1965 Chrysler Imperial LeBaron Limousine
Built around a body-on-frame platform unique within Chrysler’s lineup, the 1965 Imperial Crown Limousine was the product of a transatlantic collaboration that gave the car a character no domestic coachbuilder could replicate.
Two-door hardtop bodies were shipped from Detroit to Ghia in Turin, where they were cut apart and lengthened by 20.5 inches, then trimmed in fine woods and leathers before being returned to the United States. Each took approximately a month to build, and the price reflected the effort.
A total of 132 Ghia-built Crown Imperial Limousines were completed between 1957 and 1965, with 10 produced for 1965. Styling by Elwood Engel gave the 1964-65 cars a squared-off, sharply creased profile that owed a clear debt to the Lincoln Continental (an influence Engel brought directly from his time at Ford). Power came from the 413 cubic-inch overhead-valve V-8, rated at 340 hp.
The example offered here has since been refitted with the complete drivetrain from a Chrysler 300C SRT8 (including the 6.1-liter HEMI V-8 producing 425 hp, five-speed automatic transmission, and updated coilover suspension) in a documented five-year restomod by Chip Foose and Metalcrafters.
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