Category: Chrysler

1933 Chrysler Imperial Takes Top Hilton Head Honors

11/2/2015

The winning Chrysler (Photo: Hilton Head Concours)

A stunning 1933 Chrysler Custom Imperial Phaeton from New Jersey was the "Best of Show" winner at the Hilton Head Concours d'Elegance, the closing event of South Carolina's 14th annual Hilton Head Island Motoring Festival which ran from October 23 through November 1.

Top honors went to the Chrysler owned by Joseph and Margie Cassini, III of West Orange, New Jersey.   It had been the personal car of renowned automotive designer Ralph Roberts, equipped to his order as a gift to his wife, and had previously received a "Best in Class" award at the 2014 Pebble Beach Concours.

The "People's Choice" award went to a Florida car, a 1939 Mercedes-Benz 540K Special Roadster. The Paul Doerring Founders Award, established to honor one of the key contributing founders of the event, went to a 1957 Dual-Ghia Convertible.

Hilton Head's annual gathering of collectors and enthusiasts is one of the fastest growing automotive lifestyle events in the country. The Festival expanded its reach this year with an all-new new aviation event, the Flights & Fancy Gala and Aero Expo.

This year, the Concours and an accompanying Car Club Showcase filled up with entrants earlier than ever and reached over 500 cars.   “We don’t see the momentum slowing down anytime soon and encourage owners to submit as early as possible for next year’s event,” said Festival President Carolyn Vanagel. “The world-class hospitality and facilities of the Port Royal Golf Club, along with our yearly attendance records, have resulted in an even higher quality show field than ever before, and this year’s winners truly point to our growth and success."

Auctions America was on site at the festival, putting 95 blue-chip automobiles and select memorabilia on the block before a packed house. Preliminary results from the auction exceed $5 million in sales. Bringing the top price was a 1967 Ferrari 330 GTC, a well-sorted example of one of the marque’s classic 12-cylinder touring cars, which achieved a final $638,000 sale. Also on the roster was a 1984 Ferrari 512 BBi with just 3,600 miles from new, which garnered $360,250, and an exceptionally original 1989 Lamborghini Countach 25th Anniversary Edition that went for $343,750.

The next Hilton Head festival and concours is scheduled for Oct. 28 – Nov. 6, 2016. For more information on the Hilton Head Island Motoring Festival & Concours d’Elegance, visit the official website here.

1951 Chrysler Imperial convertible: The elegant Hemi

8/14/2015

THE CAR AND ITS OWNERS
1951 Imperial convertible by Chrysler owned by Gery and Patti Spory

WHAT MAKES IT INTERESTING
While Cadillac was America’s top luxury ride for 1951, Chrysler fielded a strong competitor in its powerful and elegant Imperials, marketed as a separate model line. The sales brochure deemed it “America’s Smartest Car,” no doubt because of Chrysler’s engineering prowess, including the Imperial’s industry-leading 180-horsepower engine. The convertible, says Gery Spory, was “new in 1951 and was listed for $4,427, the most expensive car in the 1951 Chrysler line. Only years later did I realize that this was a rare car, as only 650 Imperial convertibles were made.” The big “Hemi” V-8, he says, “easily moves the 4,750-lb. car.” The Chrysler also features a semi-automatic transmission and full power, including windows, steering, brakes and top. The all-leather “Juniper Green Metallic” interior is complemented by an “Indian Metallic Brown” body.

HOW LONG THEY’VE OWNED IT
The Sporys have owned their convertible since 1961. “The Imperial became part of my wife's dowry, as her father, a Fort Lauderdale mailman, purchased it for $100 from a family on his mail route in 1961,” says Spory.

WHERE THEY FOUND IT
It was bought from the Fort Lauderdale, Florida owner.

CONDITION
“Even though it had only about 37,000 miles on it (47,000 now),” Spory says, “the car had been neglected over the years in the hot, humid Florida environment. It took several days to make the trip to Long Island. It loves gas and gets about 12 to 15 miles per gallon. Restoration came as an afterthought, as the car was rarely driven, but simply garaged. About 25 years ago, a serious attempt was made at restoration. All rusted metal was taken care of by a fabricator and a total frame-up restoration seriously begun.”

TIPS FOR OWNERS
“Before purchasing or otherwise getting an older car, decide as to how far you want to go with the project, if at all,” he advises. “Have deep pockets, as nothing is cheap with restoration. Have a complete shop manual available, as well as any other literature pertaining to your car.”

VALUE
The Sporys estimate their convertible is worth $50,000 to $85,000.

