Mrs. Bluberry's 1958 Imperial Page

Differences between 1957, 1958 & 1959 Imperials

The Imperial was an all new, stand alone design in 1957. This was the first year that Imperials were entirely distinct from the Chrysler line. The cars were a runaway success in 1957. For a variety of reasons, 1958 sales were about half of the previous year. There were very few changes beteween the two years, either cosmetically or in engineering. The new car's designer, Virgil Exner, suffered a debilitating heart attack in 1958, but probably had a large say in the appearance of the 1959 Imperial. This car had many differences from the 1958 model, yet still had, essentially, the same body and fins.

This page is not on the differences between the trim levels. The cars had a base model, the Crown, and the LeBaron. While these trim levels did have some standard features, many options were available throughout the range.

This page is a guide on how to tell the years apart.

From The Front

The bumper is the biggest clue. It is commonly referred to as being of a bi-plane style. It has an upper and lower element to it and the turn signals are placed in the space between them, at the corners. The grille is of a rectangular box design. Also you may also find single head lamp '57s, built to comply with some state regulations. The twin head light pods are straight on the top and bottom, and rounded at each end. An eagle with long wings is on the hood. In '57 the fresh air grille is bolted and you need to remove all heater /AC parts to access to the bolts.

The 58's bumper is of a single piece in appearance, despite being comprised of many parts. It is rounded and the turn indicators are in small pods on the bottom of the bumper. The grille is different, too. It is of long, thin horizontal boxes, with almost no height in relation to their width. There are five thin black vertical dividing lines. All 58's have twin headlights, with the same design as '57. The '58 has the same eagle as the '57. In '58, the fresh air grille is a "snap-on" affair.

The '59's bumper is the same as the '58 but the grille is radically different, with five chromed, narrow, shaped pieces and a thick horizontal bar going all the way across the center of the grille, between the lowered light pods. There are rectangular boxes, bigger than '58's, recessed behind the five extruding chrome pieces. The light pods are shaped to follow the contours of the lights. The eagle of 57/58 is gone, replaced by a wide, square script 'Imperial' across the center of the hood.

Click on images to enlarge

57, single headlight, 57 twin headlights, . . . . . . 58, . . . . . . . 59

From The Side

On the '57, you can see the bi-plane bumper. Also, the head light eye brow is relatively short as it travels down the side of the car., which reaches as far as the middle of the front wheel. There is a stylized 'Imperial' behind the front wheel, on the fender, above the lower chrome strip.

On the '58, you will see the bumper. If it is not of bi-plane design, this, along with a longer head lamp eye brow which now stretches almost to where the lower strip begins, behind the front wheel, is the best way to tell them apart.

On the '59, you will see the lowered head lights and the upper chrome strip now overlaps the lower one and stretches almost all the way to the front doors. The stylized 'Imperial' script is replaced with the word in regular script, in the same place. (On the Le Baron, it says 'LeBaron') An additional piece of chrome cladding can be found behind the rear wheel and the bumper, on the lower part of the car, integrated into the lower chrome strip.

From The Rear

Click on images to enlarge

Rear ends . . . '57, . . . '58, . . . '59

From the rear, the '57 and the '58 are identical, almost. There are the single piece rear lights, which are combination rear / brake / indicator lights. Very small for such a big car. They are surrounded, on the fins, by circular chrome pieces, known as sparrow strainers. The car may, or may not have the 'toilet seat' fake tire cover, depending on the buyers taste and pocket book. The rear bumper is massive, with two elongated ovals on each side of the license plate. At each end are relatively big reversing lights, that occupy one third of the ovals. On all '57's there is a ribbed section in the remainder, with three ribs, and four valleys.

Half way through 1958, the ribbed design on the bumper was replaced with a flat space. It is therefore not a good indicator as to year, except that if it is flat, it is a '58. The "filte sweep deck lid" ornament is mildly different for 1958. The "wheelcover" is smaller and is rather a "ring", the center is also different. A small hose is used to evacuate water in the lowest point of the stamped deck. The '58 rear leaf springs are longer.

In 1959, the bumper design changed completely, to a stretched oval the complete width of the car. The reversing lights are still at each end, but the license plate now fits within the oval, not on a flat space in between the smaller ovals. The main rear lights are slightly longer than before and have a ratchet effect on them, which matches this year's wheel covers. Some, but not all, LeBarons have twin chrome rings (Sparrow Strainers) at rear lights, instead of just one. In all cases, as with the rear lights, the rings on the '59 are not plain, as they are on 57/58's. They have a ratchet effect on them, also.

Interior.

Interior differences between the '57 and '58 models are very small. Look for the rear view mirror and the turn indicator switch. On the '57, the rear view mirror is placed right in the center of the dashboard, where it meets the glass. The turn indicator is underneath the transmission button, on the left of the instrument cluster. It is a vertical switch. You press it in at the top to make the right indicators blink and at the bottom to turn to the left. You press in the center to turn them off.

On the '58, the mirror has been moved closer to the driver. It is attached to the upper right corner of the instrument cluster exterior. The turn indicator has become a switch which pivots from the bottom, like a metronome. It is moved to the left and right, according to your intent, and it has a small button at the pivot point to turn it off. On the door panels, the "trapezoīd" area is different: The front molding has a rounded shape and goes lower. Also in 1958, the emergency brake light is built with a flasher so that the red light blinks.

Other than that, the driver will find everything else to be the same: Two huge round main dials, MPH on the left with odometer, and on the right a four quadrant split for oil pressure, engine temp, fuel, and electrical. An invisible change affects the bezel that frames the transmission pushbuttons and turn signal changed from '57 to '58. You can't tell from the front, but if you remove it, you will find that the turn signal switch mounts with tapped/threaded screws on the '57, untapped sheet metal screws on the '58.

The '59 has a completely different dash, with a ribbon speedometer and square gauges beneath it, instead of the orbs on the '57/'58. Heating and A/C controls are now buttons, instead of sliding controls, and match the push button transmission controls. Swivel seats are a new development.

Click on images to enlarge

Interiors: . . .57, . . . 58, . . . 59

Under The Hood

Both the '57 and '58 have 392 Hemis. For all intents and purposes you will not see much difference. Half way through the '57 model year, the carburetor was changed from the venerable WCFB to an all new AFB. The former is made of steel, the latter an aluminum alloy. Both are four barrel. Again, this is not a good way to tell them apart, but, if it has a WCFB, it is most likely to be a '57. Horse power in '57 was 325 with a compression ratio of 9.25:1. Many, but not all, valve covers in '57s have Chrysler Fire Power. stamped on them

All '58s have the word IMPERIAL stamped on the valve covers. The '58 had new pistons (with a longer length) and new crankshafts. Compression was raised to 10:1. There was a rise in horse power to 345.

The '59 has a different engine, the all new 413 wedge head. The engine is lighter and easier to build, and has more horsepower. It is easier to work on.

Up On The Roof

In 1959, the front section of the car's roof could be optioned with a stainless steel panel, called the 'Silvercrest'. The rear canopy on hardtops (behind the chrome band that spans the width of the roof) could also be ordered in a black crackle-grain finish, which was the Landau option. The stainless steel forward section could be ordered separately or one could get both (the "Silvercrest Landau" option). If the car has the Silvercrest, or Silvercrest Landau, option it is a '59.

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