I hate the "costing out" of nice features. But I have to admit, that little mirror is clever.

GM spelled it "Gages" to save that one letter. That's worth the price of admission right there! Thanks Adam... you consistently manage to present information found nowhere else.

That "thud" from the headlight doors closing is very impressive!! You are right to describe it as authoritative!!

Iconic automobile when they manufactured luxury without all the computer chips to make everything fail and surveillance. Your vehicles are true classics, most appreciative of your videos

Every time you show this car it takes my breath away - absolutely stunning in the black/gold combination! Like I said before - if I were to be buried in a car, this would be the one! 🤣I thought the mirror idea was brilliant myself - keep it simple less things to go wrong!

The "check gauges" light is a good idea since most people don't monitor their gauges.

Always loved the sound of a Chrysler car starting. You knew it was a Chrysler product just from the sound of the starter.

The dull black plastic on the instrument panel screams Plymouth Fury I police/fleet vehicle.

Tha is the most bizarre tidbit that I have ever learned about an older car. How cool.

In October '73 I had the pleasure (displeasure) of riding in the back seat of a '72 Newport for a couple of hours as we went around 'trick or treating' on Halloween night. The whole time that I was back there I could hear the gas sloshing around in the fuel tank. I guess removing the baffles from the tank was another way the Chrysler engineers cut costs on their cars!

Absolutely love that ‘72 Imperial! Same starter as my dad’s ‘71 Newport. Can’t imagine that removing the light in favor of a mirror was that much of a cost savings. But, I guess if you deal in volume, every $ makes a difference. Thanks, Adam! Your videos never get old!

“Extra care in engineering.. it makes a difference.” One of the ad slogans for Chrysler Corp. during this era. Awesome topic. Thanks for a great video here!!

Cost reduction runs rampant across all manufacturing. I worked at Nortel in one of their "CR Teams" . when they were making millions and the joke was, start pulling parts out till it quits working then put the last part back in. We actually quit painting their cell site equipment to save money.

I love it! We had a 1972 New Yorker, and the interior here (along with that delicious MoPar rumble which was a hallmark of the 440s) brought back some great memories.

You’re so good at coming up with interesting content. Every video after so many feels like you’ve got to be scraping the bottom of the barrel for topics. But no, each one feels good and fresh even with some recycled footage here and there. I sure appreciate your channel but appreciate your excellent stewardship of all those cars even more. It takes a lot of real passion and yours shows.

On the subject of lighting, one egregious cost cutting move was Chrysler replacing their spiffy 1968 side marker lights with cheezy reflectors that looked like they came off someone's mailbox for 1969. FMVSS regulations allowed lights OR reflectors for 1968 and 1969, so it technically did pass muster, but it's always been the first thing I notice when approaching a '69 Mopar. I guess the Imperial did get the cool "shark gill" cornering lamp up front, which had an amber bulb for side marker function, but the crummy reflectors remained on the rear quarter. This fortunately changed for 1970, when FMVSS 108 required both illumination and reflectors on each side/corner.

Your Imperial is absolutely gorgeous and always one of my favorites in your impressive collection.

I remember seeing a black Imperial in California, it's license plate read "BLACULA".

Bro, this imperial of yours is just fucking incredible aside from being massive and over the top and in every way, freaking beautiful man what a nice piece of machinery

I have to say the mirror is more ingenious than a lightbulb, has my respect. The whole car has my respect!

A great trip down memory lane for me. My dad sold Chryslers in the 60's & 70's. We had a '73 Town & Country station wagon that was a monster! 440 4 barrel engine with the towing package to pull our camper. I loved that thing! Oh, it had an 8-Track player too! 😉

Today, what's left of Chrysler is Dead Man Walking. What Stellantis has done is criminal!

The haunting glow of those Park lamps are unmistakable. Also, the performance of the reflective mirror, if cleaned, improves dramatically. Thanks for the cool content! 📺🚘✨

This is actually very smart and efficient!

Interesting fact. The 1971 to 1973 Imperial could be equipped with a 4 wheel anti-skid braking system made by Bendix.

That transmission stalk knob still screams "Dodge" in a big way...

Thanks for a terrific review, Adam...extremely informative. Just imagine how this car would be if they had used construction materials up to the 1966 level of quality! That would be exceptional.

Wow, they thought of everything back then. I’m glad I was born in the late 60s and grew up in the 70s. I remember riding in cars like these, and especially at night it was a treat, because of the ambient lighting. Cars of today just don’t have these special touches anymore. That interior is sublime. You feel safe in that huge land yacht. Love the old Imperials!

