Hey list,
Thought I would throw in my 2 cents regarding combining of Imperial and
Chrysler etc. In southern WV Imperial was always combined with Chrysler and
Plymouth. The DeSoto and Dodge franchises were together, and when DeSoto
left, Dodge remained alone. Cadillac and Oldsmobile were together here,
Pontiac and GMC truck together, Chevy and Buick had their own. Also Ford,
Lincoln and Mercury have been together here for at least 40 years. By the
way, my 65 Imperial is slowly returning to glory!
>From: "Wm. R. Ulman" <twolaneblacktop@xxxxxxxxx>
>Reply-To: mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>To: <mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>Subject: IML: Separate dealerships vs. Separate marque
>Date: Wed, 26 Feb 2003 21:16:36 -0800
>
>I have to throw in my two cents here on the Hugh's point that you won't
>find Caddies where Chevies are sold. You may very well, especially with
>GM products. You may not find this so much in larger metropolitan
>areas, but once you get outside the cites, you will most defiantly find
>GM grouped together in odd combinations. When I lived in Vale, CO back
>in the early '80's I had a '70 Olds 442 Convertible, and I still had it
>in my teenage mind that only a dealership should work on my car. I had
>to drive about 75 miles to the nearest town (I don't remember the name
>of it) that had a Oldsmobile dealership. It was a Chevrolet,
>Oldsmobile, Cadillac dealership, and as my car was in the shop I would
>check out the new '81 models coming out. I remember seeing a '81
>Camero, a '81 Sedan Deville (with the now famous V-8-6-4), and a new
>Cutlass. I am not suggesting that this was in any way like what
>Chrysler did with the Imperial, but GM did, and still does have many a
>dealership with some funny mixes. Most of the time you would find
>Imperial at Chrysler/Plymouth dealers, but I have heard that could be
>mixed with Dodge, and Desoto as well. I was not old enough to see that,
>but do remember the Chrysler/Plymouth/Imperial signs when I was a kid.
>I agree about Ford since I can't recall ever seeing Ford/Mercury/Lincoln
>all together though.
>
>Bill Ulman
>'66 Imperial Crown Conv.
>Seattle, WA
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: mailing-list-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>[mailto:mailing-list-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Hugh & Therese
>Sent: Wednesday, February 26, 2003 8:29 PM
>To: mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>Subject: IML: Toyota / chrysler airflow
>
>
> > An interesting historical tidbit on the Airflow was that the Japanese
> > were quite taken by the Airflow. So much so that, in 1936, Toyota
> > (then known
>as
> > Toyoda Automatic Loom Works) produced their own hand-built version.
> > Here's
>a
> > picture of the 1936 Toyoda Model AA next to a 1934 DeSoto:
> > http://www.1000islandstoyota.com/pages/linkpage.html
>
>Its heresy to say it in this town, now that a Toyota plant is coming,
>but imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. One of the things that
>the Japanese did that Chrysler refused to do, was stand behind their
>high end products - in our case, the Imperial - by creating a separate
>distribution chain. You cannot buy a Lexus at a Toyota dealership, or a
>Lincoln at a Ford dealership, or a Cadillac where Chevies are sold. The
>high end dealerships are totally separate from the run of the mill
>dealerships. Chrysler Corp. never did that for the Imperial which has
>repercussions to this day in that most folks, even MOPAR fans, call them
>Chrysler Imperials. My own car was originally sold at a Plymouth
>dealership. I don't think Chrysler management ever really had enough
>faith in the Imperial and if they didn't why should the public? As WE
>know, the cars had what it took to be the best, but in the high end
>sector, you have to have a high "prestige" factor. People will pay
>extra for a product that sets them apart in terms of social standing.
>They won't if the product does not have that connotation.
>
>Hugh
>
>
>
>
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