The revival of Imperial has nothing to do with Mercedes-Benz. The fact of
the matter is that Chrysler has not been able to crack the luxury markert
and has actually been losing what ground it had.
When the LH series first came on the market, Chrysler introduced the upscale
New Yorker and LHS versions. First the New Yorker sales slid downhill to
oblivion and was followed by the LHS with the second generation. If
Chrysler could not make it with a Park Avenue / Aurora competitor, there is
little chance they would make it against Cadillac and Lincoln.
I am sure that if Chrysler felt a new Imperial would sell, we would have
seen it by now. There were many rumours of a RWD Imperial during the era of
the Eagle Premier and first generation LH, but all we got was the Y body FWD
Imperial based on the Fifth Avenue. Sadly, the Imperial died in 1975, 1983
and 1993. Are you a baseball fan? It has nothing to do with Stuttgart.
Why not an Imperial SUV? Chrysler does not make a Chrysler SUV, and even
its Chrysler Town & Country mini van has hardly been a runaway success.
Again, it's that part of the car market that Chrysler has never been able to
crack.
The Cirrus, by the way, was based on the JA series and is now called
Sebring. Its Dodge relative is the Stratus. The LH body has appeared under
Intrepid, Concorde, Vision, New Yorker, LHS and 300M nameplates.
I am a great fan of the Imperial, and feel Chrysler could have done a better
job marketing the car back in the 1950's and 1960's. The Imperial was
always a better styled, better built, better handling, more powerful and
more comfortable car than either Lincoln or Cadillac. But let's face it.
Just how well do you think a new "Chrysler Impala" will do on the market
place, regardless of who runs the show in Auburn Hills?
Bill
Vancouver, BC
----- Original Message -----
From: "A. Foster" <monkeypuzzle1@xxxxxxx>
To: <mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Sunday, January 26, 2003 10:11 PM
Subject: IML: Imperial S.U.V (was Lincoln "Imperial"
> Doug;
> The Imperial name on an S.U.V would be a dead on arrival idea as well I
am
> afraid. Mercedes already puts out a line of high end S.U.Vs in fact they
are
> the creators of one of the most famous off road vehicles of all time, the
> Unimog. The only way that the Imperial will come back in any form is if
the
> company changes hands, if it survives till then.
> I think that it would be just as well if the Imperial stayed as an
orphan.
> Knowing the way things work, as I have said before, they will probably
pull
> some stupid stunt like slapping an Imperial badge on a Dodge Intrepid the
> way they did with the 300M. Not that I hate the Cirrus/Intrepid LHS cars
but
> they don't inspire me to think of a Chrysler as an outstanding luxury
> vehicle. I think what would be a more worth while pursuit would be to look
> into having some parts made for our dear Imperials. Kerry and Mike
Pittinaro
> have already made some headway in this direction, for this they should be
> congratulated.
> Best Reagards
> Arran Foster
> 1954 Imperial Newport
> Needing A Left Side Taillight Bezel and other trim parts.
>
>
>
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