Nice job! Sometimes it's difficult to sit and watch a program like this that's 30 minutes or oftentimes much longer. This was perfect!

Chrysler ignition sounds just like the Martian death ray weapon in the 1950's film War of the Worlds love it

That mirror is genius. U get lighting without an additional bulb that needs to be changed. These 72’s have about the best line on a car ever. So long and the front grill is just epic

New information that I will keep on hand for future Mopar-head driven conversations. Of course I can't remember my own phone number, but this will be with me always. Thank you for another great video!

I like this segment a LOT. Great idea! As always, your videos are brilliantly done!

I’ve been watching your videos for quite some time now and I love all of your videos! You explain things clearly and I have learned a lot of stuff from your videos that I didn’t know before, very intuitive. Thanks for your knowledge and keep up the excellent videos, thank you very much!

Cool idea. Love these fuselage chryslers... And those hummingbird starters

Hey! Adam! Thank you for another Highland Park Hummingbird! Every time I hear that sound then the engine start it means another fun ride in a MOPAR! I would say though that your Imperial was sitting way longer than a week due to the long crank cycle. Thanks for all your thoroughly detailed explanations. Love the mirror solution. Its great the Chrysler solution was just a small hidden mirror with no smoke.

I always felt they skimped on the steering wheels for such a magnificent car!

Very cool and informative episode. I never knew about the mirror reflecting onto the armrest!

The starter sounds just like Squad 51 (except it always fired up quickly)...

Great video! What a gorgeous car. And an interesting idea with the mirror! I want a ride.

What a beautiful car. I always liked the sound of the Mopar starter on my several Plymouth Fury's I had as young man. As I grow older I often wish I'd have kept my last 71' 2 door.

one more thing I loved the Chrysler starter sound you could get in a Valient or your Imperial and knew you were in a Chrysler

Adam you never disappoint. Always great content and beautiful cars.

Thank you Adam. Chrysler continued the illuminated ignition area well into the 1990s as I saw it on 90's Chrysler cars. That cost cutting was not just Chrysler either. They were just more obvious with it. You could see that with the Imperial and New Yorker for decades( 1970's and 1990's) The late 1970's Mercury Marquis/Grand Marquis and Town Car and LTD used the same instrumentation panel parts. GM was really doing this a lot. I recall so many cars that shared parts for decades and it was obvious. The W body Regal and Cutlass Supreme shared the same instrumentation panel in the 1990's . Those cars had different more loaded interiors, and by 1995 it was the same. The Oldsmobile Achieva and Buick Skylark did as well in the 1990's. There are parts that were carried over from other models to others. The Oldsmobile Eighty Eight Royale Brougham seats were used in Pontiac Parisienne Brougham before 1985 and for one year in Chevrolet Caprice Classic Brougham LS( a rare option in 1986 until a real Brougham LS was created in 1987). The 1990's B Bodies shared so many parts it was scary. You really could see the Oldsmobile Custom Cruiser shared parts with Buick Roadmaster and Chevrolet Caprice. The only thing unique to the Oldsmobile was the steering wheel, the wheels and grille and the seats. The 1970's Oldsmobile Ninety Eight, Eighty Eight and Toronado and Custom Cruiser 1971-1976 shared lots of parts. The same thing happened over at Buick with the LeSabre, Electra/Park Avenue and Riviera. It was a common practice. The other interesting thing is at the end Town Car and Grand Marquis were still doing it. Another obvious example was Ford Thunderbird and Mercury Cougar in the 1970's and 1980's and 1990's. The The Mark IV and Ford Thunderbird shared parts. That was obvious too. The Lincoln Versailles and Ford Granada and Mercury Monarch did too. The 1992-2011 Ford Crown Victoria and Grand Marquis really started sharing in 1997-1998 time frame. The Chrysler LH cars in the 1990's shared parts. They took the trunk lock cover off the Ninety Eight and Eighty Eight in 1993. They both had them in 1991-1992. By 1993, it was gone. My 1996 Ninety Eight does not have a trunk lock cover. GM took the trunk pull down feature out of some of its luxury cars too.

That floodlight for the gauges is pretty spectacular in it's own right. Can see myself cruising dark highways a bit too fast with illuminated fake wood. Oh damn i just hit the end of the video, and that "dying dolphin" starter cracked me up!

