Chrysler Phaeton
motor vehicle
The Chrysler Phaeton was a four-door convertible sedan concept car built by Chrysler in 1997.
Background
The Phaeton was inspired by Chrysler's historic Newport Phaeton, and the Imperial Parade Phaeton. John E. Herlitz, Chrysler Corporation's Vice President of Product Design, said, "Phaeton embraces and contemporizes elegant, classic design cues from historic touring automobiles of the 1930s, 40s and 50s."
The dual cowl four-door hard-top convertible design was inspired by Chrysler's dual cowl 1940 Newport parade car, a vehicle used primarily for transporting dignitaries and members of elite families during that time period. "With Phaeton, we expanded the use of today's convertible by giving it four doors and two windshields," said K. Neil Walling, Chrysler Corporation's Design Director. "We took an elegant design execution that was originally intended for the wealthy and created a practical, contemporary convertible."
The Phaeton features a retractable rear compartment windshield. "Chrysler Phaeton effectively captures classic images from the Chrysler LHX and Chrysler Atlantic and translates them into a convertible format," said Walling.
The interior features cream and brown-colored leather trim, woven cream leather inserts, satin metal details, and Zebrano wood accents. Both front and rear passenger compartments are separate and have their own radio, climate controls, arm rests and center consoles. Speedometer and tachometer gauges are also featured in both compartments which allow rear passengers to monitor vehicle performance at a glance. Another unique feature of the interior is the gauges in the rear seats.
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This entry incorporates text from “Chrysler Phaeton” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.