As styling goes, this beautiful 1947 Chrysler Town and Country Convertible is a big winner. This classic automobile is a real head turner and a very rare automobile as well. The 1947 Town and Country Convertible is of the Chrysler New Yorker Series and was Chrysler’s top of the line model.
Chrysler’s Wood Bodies
It was quite natural for the earliest of automobiles to be constructed with wood bodies. Wood bodies of carriages was centuries old and it was considered normal that wood would be used in 1900 and before for motorized vehicles.
It was during the decade of the 1930’s when real styling took serious hold. More than merely a means of transportation, automobiles became in many cases a status symbol. This was true especially with higher priced luxury automobiles such as the Duesenberg’s and Cadillac’s.
Using real wood as styling enhancements for automobile bodies only lasted a relatively short time. Basically it covered the decades of the thirties and forties and in the case of Buick extended into the very early 1950’s. Chrysler’s wooden parts came from Pekin Wood Products in Helena, Arkansas. From Arkansas they were shipped to Chrysler’s Jefferson Avenue plant in Detroit for assembly. The wood framing was assembled before being placed on the body, Very labor intensive, the wood panels would need to be contoured correctly to fit onto the steel body. Wood bodies were expensive to produce and required care to maintain.
There’s no question that wood bodied cars were considered special. They cost more to build and they cost more for the buyer. They looked good and conveyed a sense of being special. When wood bodies were used in the 1930’s they made a fashion statement. The 1940’s are considered to be the golden decade of woodies and it was near the end of that decade where wood was phased out. One big exception was Buick which finally phased out real wood bodies after 1953.
The Chrysler Town and Country
Chrysler introduced the Town and Country in 1941 and the model had great reviews. Chrysler management wanted to start bringing in more wealthy car buyers into their showrooms. As an example, the 47 Town and Country convertible was priced new at about $3,400 which translates into about $45,000 today.