It's Been 70 Years Since the First Chrysler Imperial Parade Phaeton, Let's Remember Them

Today we celebrate the New York car that has been through so many important moments, alongside a lot of heroes and famous personalities. The gorgeous vehicle was produced in 1952 and since then, it has become a symbol of New York and an indispensable part of American history. However, we won’t leave behind its peers and we will commemorate all three of these American icons who were so representative of the twentieth century.

Starting with the New York car, it famously carried Apollo 11 astronauts, Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins during the well-known parade from August 13, 1969 (that's exactly 53 years ago), which celebrated their return from the even more famous trip to the Moon.

However, another astronaut called John Glenn was the only one who rode it not only twice, but also in two different colors schemes. He was celebrated as the first American to orbit the Earth in 1962, and the oldest person to orbit the Earth at an incredible age of 77 years aboard the Discovery space shuttle.

The ceremonial vehicle was last used in 2021. This time however, the passengers were a different breed of heroes. During the peak of the COVID pandemic, the famous Chrysler carried a rather unknown person for the first time. The passenger in question was a Registered Nurse by the name of Sandra Lindsay. Her ride in the ceremonial car came in recognition of the efforts the frontline medical workers made during the global health crisis.

Switching focus from the people to the machines, these iconic cars saw a few changes and upgrades during their long service history. The Chrysler Imperial Parade Phaeton parade cars started as Imperial Crown Limousines but they were equipped with a dual cowl phaeton-style body. They feature an oversized rear passenger compartment separated from the front seating area by a second windshield.

The cars were maintained by the carmaker in their early days. In 1955 they saw a repaint and revamp which included stylishly redesigned grills and lights. Larger tail fins were also added to better reflect the design language that Chrysler and other manufacturers were approaching during that period.

The update of the New York car saw the it go from the original black paint with a grey interior to a white color with a dashing red interior, which was kept until the 1980s when the original exterior color was restored. The American icon is currently stored in its own little shed near the NYPD tow pound in Brooklyn and is regularly run to make sure it is ready to take any call from the mayor’s office.

The Los Angeles Chrysler Imperial Parade Phaeton was built with a rose interior and cream exterior. Its official debut happened at the Tournament of Roses parade in Pasadena in January 1953. President Richard M. Nixon and his family rode in this sublime car, during the parade.

In 1955, its interior was completely reupholstered in white and the exterior saw a change to a metallic silver-blue, as it was seen in the Broadway film of 1959, Li’l Abner. Later, the exterior of the car was repainted in white, in order to match the upholstery. However, according to an installment of Jay Leno’s garage, the car has now been yet again revamped, sporting a red leather interior. It is still in possession of the City of Los Angeles and it continues to be used for its original purpose of official parades and ceremonies.

The Detroit Chrysler was originally painted in metallic green exterior and natural pigskin interior. However, it saw a change to a desert sand exterior when Chrysler updated it for 1956. Since then It has been refinished in white and sports an understated brown interior.

Although in 1977 it was reportedly vandalized and destroyed, its demise was greatly overstated, as the end of the road sees it parked as an exhibit in the Peterson Museum nowadays. However, it took a long road to get here. It changed owners a few times, most notably being part of the Imperial Palace Collection in Las Vegas.