THE BOTTOM LINE
“I think that our 1951 Imperial is special, as it was basically my wife's car of 50-plus years and that it has kept our marriage together all this time,” Spory says. “It has brought fine memories as to what one can accomplish. Driving this car is still like being behind the wheel of a 60-year-old car. One never knows whether something can go wrong. However, this is not a “rattle-trap,” as the Imperial can and does keep up with highway traffic.”

1937 Imperial C-15: First power locks & windows?

3/2/2015

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The C-15. (Photo: H. Kroplick)

We're always fascinated by the latest automotive technologies, so we got curious recently when we saw the power locks and windows on a magnificent 1937 Chrysler Imperial C-15 LeBaron town car that recently returned from first in class wins at the Pebble Beach and Radnor Hunt Concours. Owned by Howard Kroplick of East Hills, New York and recently restored by Steve Babinsky's renowned New Jersey facility, the car features spring-loaded automatic windows and locks. With a chauffeur's flick of the door handle, the windows go up and the passenger compartment locks tight with guillotine-like precision. In the video below, Kroplick shows how easily they operate.

Are these the industry's first power locks and windows? Well, not quite. It appears the 1915 Scripps-Booth was the first to offer power locks. The website earlyamericanautos.com features a brief story from a November 1914 issue of Motor Age that touts this new-fangled feature. "The electric door latches are operated by a pushbutton, placed close to the door in the side of the body, operates the latch magnetically, eliminating entirely door handles of any form," says Motor Age. Americans apparently didn't care much for the power locks and they didn't reappear until 1956, on a Packard. But, as they say, the rest is history.

The origin of power windows is a little more complicated. Our research indicates that they were first offered on the 1940 Packard 180 and were soon followed in 1941on top-end Lincolns. It wouldn't be until after World War II that the technology became more widespread. So, indeed, the one-off Chrysler may be the first car with power windows, even though they weren't for mass consumption.

To learn more about the Chrysler's windows and locks -- and about this magnificent car in general -- we encourage you to visit Kroplick's great website, Vanderbilt Cup Races, where you can read all about the restoration, see detailed photos and enjoy commentary from Hemmings columnist and classic car guru Walt Gosden. This town car, commissioned by Walter P. Chrysler for his wife, Della, is loaded with special custom features. We especially like the center tail lamp, whose design mimics the front grill almost exactly.

The Chrysler's center tail lamp

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1937 Imperial C-15: 'Chrysler's Chrysler' meets Pebble

8/12/2014

Photo: Howard Kroplick

One of the most interesting stories of this year's Monterey Car Week is coming to life Sunday on the green at the Pebble Beach Concours d' Elegance with the emergence of a unique Chrysler: the Imperial C-15 Town Car, or "Chrysler's Chrysler," that Walter P. commissioned for his wife, Della.

Languishing in a garage at Long Island's Vanderbilt Museum, Mansion & Planetarium, this Art Deco masterpiece was rescued in 2012 by noted enthusiast, author and historian Howard Kroplick and is being shown in its newly restored state.

The Chrysler sports hand-formed aluminum coachwork by LeBaron and luxurious custom interior fitments. It had been donated to the museum in 1959 by a local collector. Kroplick, of East Hills, New York, bought the car in early 2012 for $275,000 in a sealed-bid auction that drew inquiries from enthusiasts in eight states. He commissioned renowned New Jersey restorer Steve Babinsky to bring the Chrysler back as close as possible to its original state upon delivery.

The 8,000-lb., seven-passenger Town Car is 19 feet long and has no factory-produced body panels. Under the hood is a 130-horsepower, straight-eight engine coupled to a three-speed manual transmission. At the time of the auction sale, the odometer read 25,501miles.

At Kroplick's excellent enthusiast site, Vanderbilt Cup Races, you can read all about the restoration of this fantastic Chrysler as chronicled by another classic car luminary, Walter E. Gosden. (While you're there, spend some time looking at rare photos and learning more about Long Island's historic auto races and rides, including Kroplick's rare Alco "Black Beast" racer, which won some of those events and competed in the first Indianapolis 500.)

We have personally observed Kroplick at work, spreading the joys of car collecting to young and old from the perch of his running Alco at a host of shows and concours. The Chrysler is magnificent in itself and if the judges at Pebble take into account Kroplick's devotion to the hobby and his commitment to this unique car, perhaps a trophy is coming back with the C-15 to Long Island.

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1933 Chrysler Imperial Takes Top Hilton Head Honors

1951 Chrysler Imperial convertible: The elegant Hemi

1937 Imperial C-15: First power locks & windows?

1937 Imperial C-15: 'Chrysler's Chrysler' meets Pebble

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