That plush bench seating is fit for royalty. Bucket seats are safer, but I’d gladly exchange the safety they provide for that old school comfort.

a very clever feature in a car with a beautiful interior!

Brilliant in all senses of the word. Thanks!

In '79 I was working in Korea, my boss bought one of those from the US Embassy there. It was a tank ! Drivin' around Korea like big dawgs !

The sound of the headlight doors closing is like two bank vault doors locking.

Too cool - thanks for sharing!

Thank you for covering one of my favorite parts about this era of Chryslers. I loved how they could light up the entire dash with only a few lights, and apparently they also could do the drivers door as well! I can't get over that these were the longest non-limousine production cars made. I would have thought that would have gone to a Cadillac but here it is. Thanks again, and your car is in beautiful shape.

One of the greatest channels on YT.

Adam, you are the king of interesting, arcane malaise-era automotive knowledge. Your videos are almost ridiculously awesome for guys like me who love 70s and 80s American iron. And since I am not well off enough to purchase one of these beauties, your videos really allow me to experience the cars. I'm super envious of your auto collection but also happy that you are highlighting knowledge about these very special cars. Dude, rock on!

I so love the Mopars from this time! My parents always had Pontiac Bonnevilles and then the Grand Ville. I was fortunate though to get a Fury III gold sedan with black vinyl roof for my high school driver's ed. This man's Imperial is so cool and such a great alternative to the ubiquitous Cadillacs. I'd have had a hard time in '72 (I was a senior in high school) trying to decide between this fine car and the Lincoln sedan.

I miss big cars like these. For a few years, I drove a 1972 Delta 88 land yacht.

I’m very impressed, & didn’t know that , great video

Clever trick with the mirror. Starter sounds like 1 Adam12.

Great video!!!

LoL, The imperial at 235" made my old Electra 225 feel almost like a mid size car;-)

Love your cars, and vids adam👍

Once again, beautiful piece, Adam. Bean counters are critical to mass production.

GM spelled “employee” with only one “e” on the end for decades. Technically acceptable; someone calculated that it must of saved a barrel of ink a year!

Elwood Engel's '61 Continental's canvas still contemporary, modern, and stylish a decade later in this beauty.

These Imperials were beautifully understated American luxury vehicles. Seems like cost-cutting has always been with us to greater or lesser extents. Unfortunately few can afford items that are built to a standard and not a price point.

I believe this lighting of the master switch panel started in 1967 for Imperial. On page 17 of the owner's manual for that year, it mentions the "Driver arm rest light". It describes it as adding light to the master switch panel on the door as well as lighting the headlight switch area. The bulb tucked in under and back a bit from the interior door handle, as I recall. I think I prefer the subtle reflected light on the chromed switches over the direct lighting from a bulb.

I ADORE that car, absolutely love ALL OF IT ... the first time i was _assaulted_ by the sound the headlight doors make when they close would make me hit the deck and throw in a couple "Hail Marys" just in case 😂

‘Warm and inviting’ is the term I would use to describe that Imperial’s interior. Seems to be sadly rare these days.

Dude! That car is better than new 🤯.

Hi Adam! Hope all is well! Great video! I have a 71 and a 75 imperial. My 71 does in fact have the illuminated switches on the driver's door. It's an early build car... 9/70. That may have something to do with that. I prefer the 71 over the 75. More power. I prefer the fuselage style... and honestly, it has more interior room and more room under the hood due to the three inches of extra wheelbase, all in front of the cowl. The 75 has its positives, too. Factory 4 wheel disc brakes... and the auto temp finally got away from the faulty servo underhood. Keep up the good work!

Imperial, a very good and very luxurious/prestige company by Chrysler, with my favorite models being the '59-'60, '61-'66, '67-'68, '69-'73, and '74-'75 (my most-most favorite being the '59-'60 and '61-'66). It is a real shame it only lasted 20 years (with the nameplate used again from 1981-1983 and then used as the Chrysler LeBaron from the 80s to the 90s). It was a luxury company that was even lesser used and liked than Oldsmobile, Buick, Cadillac, Mercury, Lincoln, and even Chrysler itself (especially the fact it was not as seen as much in movies as those car companies. The only movies I remember the 1970-1975 being a very used car was in "Mean Streets" (1973) and "Last Of The Red Hot Lovers" (1972) along with some popular cop series like Adam-12/Mannix and CHiPS). Still a lot better than most of the modern-day interior and uncomfortable and electronic-obsessed garbage of the cars of today. It makes me wonder, why didn't Lincoln and Imperial sell as well as Cadillac? Cadillac's sales for those cars were always in the 100,000s to 200,000s, but for Lincoln and Imperial, it was around five to ten times lower!

