“The present trend in cars has about another year or two to go. Then we’ll be back to design for function, and there’ll be more stress on utility. It takes more than styling to make a successful car. The car must be a good, dependable product. Right now we have quite a bit of gingerbread design — lots of jigsaw work. We’ll go back to simplicity of design, you wait and see.” (p. 196)
— Retired Chrysler head K. T. Keller in a 1958 interview
RE:SOURCES
- Langworth, Richard M. and Jan P. Norbye; 1985. The Complete History of Chrysler Corporation 1924-1985. Publications International, Skokie, IL.
Also see ‘Did a rumor cause the downsized 1962 Plymouth and Dodge?’
The 1955 Chrysler cars are a stretched version of the 1949 bodies styled by Virgil Exner.
Welcome to Indie Auto! Exner’s design skills were such that he made the 1955 redesigns look like they shared no components with previous Chryslers.
As an FYI, you might also be interested in a story that assesses competing views of Exner’s involvement in the 1953-54 models (go here).
I’m always looking for new sources of information, so if you have any do share.