Chrysler R platform
Encyclopedia
The Chrysler R platform, introduced for 1979, was essentially a slightly modernized version of Chrysler
's 1971-78 intermediate B platform
, which had its roots in the company's downsized 1962 full-size models . It was a response to the downsized 1977 Chevrolet Caprice
and Ford LTD
, but proved uncompetitive against the two completely redesigned and more efficient platforms. The short-lived rear wheel drive R platform was used for four models.
Billed as "pillared hardtops", all R-body vehicles were available as 4-door sedans only. Unlike the cars they replaced, no coupes, convertibles, or station wagons were offered. The development of these additional body styles would have cost Chrysler more funds that it simply did not have. Most R-body models were built at the Lynch Road Plant in Detroit.
The only models on this platform to see substantial sales were the 1979 Newport/New Yorker. 1979 was strong year for the industry as a whole, but the second oil crisis, combined with Chrysler's ongoing financial crisis and fears of impending bankruptcy caused sales to plummet dramatically by 1980. With continued falling sales, the R-body cars were dropped midway through the 1981 model year.
Originally there was no R-body Plymouth Gran Fury, or any other full-size Plymouth for that matter. Heavy demand, especially from fleet customers, caused Chrysler to re-introduce the Gran Fury on the R-body for 1980. Although the Gran Fury outsold its R-body siblings for 1980, sales were still well below the industry average for that year and continued to slide for 1981.
Few St. Regis and Gran Fury models were built for private civilian customers, the bulk of the production being police package vehicles. The 1979 and 1980 49-state police spec cars (equipped with the E58 code 360 cu in engine) are considered by many Police Officers who drove them to be one of the all-around best squads of all time. Unfortunetally, many surviving R-body police units were destroyed in TV and film stunt work during the late 1980s and early 90s, contributing to their scarcity today.
Chrysler
Chrysler Group LLC is a multinational automaker headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan, USA. Chrysler was first organized as the Chrysler Corporation in 1925....
's 1971-78 intermediate B platform
Chrysler B platform
The Chrysler B platform was the basis for rear-wheel drive Chrysler cars from 1962 through 1979, and the front-wheel drive Eagle Premier / Dodge Monaco 1988 through 1992. All of the B-body cars in a given model year for either make were built upon the same chassis...
, which had its roots in the company's downsized 1962 full-size models . It was a response to the downsized 1977 Chevrolet Caprice
Chevrolet Caprice
The Chevrolet Caprice is a full-sized automobile produced by the Chevrolet Division of General Motors in North America for the 1965 through 1996 model years. Full-size Chevrolet sales peaked in 1965 with over a million sold. It was the most popular American car in the sixties and early seventies....
and Ford LTD
Ford LTD
The Ford LTD was a car produced by the Ford Motor Company in North America. A range of full-size cars wore various forms of the LTD nameplate from 1965 to 1991 in the United States...
, but proved uncompetitive against the two completely redesigned and more efficient platforms. The short-lived rear wheel drive R platform was used for four models.
Models
- 1979-1981 Chrysler NewportChrysler NewportThe Newport was a name used by the Chrysler division of the Chrysler Corporation used as both a hardtop body designation and also for its lowest priced model between 1961 and 1981...
- 1979-1981 Chrysler New YorkerChrysler New YorkerThe Chrysler New Yorker was a premium automobile built by the Chrysler Corporation from 1939–1996, serving for several years as the brand's flagship model. A model named the "New York Special" first appeared in the 1930s...
- 1979-1981 Dodge St. RegisDodge St. RegisThe Dodge St. Regis is a full-size Dodge automobile built from 1979 to 1981. The St. Regis was based on Chrysler's rear wheel drive R-body platform, itself based on a modified version of the circa 1971 B-body design that provided the underpinnings for such cars as the Dodge Charger and the...
- 1980-1981 Plymouth Gran FuryPlymouth Gran FuryThe Plymouth Gran Fury is an automobile manufactured by the Chrysler Corporation to signify Plymouth's largest full-size automobile from 1975 to 1977. The nameplate would be used on successive downsizings, first in 1980, and again in 1982, through what would originally have been intermediate and...
Billed as "pillared hardtops", all R-body vehicles were available as 4-door sedans only. Unlike the cars they replaced, no coupes, convertibles, or station wagons were offered. The development of these additional body styles would have cost Chrysler more funds that it simply did not have. Most R-body models were built at the Lynch Road Plant in Detroit.
The only models on this platform to see substantial sales were the 1979 Newport/New Yorker. 1979 was strong year for the industry as a whole, but the second oil crisis, combined with Chrysler's ongoing financial crisis and fears of impending bankruptcy caused sales to plummet dramatically by 1980. With continued falling sales, the R-body cars were dropped midway through the 1981 model year.
Originally there was no R-body Plymouth Gran Fury, or any other full-size Plymouth for that matter. Heavy demand, especially from fleet customers, caused Chrysler to re-introduce the Gran Fury on the R-body for 1980. Although the Gran Fury outsold its R-body siblings for 1980, sales were still well below the industry average for that year and continued to slide for 1981.
Few St. Regis and Gran Fury models were built for private civilian customers, the bulk of the production being police package vehicles. The 1979 and 1980 49-state police spec cars (equipped with the E58 code 360 cu in engine) are considered by many Police Officers who drove them to be one of the all-around best squads of all time. Unfortunetally, many surviving R-body police units were destroyed in TV and film stunt work during the late 1980s and early 90s, contributing to their scarcity today.