Lawrence Street Sighting: Chrysler Newport

I'm about to own up to something; I don't know that much about the Chrysler corporation, besides some of their engines, and their muscle cars. With vehicles aside from Chargers, Challengers, and Dusters, I'm a rusty nail--and I use my carspotting to learn about cars as I shoot them. I love finding new cars, and although I was aware of the Newport's existence, I hadn't really seen one this old, this close.

And it's a big freakin' car. At the time, the Newport was the biggest Chrysler (and the poshest) you could buy this side of an Imperial--and it shows. Hell, it makes the house look small by comparison, and that house isn't small. Going by the pillars in the doors, I would wager that this one is a Newport Custom, and came with either 383 or a stonking 440 cube V8, but while both engines were powerhouses, the car is no muscle machine. 383s had 325 horses, and the 440 pumped out a healthy 50 horses more, but because the car was geared toward luxury, the ride was slow, steady and smooth--the opposite of such tire-smoking, axle-hopping beasts like the Charger and Roadrunner.

While the Newport did continue on well into the 1970s (and eventually died in 1981), the big car image was lost by the mid-1970s; with downsizing, the nameplate lost its big-boy heritage, and the nameplate (like Chrysler's letter cars) went on to become just another car in the sea of lookalike Chryslers with no real merit. Quite sad, because I think this Newport is a fine car --and would be even finer if it is restored.

Really, this Newport is a sad sight; I remember this car from my youth, too, but I don't remember it looking this bad. I guess time has taken its toll. On the plus side, minus the cancer eating the lower portion of the body, this old barge has held up quite well. I especially like the fact that the original dealer plaque still adorns the trunk. This clarifies why I remember this car from my youth; even though Hutchison is fairly far away, this thing has remained in Kansas its whole life.

Despite the fact that only one hubcap remains, the rest of the trim is in great shape, and because of this, I would wager that this example is worth a restoration; most folks would simply derby it in this shape, and that's why these cars are nearly extinct now. I haven't see one in years, and unfortunately, this is the nicest example I have ever seen.

I am glad I managed to shoot this; I like the color, and although I am a bit iffy on the general styling theme, I can say this definitely sticks out versus another cliched big Chevrolet sedan.