Beautiful smooth ride.
Not sure about the “warning”. Car looks pretty darn good, both in and out. Cars don’t rust here, so that’s not a concern. What’s the warning about?
Nice living room couch front seat. If this car had cruise control, perfect to put the legs up, while cruising on the Interstates !
Cruise was an available option in these. Notice the dimples in the left wheel house; those are for locating the studs on the servo unit. A factory cruise is very easy to install on these – did it quite a few times on big Mopars. Unless you’d check the build sheet, one would never know it wasn’t there from the factory.
the warning is the guy sank a lot of time and money in it and all of a sudden wants out.
The guy bought it cheap to flip it, not keep it . The money he put into it increased his chance to make more money on the sale .
nice car!!! The grandparents had a 68 brown or copperish with same int. color. I got my lincinse[ sorry] and drove it a lot. It was pretty fast also for a big car.