MarkV Posted July 30, 2019 Share Posted July 30, 2019 Hello everyone! Well I just picked up a free, yes free 1982 Chrysler Imperial Sinatra! It hasn’t been on the road since 1997 due to issues with the original fuel injection still in the car. I have been working on cleaning it and mainly obviously the paint is baked but very little rust seat bottoms need to be reupholstered. The car is complete and the wiring in great shape. It’s like it was parked and left. I spoke to both of the previous owners and found out the history going back to 1988. It came with with a number of free spare parts as well! 1. Should I keep the original FI? (Yes I have read the issues and know about the Imperial site). I have the opportunity to get every efi part for free and al in good working order. 2. If I convert it to carb what is a setup for the 318 that is CARB compliant for California? 3. Other suggestions to get this thing rolling? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkV Posted July 30, 2019 Author Share Posted July 30, 2019 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkV Posted July 30, 2019 Author Share Posted July 30, 2019 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkV Posted July 30, 2019 Author Share Posted July 30, 2019 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty_OToole Posted July 30, 2019 Share Posted July 30, 2019 The original EFI was a good system but unlike other EFI of the time. Dealers needed special diagnostic equipment and mechanics needed special knowledge to work on it, which few had. The fact that it was only used on Imperials didn't help. I would keep the original system if possible. They can be changed to a conventional carburetor and electronic ignition in fact, most of them have. Does the Imperial club have any info on diagnosing and repairing the system? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zepher Posted July 30, 2019 Share Posted July 30, 2019 Congrats on the car. That is some serious shag carpet going on there. Knowing Calif, I seriously doubt there are any CARB compliant options that use a carburetor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesR Posted July 30, 2019 Share Posted July 30, 2019 (edited) Hey, great acquisition, especially at that price. I was never aware of this model, and the look is new to me. Attractively styled car. Congrats! Frank Sinatra - One For My Baby (Vintage Sinatra) - YouTube Edited July 30, 2019 by JamesR (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkV Posted July 31, 2019 Author Share Posted July 31, 2019 They only made a couple hundred of them. I found some prelim info my 1981 is non injected and was converted to a carb by Chrysler during the tsb I do have a plug on a good efi system that I’m being given in trade for a imperial radio that I don’t need. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John_S_in_Penna Posted July 31, 2019 Share Posted July 31, 2019 I remember reading that, when an Imperial was converted, with factory authorization, from fuel injection to carburetion, there was an asterisk symbol (*) placed near the odometer, and the odometer was set back to zero. Maybe others can tell more about that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Luddy Posted July 31, 2019 Share Posted July 31, 2019 I really like these. The FS special is going to be a 80's collectible. I still remember the ad's with Lee Iacocca and 'ole Blue Eyes himself extolling the virtues of these. Built by one of the most seasoned teams in Detroit, special paint and trim. Cassettes of Frank's favorites. Remove the EFI and go with a modern carb and ignition. Keep the old stuff, but get it drivable, and drive it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 31, 2019 Share Posted July 31, 2019 I agree with zepher on this. Changing over to a carb will almost certainly never get a CA smog cert again. You know how tough CA is on smog, especially for cars from this era. Any change from original and you're going to have to take it to a referee, and they're pretty stringent. If your heart is really set on bringing this one back to life, make it as easy on yourself and your pocketbook as possible. Stay with the EFI. Greg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Harwood Posted July 31, 2019 Share Posted July 31, 2019 Doesn't California have a 25-year rolling exemption on smog tests? I would also imagine that if you did it using the factory conversion kit, they would have to accept it. My final thought is that you part that thing out and buy a better one if you really like the design. I sold a really nice, low-mileage (~25,000), one-owner example for like $7000 bucks a few months ago. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 31, 2019 Share Posted July 31, 2019 The 25 year roll went away a long time ago. 1976 and newer need to be smogged. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkV Posted July 31, 2019 Author Share Posted July 31, 2019 1 hour ago, Matt Harwood said: Doesn't California have a 25-year rolling exemption on smog tests? I would also imagine that if you did it using the factory conversion kit, they would have to accept it. My final thought is that you part that thing out and buy a better one if you really like the design. I sold a really nice, low-mileage (~25,000), one-owner example for like $7000 bucks a few months ago. Im not parting it out it’s still in restorable complete condition. Was your nice one owner one a Sinatra? I have not seen one near that price for about 5 years most nice ones are now in the 10 to 15k range. Plain Jane imperials are easy to come by for cheap like my 81 was. I didn’t get this one it to resell it. I wanted one for ten years never found an FS anywhere near locallyBringing them back is all the fun. I have an 81 as well as this 82. My 81 though is not an FS and it is fairly plain with a cloth interior. As as far as the asterisk yes that was on carbed ones like my 81 this 82 has the asterisk but