6PKRTSE
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Congrats. Beautiful Imp. I love the big ole sea bodies and have owned many over there years.
I finally bought an Imperial
- Thread starter chrysler_fan
- Start date
Mr C
Senior Member
Congratulations! What a car.
chrysler_fan
Active Member
i appreciate your added insight for the build date o n my new Imperial. I knew the door build decal often has a later month than the date on the fender / cowl tag if the tag has a late in month date stamp. I did not know the lower left numbers gave exact date and even the hour. Great news for my built on a Friday car right before lunch. LOL!!!
Robert Saigh
Senior Member
Nice find! A '74 which has the solid bumper my favorite steering wheel and most of all.... The one off GRILL and the one off Ribbed Velour cloth seats!
@chrysler_fan ~~ congrats on acquiring YM23T4C201437
chrysler_fan
Active Member
Thank you
chrysler_fan
Active Member
It is the famous or infamous Golden Fawn
chrysler_fan
Active Member
I don't know when they quit making 74 Imperials and what the highest VIN sequence number was for Imperial / Chrysler for 1974 to better judge how late in the model year my new baby was built. We know from another poster that it was June 11.
Your car:
Sequential Production Number (SPN): 201437
Scheduled Production Date (SPD): 530
Month-Date-Hour: 060711
Comparing this to my modest data base of 1974 East Jefferson-produced cars, I get the following.
East Jefferson also produced Chryslers (New Yorker and Newport)and Plymouth/Dodge/Chrysler station wagons. Those all contribute to the SPN value.
The highest SPN at East Jefferson is 222311, a Newport, SPD 722, MDH 071008. A still higher SPD, for another Newport, is 724. So they kept planning and producing C-bodies well into July, 1974.
Restricting this to Imperials, the picture is somewhat different. The highest SPN I have is 198301, SPD 513. This one also came with the Crown Coupe package.
So your 201437 stands out in this data base as the highest SPN known for a 1974 Imperial.
Your go-to page is <1974 - 1975 (Chrysler) Imperial WPC News Article> where it reads: "The 1974 Imperial was introduced on September 25, 1973, and the last 1974 Imperial was assembled on July 3, 1974". No idea whether "assembled" refers to the SPD or the MDH, as these things tend to get mixed up in the mind of some enthusiasts.
Summing up:
1974 Imperials w/Crown Coupe Package (V4Y)
YM23T4C180859, SPD 429
YM23T4C190858 (redone in black)
YM23T4C198301, SPD 513
YM23T4C201437, SPD 530
54 53 fender tags to go!
Sequential Production Number (SPN): 201437
Scheduled Production Date (SPD): 530
Month-Date-Hour: 060711
Comparing this to my modest data base of 1974 East Jefferson-produced cars, I get the following.
East Jefferson also produced Chryslers (New Yorker and Newport)
The highest SPN at East Jefferson is 222311, a Newport, SPD 722, MDH 071008. A still higher SPD, for another Newport, is 724. So they kept planning and producing C-bodies well into July, 1974.
Restricting this to Imperials, the picture is somewhat different. The highest SPN I have is 198301, SPD 513. This one also came with the Crown Coupe package.
So your 201437 stands out in this data base as the highest SPN known for a 1974 Imperial.
Your go-to page is <1974 - 1975 (Chrysler) Imperial WPC News Article> where it reads: "The 1974 Imperial was introduced on September 25, 1973, and the last 1974 Imperial was assembled on July 3, 1974". No idea whether "assembled" refers to the SPD or the MDH, as these things tend to get mixed up in the mind of some enthusiasts.
Summing up:
1974 Imperials w/Crown Coupe Package (V4Y)
YM23T4C180859, SPD 429
YM23T4C190858 (redone in black)
YM23T4C198301, SPD 513
YM23T4C201437, SPD 530
Last edited:
patrick66
Old Man with a Hat
The C-body "Y" in the VIN was for 1968 and newer Imperials. The D-body "Y" is the '64-'66 Imperials - some would argue 1962 to 1966.
3C's & a D?
Senior Member
Is that the correct steering wheel for this car? It kind of sticks out against the light coloured dash. Great car!
Mr C
Senior Member
Yes, in 74 all of the steering wheels were black, which unfortunately clashed unless you had a black interior.
Some brochure pics...you can see the wheel/ column was always black in 74...changed to colour toned in 75.
Plus a pic I took of another car that had taken pics of (non-brochure).
Robert Saigh
Senior Member
Love that "Ribbed Velour"! I even called SMS and they have this material in several colors.... although, it ain't cheap!
Also see the "Sense and nonsense of fender tags" thread.
PS.
The dialogue box asking me to consent to the site's Privacy and Transparence Policy that opens up on every single occasion I click a forum page is driving me mad.
PS.
The dialogue box asking me to consent to the site's Privacy and Transparence Policy that opens up on every single occasion I click a forum page is driving me mad.
For every problem there is a solution. Below 1974 Crown Coupe, reportedly YM23T4C190858, was redone in black:
"I spent over $10,000 in a total refurbish. I replaced the insulation above the headliner to the insulation under the new carpeting. My trimmer reupholstered all the seats using all new fabric (Mushroom Quartz) for the velour to replace the (Golden Fawn) velour. We dyed all the available leather in black, replaced that which needed to be, and dyed all the panels, dashboard, door panels, etc. The top was ordered new in black using all the original foam underlayment."
PS.
The dialogue box asking me to consent to the site's Privacy and Transparence Policy that opens up on every single occasion I click a forum page is driving me mad.
Last edited:
Mr C
Senior Member
Yes, I looks nice, but doesn't wear worth a damn. The non ribbed velour lasts way longer. I think that's why they switched to non-ribbed fabric in 75.
Robert Saigh
Senior Member
^^That's true about the non ribbed velour! The picture of the black interior (seats) have the "ribs" in the wrong direction!! And actually, wore pretty well.... I've seen a few models with significant mileage on them. The cloth seats seem to retain their thickness because the padding is I believe a little thicker or the way it's bonded to the fabric. Leather, after a few sittings starts to go a little flat.
thethee
Senior Member
chrysler_fan
Active Member
Thank you for all that information. It was far more than I had so far. What an expert. I like the summing up part with various crown coupe cars you are aware of Do you maintain a registry of these unusual cars. All Imperials are rare to a degree but the 74 Crown Coupe is a special one to me. I never thought I would end up buying one though. I had pretty much given up on getting an Imperial of any variety Best wishes.
chrysler_fan
Active Member
Guess you can say you have 1 of 1 That would have been a lot of work to go to black from Golden Fawn. Guess you did that to match the black steering wheel they all had, regardless of interior color. Did you cover the rim blow steering wheel in leather even though it was already black? If so, how do you get the horn to blow? Unless you could someday switch to a 75 and beyond steering wheel i f those wheels are even compatible with older tilt / tele columns. Best wishes!
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