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This 1957 Imperial Southampton Crown was displayed at the 2010 Palo Alto Concours d’Elegance.

Before I photographed this beautiful and big car, I had not heard of Chrysler’s Imperial cars, but it was the Chrysler Corp.’s luxury brand from 1955 to 1975. It briefly made a comeback from 1981 to 1983.

“The Imperial name had been used since 1926, but was never a separate make, just the top-of-the-line Chrysler,” according to Wikipedia. “However, in 1955, the company decided to spin Imperial off as its own make and division to better compete with its North American rivals, Lincoln and Cadillac, and European luxury sedans such as the Mercedes-Benz 300 Adenauer, the Mercedes-Benz 600, and the Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud.

“ Imperial would see new body styles introduced every two to three years, all with V8 engines and automatic transmissions, as well as technologies that would filter down to Chrysler corporation's other models.

“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) for 1961–1963, which remains the record for the widest non-limousine American car. After Lincoln downsized for 1961 this generation of Imperial had no real competitor for the title of largest car for the remainder of its decade-long lifespan.

“Another advantage was that Imperial, and all Mopars, received ‘Torsion-Aire’ suspension for 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.

“The 1957 model year was based to an even greater degree on Virgil Exner's ‘Forward Look’ styling (also used on other full-size Chryslers of the period). It featured a complicated front end (similar to Cadillacs of the period) with a bulleted grille and quad headlights, tall tailfins, and Imperial's trademark gunsight taillights. For the first time on an American car curved side glass was used.

“The Hemi engine was available for the first two years that was enlarged to 392 cu in (6.4 L). Power seats and dual exhaust were made standard across the line. A convertible was available for the first time on an Imperial and available in the mid-range Crown series. Sales were helped by Exner's ‘ahead of the competition’ styling, with 1957 becoming the best-selling Imperial model year ever. 37,593 were produced, but Cadillac by contrast sold over 120,000 cars in 1957. Quality control also slipped considerably, a consequence of the second total redesign in two years.

“Starting in the 1957 model year, Imperials were available in three levels of trim: standard Imperial Custom, mid-range Imperial Crown, and the new top-of-the-line Imperial LeBaron (a reference to LeBaron, Carrossiers). The custom-built Imperial Crown limousine was also offered.”