The name: Imperial
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The name: Imperial



Under those circumstances, "Let the Pendulum Swing"!

Paul

In a message dated 1/22/2004 10:33:35 PM Eastern Standard Time, 
65luxuryliner@xxxxxxxxxxxxx writes:

> In theory that isn't a bad idea Randy.  Infiniti certainly is an upscale 
>Nissan as is Lexus an upscale Toyota.  But remember who owns Chrysler now.  I 
>doubt the top brass would create a separate marque that could possibly steal 
>sales from Mercedes!  What a shame as I think the SUV boom will (someday) peak 
>and the American public will go back to buying large, comfortable and powerful 
>full sized luxury cars.  Car design goes through cycles.  In my humble 
>opinion, I doubt we have seen the last of the the full sized luxury cruisers.  
>It will just take time for the SUV craze to die down.  When the demand for 
>them begins to drop (and in time it will), the 'new' status symbol will be the 
>big luxury sedans and coupes once more!  Maybe then, Imperial will be 
>resurrected!  (Hey, it's ok to dream isn't it?)
>  
> Greg McDonnell
> No SUV's for me thank you!  Just give me all the big luxo boats from the 
>'50's and '60's!
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: Randy Martin 
> To: mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 
> Sent: Thursday, January 22, 2004 8:43 PM
> Subject: Re: IML: The name: Imperial
> 
> 
> Hello!
> This is a great discussion of the name Imperial and its potential for 
>Chrysler and everyone has some great ideas.  Someone mentioned that Chrysler 
>never marketed the Imperial properly and it became "just another Chrysler" and 
>I had a thought.  What if Chrysler were to market the Imperial as a separate 
>marque the way Nissan has with Infiniti and Toyota has with Lexus?   Using a 
>separate dealer network and support system, it may prove to be very profitable 
>if done with quality products and quality service.  Ok, time for me to wake up.
>  
> Randy
> Dreaming of a '73
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: John Meyer 
> To: mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 
> Sent: Thursday, January 22, 2004 6:25 PM
> Subject: IML: The name: Imperial
> 
> 
> Hi Everyone,
> 
> I think we all agree that Chrysler failed to market the Imperial 
> effectively, and also failed to separate Imperial as a separate marque 
> from the Chrysler name. Imperial started out and ended up as "Chrysler 
> Imperial" and that's how nearly everybody refer to our cars today, 
> never mind that most of them don't carry the word "Chysler" anywhere.  
> The design and engineering of the cars wasn't the problem. I think also 
> that (nearly) all of us agree Elwood Engel wasn't at fault.
> 
> But what about the name Imperial itself?
> 
> We know that Chrysler's use of the name Imperial was meant to connote 
> the best of the best, the top, the pinnacle, etc. But many many other 
> companies and entrepreneurs had exactly the same idea. Think of 
> Imperial Margarine, etc. I look in the yellow pages today and I see 
> Imperial Gem & Jewelry and Imperial Transportation services. How many 
> plumbers, roofers, dry cleaners, barber shops, etc. do you want to bet 
> used the name Imperial all through the 50s, 60s & 70s? I'd bet there 
> were thousands. The name was really watered down to the point of being 
> meaningless and having no real identity.
> 
> GM certainly never had that problem with Cadillac. Cadillac meant 
> Cadillac and that meant prestige. The name Imperial just didn't have 
> the power to lend much prestige to Chrysler's top of the line. The 
> beautiful (and now highly sought after) Chrysler Imperials of the 30s 
> helped doom Chrysler's efforts to establish Imperial as a separate 
> marque: it would always be "Chrysler Imperial." The name "300" was much 
> more successful. People never forgot that 300 meant a snazzy Chrysler 
> car. The association stayed strong enough for Chrysler to revive that 
> name.
> 
> Imperial has a lot of meanings, and in the 30s it was just fine to be 
> imperialistic. Imperial Navy, British Empire, and so on. Studebaker 
> even sold a car named the Dictator. Nowadays using Imperial would be a 
> marketing disaster. These days more people would connect "Imperial" to 
> Star Wars and Darth Vader than to any kind of car.
> 
> All the same, I always just say "It's an Imperial" when someone asks 
> what kind of car I'm driving.
> 
> Best,
> John Meyer
> 1965 Crown
> Tucson
> 
> 
> 


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