Imperial Car Club Forum

Hi everyone.

Went to see a 62 LeBaron yesterday. Never wrecked, original paint, didn't have the scripts on the lower front fenders. No holes for them. Current owner bought it in the 80s said they've never been there. My question, would there be a reason that they wouldn't have been put on at the factory? Being the most carefully assembled car, I can't imagine they'd have been overlooked. Crashed when it was new and the paint matches? Puzzling.

Thanks everyone.

Found this: http://www.imperialclub.com/Yr/1962/PrePro/index.htm

That pre-production version of the car did not have the script it seems. As it was used for reveals and such, maybe they didn't want to give the make away too early. Is it an early build number on the VIN?

I'll have to ask the seller if he'll tell me the VIN. I didn't think to look at it.

That's a pretty car in the link. It has the wrong parking light lenses up front. They should be clear.

Man that car is stunning! Something about a silvery interior.

One question I have, why would Chrysler think they needed a prototype for a car that is basically the same as the previous model year? Pre-production, sure, because of the parts that are different. I've been looking at pictures of Imperials and it seems that the missing scripts are random. Some have them, some don't. Same for 61 and 63. Has to be some reason they were omitted.

The LeBaron did not have the Imperial script on the front fenders. The script was used only on the Custom and Crown models.

slanflat wrote: ↑Mon Apr 27, 2020 11:17 am Hi everyone.

Went to see a 62 LeBaron yesterday. Never wrecked, original paint, didn't have the scripts on the lower front fenders. No holes for them. Current owner bought it in the 80s said they've never been there. My question, would there be a reason that they wouldn't have been put on at the factory? Being the most carefully assembled car, I can't imagine they'd have been overlooked. Crashed when it was new and the paint matches? Puzzling.

Thanks everyone.

I have "LeBaron" scripts on the front fenders of my '66; it varies by year.

Dracula wrote: ↑Fri May 01, 2020 4:36 pm I have "LeBaron" scripts on the front fenders of my '66; it varies by year.

Exactly. The original question was about a '62 Imperial. I should have been more specific in my response.

1960 had front fender LeBaron scripts, 1961-1963 Lebanons did not, 64 did, 65 didn’t, 66 did. I have always guessed that the reason it was left off was it might have been perceived as even more posh not to be quite as flashy about how posh you were. But clearly they kept repeatedly changing their minds about it...

Having said that, it was extremely easy for dealers or owners to add these badges onto a car that didn’t have them and so it’s not at all uncommon to see them on years that did not have them originally. Hope that helps.

That's good to know, thanks Red!