Warehoused for Many Years: 1963 Imperial LeBaron

We rarely see a top-of-the-line 1963 Imperial LeBaron here on Barn Finds because so few were made – only 1,537. Back in 1963, Cadillac was still the king of American luxury motor cars by a long shot (163,174 units), followed by Lincoln (87,454 units), with Imperial a distant third at only 14,121 units produced. The seller is very brief with descriptions saying that the Imperial sat in a warehouse under a tarp for many years, it’s being sold as part of an estate, and that it runs, drives, has factory AC, no rust, and has had only two owners. The photos aren’t the best quality, with most of them taken inside the dark warehouse. However, there is one photo taken outside after the LeBaron was backed out of the warehouse and hosed off.

The Imperial left the factory painted Mayan Gold. It’s hard to determine the condition of the paint based on the photos, but it looks presentable. I’m not spotting rust and the chrome, trim, and glass look good. LeBaron’s featured a “town-car roof and formal rear window” and brightwork displaying the LeBaron cloisonné crest and the words “LeBaron Coachworks.” There weren’t many styling changes from the 62’s. Imperials still had the unique free-standing headlights, but the 50’s era long, bullet-shaped taillights that sat atop the squared off fenders were now vertical and integrated into the “reduced-fins” rear fenders.

The photos are limited, but the LeBaron’s gold, brown, and white interior appears to be original and will need attention. The front seats’ gold cloth inserts are toast, but there are no photos of the rear seat. LeBaron’s came with lots of standard creature comforts including power windows, power vents, a six-way power front seat, power steering, power brakes, and of course, three ashtray/lighter units. (Plus, the most unique dash/instrument panel/steering wheel designs Detroit had to offer in 1963.) The seller doesn’t say of everything is working including the AC and I’m also spotting an automatic headlight dimmer on the dash. LeBaron’s also came standard with walnut inlays for the fancy scrollwork on the door panels and two portfolio pockets found on the backs of the front seat.

There’s only one photo of the Imperial’s 413-cubic inch V8 that had an output of 340 horsepower when new. The air cleaner has been removed and you can see the four-barrel carburetor. The engine mileage is listed at 72,000 and it’s paired to a push button, three-speed Torqueflight automatic transmission. This rare, ’63 Imperial LeBaron can be currently found in the Steel City of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It’s for sale here on Facebook Marketplace for $6,995. That seems to be a reasonable price since Hagerty’s values a LeBaron in #4 Fair condition at $6,700. A big thanks to Ted for sending this Imperial our way. Hopefully, the next owner can get this golden gal restored and back on the road again. There probably aren’t too many of these around anymore.