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" The Colonel " 1950 Chrysler Imperial De-Luxe Sedan
   1 of only 216 "end of production specials" to be made
   believed only 7 still exist - this is the only one in the UK
    No rust, no filler, no welding, no new panels - just good solid original metal
    owned by Ray & Anita from July 2002 ~ present

Winner: "Best Car" - Hatfield Carnival 2003
   "Star Car" - Practical Classics - Spring 2003
   Winner: "Best in Show" - ( out of 700+) - Chiltern Hills Rally - May 2007
   Winner: "Best in Show"- ( out of 204 ) - SEVCVC London to Southend Rally - July 2007
   Featured car in 9 publications so far - ( up to July 2007 )



Engine:                     "C49" - 323 cubic inch    ( 5.3 Litre ) , Straight 8 cylinder ,   Flathead ( Side Valve ),   135bhp @ 4000 rpm
Transmission:         2 speed Automatic with Fluid Flywheel, plus a manually selected High/Low ratio with safety clutch (see below)
Length:                     18' 6" ( 5.7 metres )
Width:                       6' 1" ( 1.9 metres )
Height:                     5' 4" ( 1.6 metres )
Weight:                    4280lbs ( 2+ UK tons )
Model:                     "Model 494" with "Body Type 5" on a New Yorker chassis
Original dealer:    John J Fogelman Inc, Chrysler Dealer # 8337, Valley Stream, Long Island, New York
Sold to:                    [then] New York State Authority
Original cost:        $3176 in 1950 = approx $110,000 (£60,000) at today's rate
Colour:                   "Paint Code 1" - ( Black) with loads of chrome
Interior:                 "Trim38" - all original light grey velour seating and door panels with blue leather topped polished aluminium dash and door trims. White pearl effect /                                 bone steering wheel.
Condition:             Class 1 throughout: inside and out, all original fittings including inbuilt valve radio and full instrumentation
Specials:                 Electric windows all around with central operation from drivers door- split windscreen - two speed wipers
Other:                     Left Hand Drive - seats 6 large adults comfortably.
MPG:                      20mpg at steady 55mph, 14 mpg around town, cruises nicely at 55mph

Unproven history:
After purchasing the vehicle I was told the following story - although, unfortunately, there's no hard evidence to support some of the details:
The car was used by a New York Government official from new (1950) until he died in the late 50s.. When his Chauffeur later retired (1959) the car was given to him as it was now deemed too outdated. The Chauffeur put it into storage where it remained until 1994 , apart from a few outings to make a Wrigleys chewing gum advert and an American TV production of "Annie"...

Proven and documented history:   ( after a lot of detective work !! )
1950 - documentation shows that the car was supplied new to a Chrysler dealer (#8337) by the name of John J Fogleman Inc in Valley Stream, Long Island, New York - [ source Chyrsler Historical Foundation -November 2002] who in turn supplied it to an American Government department in New York. Unfortunately, the New York State Driver & Vehicle Records Agency write "...... we cannot provide you with a detailed ownership history of this vehicle. The Federal Driver's Privacy Protection Act, (DPPA) restricts access to such classified information. We can, however, confirm it was used by a Government Department until 1959"
1959 - the car ended it's government service and went into storage
1994 - The owner died and Colin Nolson from the Isle of Wight (UK) purchased the car from the estate sale and imported it to the UK with the help of his American friend and Chrysler Club member, Terry McGlashon. Apart from a few outings it again spent much of its time in storage, this time in London.
1996 - as the paint had deteriorated with age the car was sent to Merseyside for a bare metal re-spray. .Documentation shows that once stripped down the car was reported as "immaculate" with no evidence of any rust, welding, filler or repairs. The re-chroming was attended to in Portsmouth.
2000/2001 - the Master Brake Cylinder was replaced ( purchased from Kantors of USA ). Also replaced was the Brake Servo, supplied by J&L (01706 644210) who were recommended by Lockheed ( both USA and UK ). Unable to supply an original Chrysler part J&L calculated the weight and loading and supplied the appropriate Lockheed parts which work extremely well.
June 2002 - Ray and Anita bought the car making them only the 4th owners since new. The speedometer read 27,155 miles.
July 2002 - Sinton tyres supplied 5 new White Walled Radials to replace the four L72 Bias Belts tyres which were subsequently product dated to November 1963 and the spare which was proven to be the original from 1950 !! Although they had plenty of tread they had ridged making the steering very erratic. It now drives perfectly.
November 2002 - for the sum of $45 the Chrysler Corporation Historical Collection traced this vehicles production to 1950 and provided :
    - a copy of the original build sheet, showing the correct chassis and engine number which accompanied the car along the production line with inspectors' marks at the appropriate points
     - a copy of the statement of delivery to the dealer John J Fogelman Inc ( dealer No. 8337 ), Valley Stream, New York, again bearing the correct chassis number etc
     - additional technical data regarding this series
December 2002 - Ray received an "out of the blue" email from Ian Hawle who, in 1996, assisted Ian Garbutt during the respray. He had accidentally come across The Old Crocs website and wondered whether it was the same car.   It was and Ian Hawle provided much valued detail. Both Ian Hawle and Ian Garbutt have independently reported that when it was stripped there was was no rust, filler or repairs on the car at all . The respray was required purely because " the original paint was badly oxidised and as flat as blotting paper" as Ian Hawle recalled it. He also wrote regarding the tyres: "..the one in the boot at the time was I think an original tyre from when the car was new and had never been used, it had sat in the wheel well for so long that a bolt that had been underneath it had left a perfect impression in the tread". It was subsequently proven that it was indeed the original .
August 2003 - having proved 100% reliable and given nearly 4000 miles service without fault - including a 5 day extravaganza to Guernsey and another 5 days touring the hills and dales of West Yorkshire - Ray felt obliged to give it a "once over". Very little needed doing other than a routine oil and water change.
June2004 - prior to setting off on a 500+ mile tour of Devon Ray booked the car into Bob Harman Performance Ltd garage in Watford where every drop of fluid - radiator, engine, gearbox, fluid drive, axle etc - was drained, flushed and replaced. BHP also did a complete check and oil / grease up from an original Chrysler schedule - just over 200 points !! Plugs , points, distributor cap and leads were also replaced.   The Colonel went all the way to Devon, around for 5 days and back again without a hiccup and averaged 17.8 mpg.
July2004 - after carrying 6 hefty adults over some rough roads a rear spring finally snapped. All new springs, back and front, were manufactured, to the original size and tension specifications, by Detroit Springs, USA. New bushes were supplied by US Automotive of Bedford, England and the whole lot was fitted, again, by Bob Harman Performance.
March 2007 - a complete rear end brake overhaul including new cylinders, linings and pipes - Bob Harman doing the work again. The fronts were perfect and required no work.

