Imperial (automobile) - 1957: A Separate Platform

1957: A Separate Platform

Second generation
Model years 1957-1966
Assembly Dearborn, Michigan, USA
Detroit, Michigan, USA
Body style 2-door hardtop
2-door convertible
4-door sedan
4-door hardtop
Platform D-body
Engine 392 cu in (6.4 L) Hemihead V8
413 cu in (6.8 L) Wedgehead V8
440 cu in (7.2 L) Wedgehead V8
Transmission 3-speed TorqueFlite A488 automatic
3-speed TorqueFlite A727 automatic
Wheelbase 129.0 in (3,277 mm)
Length 1957: 224.4 in (5,700 mm)
1958: 225.9 in (5,738 mm)
1959-60: 226.3 in (5,748 mm)
1961-62: 227.1 in (5,768 mm)
1963-66: 227.8 in (5,786 mm)
Width 1957: 81.2 in (2,062 mm)
1958: 81.3 in (2,065 mm)
1959: 81.0 in (2,057 mm)
1960: 80.1 in (2,035 mm)
1961-63: 81.7 in (2,075 mm)
1964-66: 80.0 in (2,032 mm)
Height 1957: 57.5 in (1,461 mm)
1958: 56.7 in (1,440 mm)
1959: 56.9 in (1,445 mm)
1960-61: 56.7 in (1,440 mm)
1962-64: 56.8 in (1,443 mm)
1965: 57.2 in (1,453 mm)
1966: 55.8 in (1,417 mm)
Curb weight 4,800–5,500 lb (2,200–2,500 kg)
Designer(s) Virgil Exner and Elwood Engel

For the 1957 model year, the Imperial received its own platform, setting it apart from any other division of Chrysler. This would last through the 1966 model year. Imperials during this period were substantially wider, both inside and out, than other Mopars with front and rear shoulder room equal to 64.0 in (1,626 mm) and 62.0 in (1,575 mm) respectively. The front seat shoulder room measurement remains an unsurpassed record for Imperial and would remain the record for any car until the 1971–1976 GM full-size models. Exterior width reached a maximum of 81.7 in (2,075 mm) during 1961–1963, which remains the record for the widest nonlimousine American car. After Lincoln downsized in 1961 this generation of Imperial had no real competitor for the title of largest car for the remainder of its decade-long lifespan.

One advantage of Imperials of this vintage was their strength; their crashworthiness got them banned from most demolition derbies for being too durable. Unlike the rest of the Chrysler Corporation makes (Chrysler, De Soto, Dodge and Plymouth), that began unibody construction in 1960, the Imperial retained separate full perimeter frames for rigidity through the 1966 model year. These substantial frames had a box cross section with crossmembers forming an "X". The drive shaft passed through a hole in the "X" frame. The emergency brake gripped the drive shaft, and was not connected to the rear drum brakes prior to 1963.

Another advantage was that Imperial, and all Mopars, received "Torsion-Aire" suspension in 1957. Torsion-Aire was an indirect-acting, torsion-bar front suspension system which reduced unsprung weight and shifted the car's center of gravity downward and rearward. Torsion-bar suspension on the front combined with multi-leaf springs on the rear provided a smoother ride and improved handling. Tom McCahill, an automobile critic with a reputation for colorful metaphors, quipped that Imperial "cornered at speed flatter than a tournament billiard table", unusual for a car of its prodigious weight and extreme dimensions. McCahill became a loyal customer, buying a new Imperial yearly 1957 through 1962. His visible and enthusiastic endorsement helped Imperial forge a reputation as the "driver's car" among the big three luxury makes.

And as McCahill observed in 1964:
"This is what I told them in California. When I hit the road with hundreds of pounds of baggage, typewriters and testing equipment, I’m not out there just to have fun. I want to get from here to there, which may be thousands of miles away, with as much comfort as possible. Besides, Boji now demands comfort. So does my wife.

I've been on some pretty fancy trains, including private cars, and to this writing, I have never found anything quite as comfortable or more capable of getting me to my destination as the '64 Imperial LeBaron. It's a great automobile."

Read more about this topic:  Imperial (automobile)

Famous quotes containing the words separate and/or platform:

    One of the most striking signs of the decay of art is when we see its separate forms jumbled together.
    Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe (1749–1832)

    ... a Christian has neither more nor less rights in our association than an atheist. When our platform becomes too narrow for people of all creeds and of no creeds, I myself cannot stand upon it.
    Susan B. Anthony (1820–1906)