1956 Chrysler Imperial Wagon

I found it on the web. No idea where it is or where it comes from and it's not in the forum gallery.





It said to be a Chrysler Faux Imperial 300B, so I guess it's a conversion (and that's what I like)...Could some of you help me to find more info's?

I found another one, black 1956, which is said to be a recent crossover between a New Yorker wagon and an Imperial... but it's less sexy! You can look at it here:
http://www.remarkablecars.com/main/chrysler/chrysler-00031.html

 

I like it Love the back.

 

Yeah! Thats a beauty!

 

Nice find, Barto!
I think the old 'Station Wagon.com' site may have had a pic of one or two of these, but I don't remember a red one.

The 'regular' '56 Chrysler front end looks nice to me, but I also like the 300B / Imperial front end.

Here's a link to the Imperial Club website, that lists a bunch on 'Imperial' wagons....the red one you showed appears there as being owned by a John Bradley:

http://www.imperialclub.com/Rare/Wagon.htm

 

WOW!!! One beautiful wagon!

 

Thanks for the link KK.
So it's a conversion, but not in the way we, Europeans, understand it. A factory wagon body retrimmed (should I say upgraded) with parts from another saloon from the same coachbuilder. Such a job is (nearly) not possible with European cars. Each coachbuilder, even if in the same group, uses specific bodies which are not mixables.
Nice car anyway, as any Imperial looks in my eyes.

 

Yup. Very common here in the U.S. Typically, body-on-frame cars on the same platform, but with different makes (but same manufacturer..) may have a very similar mid-section (cowl, roof/windhsield/doors, etc...) but different frontsheet metal. Quite easy to bolt on a different front end.

I'll give you a couple examples:

I'm sure you are familiar with the Chevrolet El Camino, bulit on the mid-sized Chevelle Malibu platform...


Fairly easy to unbolt the Chevy front end and add a Pontiac LeMans front end:



or a Pontiac Grand Am front end:



or a Buick (Regal) Grand National front end:

 

Not a wagon but the first car I ever drove was my grandfathers 1956 Chrysler Imperial. Never restored and we had it for 40 years !!! One of the best built and driving cars ever !!!!

 

Now that Lemans front end on that El Camino is just darn good looking!!

 

awwww man, im a sucker for el camino's ....and a big sucker for grand nationals, the two put together makes me go

 

Looks good, but how did he come about adding Chrysler 300 to the name? It's not a Chrysler and a 300 certainly wasn't used to make it a wagon.

 

While the red 'Imperial' wagon shown earlier was simply a Chrysler wagon with Imperial frontsheet metal added, the factory Chrysler 300B hardtop came from the factory with the 'Imperial' front sheet metal.....



For reference, here's a pic of a 'regular' '56 Chrysler front end.....
This one has the mid-line Windsor trim. The New Yorker grill was a bit different...

 

you should see it in person. it was done right. even the tail lights are pontiac.

 

The black wagon has standard '56 Town & Country taillights; at least the red one has Imperial "Sparrow-Catchers."
A more credible (and attractive) look would be to graft the rear fender uppers from a '56 Crown Imperial,
which, like the '56 T&C's lights, was an add-on from the '55 design.


Larger, a friend's '56 Crown Imp at Biltmore House about 20 years ago.

'Course, those '56 Crown Imperial rear ends don't grow on trees, so...

TG

 

Wow, that 1956 Chrysler is wonderful!