Ego might have persuaded Walter Chrysler to join other manufacturers in developing 12- or 16-cylinder engines, but he never did.

Needless extravagance, he thought, was unnecessary; however, he partially succumbed to temptation and joined the luxury ranks beginning in 1931 with the Custom Imperial.

Imperials featured a 125-horsepower, 385-cubic-inch inline-eight-cylinder engine; not remarkable technically, it was good for a 96-mph top speed and 0-60 mph in 20 seconds—a first-rate performance in 1931.

Chrysler was notably impressed with the handsome lines of Errett Lobban Cord’s front-wheel drive L-29 introduced in 1929.

He thought the front-wheel drive unnecessarily complex, but its good looks were undeniable.

Not averse to borrowing, much of the looks of the new Chrysler were L-29-inspired including the lowness to the ground, its graceful curves, and its deeply set-back, canted grille.

Despite his admission of admiration for the Cord, it was a look that was Chrysler’s own and the...