the previous owner swapped it out. Thankfully I have an efi cluster which I will install. I have ave a whole complete original working imperial fi system coming in the mail in addition to the throttle body hydraulic unit (still new in the box) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John348 Posted July 31, 2019 Share Posted July 31, 2019 7 hours ago, MarkV said: Hello everyone! Well I just picked up a free, yes free 1982 Chrysler Imperial Sinatra! It hasn’t been on the road since 1997 due to issues with the original fuel injection still in the car. I have been working on cleaning it and mainly obviously the paint is baked but very little rust seat bottoms need to be reupholstered. The car is complete and the wiring in great shape. It’s like it was parked and left. I spoke to both of the previous owners and found out the history going back to 1988. It came with with a number of free spare parts as well! 1. Should I keep the original FI? (Yes I have read the issues and know about the Imperial site). I have the opportunity to get every efi part for free and al in good working order. 2. If I convert it to carb what is a setup for the 318 that is CARB compliant for California? 3. Other suggestions to get this thing rolling? I am far from a Mopar guy, but I think that the car is pretty cool. If you can get the EFI parts for free I would not hesitate and get them. Try to get it running with the EFI Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John_S_in_Penna Posted July 31, 2019 Share Posted July 31, 2019 (edited) 2 hours ago, MarkV said: ...most nice ones are now in the 10 to 15k range. Wes, you might be seeing ASKING prices, which are often far apart from selling prices. A year or so ago, there was one that was said to be beautiful, and entirely working (and I think an AACA winner) for sale for $6000 on the website of the online Imperial club. However, you can't beat your price of zero! Congratulations on obtaining a scarce car, and on your desire to bring it back to its glory. Since you already have a 1981 also, you know more than most of us about these cars. Edited July 31, 2019 by John_S_in_Penna (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkV Posted July 31, 2019 Author Share Posted July 31, 2019 19 minutes ago, John_S_in_Penna said: Wes, you might be seeing ASKING prices, which are often far apart from selling prices. A year or so ago, there was one that was said to be beautiful, and entirely working (and I think an AACA winner) for sale for $6000 on the website of the online Imperial club. However, you can't beat your price of zero! Congratulations on obtaining a scarce car, and on your desire to bring it back to its glory. Since you already have a 1981 also, you know more than most of us about these cars. Was it specifically a Sinatra edition? There were about 200 made. They are rare and far between. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8E45E Posted July 31, 2019 Share Posted July 31, 2019 Did all the 16 FS cassette tapes come with the car? Craig Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkV Posted July 31, 2019 Author Share Posted July 31, 2019 Sadly no but they were standard commercial releases I have most of them Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
61polara Posted August 1, 2019 Share Posted August 1, 2019 Great find. In about 1982 I saw one of these converted into a limo with four doors. Looked great! Wish I had a camera with me that day. Only saw it once. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marcapra Posted August 1, 2019 Share Posted August 1, 2019 I had a nice Mopar someone gave me for free in 1988. It was a nice 1973 Dodge Dart 4 door sedan in Smurf blue with a slant six. I loved that car because of the comfort, and it was easy to work on. I remember working on a friend's Mercury Cougar once and noticed how much better designed, and easier to work on was a Dodge compared to the Mercury! It was the first year of Chrysler's new electronic ignition and it had front wheel disc brakes, which were by far the best, easiest brakes I'd ever had. I also loved those cool front fender mounted turn signal indicators. Apparently, crooks who are fond of five finger discounts also thought they were cool. One morning I went out to my car to find the battery lying on the side of the driveway, and the entire engine wiring harness including those indicator lights gone! So I had someone drive me to the junkyard and found a Plymouth Valiant six and unplugged the wiring harness from the cowl. Cost me about $6. But all of those cool turn signal indicators were already gone from those junk Dodge and Plymouth cars. It took me about five minutes to rewire the engine harness when I got home. yes, those old Dodges were easy to work on! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8E45E Posted August 1, 2019 Share Posted August 1, 2019 4 hours ago, marcapra said: I had a nice Mopar someone gave me for free in 1988. It was a nice 1973 Dodge Dart 4 door sedan in Smurf blue with a slant six. I loved that car because of the comfort, and it was easy to work on. But all of those cool turn signal indicators were already gone from those junk Dodge and Plymouth cars. It took me about five minutes to rewire the engine harness when I got home. yes, those old Dodges were easy to work on! I had a 1974 Dodge Dart with a slant six from 1986 - 1988 as my winter beater. It was a putty color base level model with all of three options, Torquflite automatic, AM radio, and the "light package" which included those fender-top turnsignal indicators. I agree, it was very easy to work on. I paid $300 for it, when I first got it, and sold it for $250 two years later. Craig Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkV Posted August 8, 2019 Author Share Posted August 8, 2019 New tires! The old ones were from 1989! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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