I learned to drive in a '73 Newport...basically the same as this monster but even cheaper interior etc. Long, you say? Yup, we called it "The Boat" because Dad's car was 6" longer than his fishing boat. The best part of the design was the loooong straight fender top lines...made parking much easier because you actually had a clue where the ends of the thing were.

Fun fact about those fender-tip turn indecators - they were available on early Omni/Horizons.

Beautiful car & fabulous seats but I always thought the Imperial dash design looked cheap compared to the rest of the interior.

What a stunning ride. The front end is elegant to this day, it was futuristic for the 1970's. I think your carb needs a tune up kit. The float bowl or the accelerator pump are not giving it the gas to start fast.

Cool video, Adam. Now clean that mirror! 😉👍

Cool video! Was I the only one thinking about the drain on the battery the whole time?

Beautiful car. Interesting tech.

Beautiful car! Excellent video as always. Great presentational style. The seats are magnificent on those cars. The headlamp doors sound like wheelie bins falling over! Worth buying one just for that feature alone!! Keep up the good work 👍

I miss the 60’s and 70’s so much. The US for all its issues was so much cooler than today.

Starts just like a Chrysler. I had a '69 Fury III, a '72 Fury III, and a '64 Sport Fury, and they were all cold-blooded like that.

The mirror is genius! I also think it's more than cost savings, because if the light was anywhere on the arm rest or door panel, it would also be subjected to rain and snow, if/when the driver's window was down, which would inevitably lead to the 'inconvenience' of the light not working at all. My old '68 Valiant two door wouldn't let you lock the car unless the doors were fully closed. That meant that you either had to be inside the vehicle with the keys, then depress the locking knob on the door; or outside the vehicle to lock the door with the keys in hand. Brilliant!

I think the cornering lights were genius. Shame that many cars today don’t have them. I know that some have them built into the floodlights, but it is helpful at night in my BMW that they go on when you turn.

Please please please do a segment on the one year only oddly placed courtesy lights on the 1977 Cadillac Fleetwood. I LOVED these and they were a one year only feature on one model only. They were placed on the door panels just above the arm rests. Oddly enough the car also had regular door courtesy lights placed below the arm rest as well.

They had some nice designs nice looking car!!!!

Want to talk about costing out? My wife's 2005 Buick Century has no dome light! Only car I've EVER seen without one at all. It only has those tiny map lights on the bottom of the rearview mirror and 2 above the rear seat grab handles. They're so small, they're useless. Don't even cast a shadow. My son and I ordered LED bulbs online to replace them which are easily ten times brighter. They're fantastic and still not excessively bright.

.....meanwhile, at Mercedes Benz, the heater controls on my dad's 1971 220 had a fiber optic wire to distribute light over the control and the blower switch......think about that. This was1971- ......

Love how you can actually see the front corners of the car.

Must be sweet driving that automobile - its a car that many like.

It eliminated the bulb, socket, wire, solder, trim pieces and probably more.

I believe this is the most beautiful Imperial ever made. The 72 and 73 were styling masterpieces. If Chrysler would have promoted this car, it would have sold better. It also came with Sure Stop, an antilock breaking system. Yet, they never promoted this feature either.

Does this Chrysler seat about 20?

My 1969 and 1993 Chrysler New Yorkers were both the most comfortable and smoothest riding cars I’ve ever owned. It’s just so sad that the Chrysler nameplate today consists of just one model and will probably fade away in the coming years.

I don't have a problem with this type of simplification. Functional with much less fuss. Fewer things to break.

Such a beautiful car!

I love the cars that go all the way to the end of the assembly line!

I like the push button Auto Matic gear box selection

I think that Chrysler took cheap to new heights back in those years. I once read a story about a man who went to work at GM in the 60’s. They actually tested steering wheels in taxis and other high use vehicles to see how long a steering wheel would keep its color. They didn’t want it to last too long as they wanted owners to become dissatisfied so that they would trade for a new car.

Please do a video on the headlights opening and closing. Maybe some other unique hidden light options on other models.

Funny, they could have saved money by completely eliminating those front vent windows, (yours appear to be optional power operated)which I happen to like. Most cars did, in '72, save perhaps Mercedes-Benz and VW?