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Why call it "The Colonel" ? - well so many cars are named in tribute to Elvis and being a true Eddie Cochrane fan Ray decided to name his car after the real force behind Elvis - Colonel Tom Parker - ( that should stir it up !!! ) hence . . "The Colonel"

About the marque:
The 1950 Chrysler range consisted of the 6 cylinder Royals and Windsors and the 8 cylinder New Yorkers, Imperials and Imperial Crowns. The Colonel is a 6 seater 131" wheelbase Imperial DeLuxe Sedan.( There was also an 8 seater 145" wheelbase Crown Imperial ). Only 1150 Imperial DeLuxe's were built of which only 216 "specials" are reported to have been built, at the end of production, with the combination of 4 over-rider bumper, electric windows all around, wrap around rear window and round front indicators in chromed surround - this is one of the 216. It's in excellent condition, with a beautiful interior and drives like new. Quiet, sophisticated and very, very powerful.

About that strange gearbox:
From starting off the driver depresses the clutch and engages either high or low drive – this is the only time the Clutch is required. Low drive is rarely used due to the high torque of this vehicle. So, holding the foot brake, dip clutch and pull the column gear change down into high drive – release clutch. Releasing the hand brake and then foot brake the engine rotation is transmitted to the primary side of the Torque Converter. The Torque Converter is a sealed unit about 14 inches diameter containing transmission fluid and two opposing disks with fins on them. The input side is bolted to, and revolves with the flywheel. The output side has a drive shaft protruding through the housing and connects to the gearbox. As the engine speed increases power is transmitted via the fluid to the gearbox and then to the back axle. This makes for a very smooth pull away with no chance of stalling. At approx 30 mph the driver lifts his/her foot off the throttle. This action causes a centrifugal weight to activate a switch which in turn energises a solenoid to pull in the second of two gears (top). When the speed drops back below 10mph another centrifugal action causes a solenoid to re-engage first gear. Slippage of the fluid in the Torque Converter takes out any sudden “lurch”. In short the up and down changes are exceptionally smooth.

On the “minus” side one has to observe that the change up from first to second (remember it only has two gears) takes around 3 seconds which is an eternity compared to modern electro-select gearboxes. More than once I’ve had Mr Boy Racer attempting to hitch a lift on my enormous shiny back bumper, emotively gesticulating at me as my car appears to momentarily decelerate, or at least stop accelerating, during this up change. Also, unlike a modern automatic one can’t lock down the gears – the column change has only Reverse, Neutral, Drive 1 and Drive 2. That means that there’s no “Park” position either so parking relies on the Parking Brake alone – which instead of operating on the wheels merely clamps a brake band around the prop shaft. The brakes, although very powerful and Servo Assisted are just 10” drums all around and so can be prone to brake fade – especially when you consider that the Fluid Drive coupling effectively eliminates any engine braking. And one must remember to tuck the steering wheels into the kerb when parking as without engine braking there’s no point in engaging first or reverse when parking on a slope. I carry wheel chocks as an extra precaution.

About the year 1950:
1950 was the year in which American President Harry Truman sent troops in to South Korea and at the same time approved production of the Hydrogen bomb ( a weapon of mass destruction ). The trials of transcontinental television, via cable, began. The Detroit Chamber of Commerce said that the annual salary of car production workers was $3345 and that made them the highest paid car plant workers in the country, the average wage being only $2200. North America had a population of 149 million people of which merely 3 million (2%) were unemployed.
Top tunes of the day were: Mona Lisa ( Nat King Cole ), Third Man Theme (Anton Karas) , Tennessee Waltz ( Patti Page ) & If I knew you were coming I'd have baked a cake (Eileen Barton) !!!
In August 1950 the 4 hours a day BBC television service boasted hits such as: "Muffin the Mule" ( You can't do that - I'm sure it's illegal!! ), the first live transmission by microwave links from France, "the Potters Wheel", "London to Brighton in 4 minutes" ( a very much speeded up film of the actual journey ) and of course, the BBC test card.