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The 1947 Windsor Sedan in The NB Center collection was purchased from the Bernard Berman collection in Allentown, PA in 1998. The car had about 23,000 miles when acquired. While largely in original condition, over the years the car did receive some cosmetic restoration but has never been fully restored and does not need it.
The Town & Country sedan with the roof rack was intended as transport for well-healed passengers out to or around their country homes with all the luggage and supplies required. Many of the original owners had these as second cars which helps to explain the low mileage on this one. -
Company
Chrysler Corporation
Make
Chrysler
Model
Windsor, Town & Country, C38W
Body Style
Sedan, 4-door, 6-pass.
Body Manufacture
Chrysler / Pekin Wood Products
Model year
1947
Wheelbase
121.5 inches
Length
228.75 inches
Engine
inline-six, L head, 250.6 cid
Horsepower
114 @ 3600
Transmission
Fluid Drive Semi-automatic
Original Base Price
$2,366
Brand Production
119,260
This Car Production
4,049 (total of 1946-48 for this body) -
The first Chrysler product to carry the Town & Country name was a barrel-back wood-bodied sedan that appeared in 1941. The exposed wood structure of ash and rich mahogany, all carefully joined and finished in clear varnish like a fine wooden boat, made a real statement. Up to that time, wood bodies were almost exclusively used on station wagons, strictly utilitarian, not something of interest to the vast majority of the car buying public. Chrysler used the exposed wood construction technique to create a well appointed, sophisticated and even elegant car intended to draw wealthier customers into Chrysler showrooms. The front of the car was standard Chrysler sheet metal with the back 2/3 of the car in wood. Hence the Town & Country name, town up front, country in the back.
At the conclusion of the second World War, automobile manufacturers quickly shifted from production of war materials to production of cars to meet the huge demand the war created. Chrysler reintroduced the Town & Country but this time as a stylish convertible and a matching sedan both of which mimicked the shape of the regular production cars on which they were based. Chrysler had intended to produce an entire line of Town & Country cars with both 2-door and 4-door sedans, a 3-passenger roadster, a hardtop and 4-passenger convertible but only the 4-door sedan and convertible were produced.
The convertibles were part of the New Yorker series with 8-cylinder engines and 127.5 inch wheelbase but the Sedan was on the mid-level Windsor chassis with six-cylinder engines and 121.5 inch wheelbase. Both cars had a fluid drive transmission.
The Town & Country Sedan had a base price of $2366 in 1947. The option list was extensive with no less than 4 heater and ventilation systems to choose from, Highlander plaid interiors, 2 types of radios, 3 types of antennas, spotlights and a host of convenience items. Ironically whitewall tires were not initially a factory offering as they were hard to get and expensive immediately after the war.