IMPERIAL mailing list

[Mopar <mopar@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

         gentlemen..
         May I remind you ,, this is the  IMPERIAL mailing list.. Please 
take this to the Salon
         or private...  And please do not reply to this posting... Thank 
you, and have a great
         day..
                 Robb <admin>

At 08:03 PM 3/6/02 -0800, you wrote:
>Yep.  The "B" bodies (Buick Special/Century, Olds
>88/98,) "C" bodied (Pontiac & Chev) got the 4-door
>hardtops in 1955. "A" bodies, Buick RM, Super,
>Cadillac got them in 1956.  But no '54 models had
>4-door hardtops.
>
>Bob
>
>
>--- Anthony Foster <monkeypuzzle1@xxxxxxx> wrote:
> > Bill B. and All;
> >  Are you sure that the four door hardtop started
> > with the G.M line-up in 1955? I remember seeing a
> > 1954 Olds Rocket 88  that was a four door hardtop in
> > a storage compound. Actually the,"hardtop", is a
> > much older concept in roof design then 1946. In the
> > early 20's Studebaker had a body style with what
> > they called a,"Duplex Top", which looked very
> > similar to a hardtop roof. The idea was actually to
> > offer an inexpensive  compromise between a sedan and
> > a drop top car.
> >  In those days closed cars were much more expensive
> > then rag top cars because of the labour and
> > materials involved in not only building the roof
> > structure but in constructing the upper halves of
> > the doors above the belt line and the extra  windows
> > . A duplex top had a hard roof like a sedan but had
> > removable window frames making them much cheaper to
> > build. In fact, with the side windows out, it looked
> > like a four door hardtop.
> >  A newer example, although not an American car, was
> > in the Peugeot 402 series in 1937. There was a model
> > called the, "Eclipse", that had a retractable metal
> > roof that stowed away into the trunk. With the roof
> > up it looked just like a two door hardtop and the
> > window frames rolled down with the glass just like
> > the 1950's ones. The Eclipse also had a back seat
> > like its American successors. I suppose this car
> > would be the most honest example of a Hardtop
> > Convertible with the exception of the 1957 Ford
> > Skyliner..
> > Best Regards
> > Arran Foster
> > 1954 Imperial Newport
> > Needing A Left Side Taillight Bezel and othe trim
> > parts.
> >
> >   ----- Original Message -----
> >   From: TheCarNutz@xxxxxxx
> >   To: mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> >   Sent: Tuesday, March 05, 2002 2:01 PM
> >   Subject: Re: IML: The term "hardtop"
> >
> >
> >   In a message dated 3/5/02 9:00:23 AM Pacific
> > Standard Time, gimpineer@xxxxxxxx writes:
> >
> >
> >
> >     Being just older than dirt, I was around when
> > "Hardtops" were introduced.
> >     D^2 is correct.  This was a new concept, at last
> > for the major car
> >     makers.
> >     Previously only convertibles had an unobstructed
> > window opening from
> >     front to rear.
> >     If I remember correctly, Willys Aero had the
> > first one in 1952.
> >
> >
> >   You're absolutely correct,  as I am also getting
> > to be one of those "old guys over there."  I was in
> > my teens in the 50's and saw all those great new
> > cars.  Actually the first "hardtop convertible" was
> > the 2 door 1949 Buick Riviera, and was so named
> > because it looked like a convertible but with a
> > steel top, and no post between the front & rear, and
> > the drivers door window was just like the
> > convertible with the chrome around the glass.  And
> > as previously mentioned, in 1955 GM introduced the
> > "4 door hardtop," which again eliminated the post
> > between the front & rear door area.  Probably some
> > of the rarest Chrysler products found today are the
> > "50's" 4 door hardtops, and my 57 Imperial
> > Southampton is certainly one of them.
> >
> >                 Bill B.
> >
>
>
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