The Imperial was Chrysler’s answer to the Cadillac and Lincoln luxury brands when it first made its debut in 1926. Offered as a two or four-seat roadster, four-passenger coupé, five-passenger sedan and phaeton and a seven-passenger top-of-the-line limousine, it was the creme of the Chrysler crop.
Art Center graduate Dong Woo Kim again sought to revisit Chrysler’s flagship in creating his Imperial concept vehicle and looked to the historic cars of the 30s and 50s as inspiration. But he also singled out the period when Chrysler decided to create the Imperial as a standalone brand and compete head-on with GM’s Cadillac division and Ford’s Lincoln models.
The result is a luxury sedan that is elegant, provocative and aspirational, yet sustainable — something that the earlier vehicles never were. With thin horizontal headlamps and a wide, imposing grille that visually widen the front end, the mix of two tone colors and materials on the body and the split window graphic of the backlight lend a contemporary yet classic feel to the design.
