CHRYSLER CORDOBA - THE TRUTH ABOUT THE LEATHER

this is your invitation to a totally new Automotive experience Cordova the new small Chrysler at the start of its life the Cordoba proved to be a winner in terms of sales and marketing it was a favorite of consumers and the savior of the Chrysler Corporation the car's time in the sun was brief but bright it went from the pages of Vogue to sitcom punch lines in a few short years among the defining cultural moments of the 1970s was a television commercial extrolling the virtues of a new car sitting on a tile Spanish Courtyard and the fact that its seats were stitched with soft Corinthian leather so did the choice of such luxuries as fine Corinthian leather about the only thing remotely Spanish about Cordoba was its name and Ricardo Montalban who was born in Mexico City the car was actually made in Canada this is the story of the Chrysler Cordoba in the Cordova there was something there something which said the new small Chrysler would appeal to me well beyond tomorrow it became the best-selling car for the Chrysler Corporation for the entire decade the Chrysler Cordova first appeared in 1975 along with a twin the Dodge Charger SC it was a much-needed hit as the Chrysler Brand's full-size cars had suddenly become unpopular over half of the Chryslers built in the first year were cordobas for just over five thousand dollars a buyer could say with pride that they owned a Chrysler in a days when Chrysler ranked with Lincoln and Oldsmobile Ricardo Montalban was the company spokesperson and had appeared in many classic advertisements and was nominated as one of the greatest villains ever in Star Trek you still remember Admiral I cannot help but we touched he was also well known for his TV hit show Fantasy Island as the Mysterious Mr Rourke [Applause] [Music] there was certainly nothing Corinthian about the car's leather seats the leather originated from a factory in New Jersey but its status was brilliantly elevated by Chrysler's marketing people an automobile of beauty and Harmony an automobile of convenience and luxury yet surprisingly affordable Cordova introduced on September 4th of 1974 of the 1975 Cordova was offered in only one body style the model 22 two-door coupe choices included two available vinyl tops Halo or Landau and three V8 engines the 318 CID the 360 and the 400 big block V8 all coupled to the company's trustworthy torque flight automatic transmission there was also a long list of comforting luxury options with a base price of 5072 which was slightly more than a Chevy Monte Carlo but significantly less than a Pontiac Grand Prix the Cordova flew out of Chrysler showrooms right from the start billed as the new small Chrysler the model sold more than 150 000 units in its first year for me there is nothing Beyond cordoba's tasteful appearance nothing beyond the luxury of seats available in Rich crushed velour before the 1976 model year sales increased slightly to 165 000. Interiors were more luxurious than the Dodge Charger SC and much more than the top-line standard intermediates Plymouth Fury and Dodge Coronet with velor cloth notch back bench seats and folding armor as standard optionally available were bucket seats are posted in Corinthian leather with a center armrest and cushion or at extra cost to center console with floor sifter and storage compartment the dashboard and door panels featured simulated Rosewood trim the mildly revised 1977 version also sold well with just under 140 000 cars you are about to see a totally new value in American personal cars Chrysler Cordova S as seen by Michael Alexander contributing photographer magazine for 1978 the car was updated and featured stacked headlights the Chrysler Corporation also introduced a Dodge twin the Magnum it also enjoyed strong sales for the 1970 model there was a modest restyling with the then popular rectangular headlights in a stacked configuration the Dodge Charger SE kept its round headlamps for 1978 rather than the rectangular stack design of the Cordoba the restyle also made the car appear heavier than its 1975 through 1977 predecessors at the time when other cars in this class were being downsized to smaller Dimensions such as the Ford Thunderbird in 1977 as well as the Chevrolet Monte Carlo and Pontiac Grand Prix in 1978 for 1979 a 2040 300 option package was offered on the Cordoba featuring an all-white exterior Chrysler 300 Style Grill and a four barrel 360 V8 engine the Chrysler 300 was advertised and marketed as its own model not as a Cordoba 300. there are many new size personal cars but this is the car that started it all Chrysler LeBaron a Chrysler a fine detail with the option of genuine leather seats the Cordova's sales declined in 1979 which could also be attributed to the introduction of the smaller Chrysler LeBaron in mid-1977 that was available in both sedan and Coupe models and offered similar personal luxury styling and options introducing the totally redesigned Chrysler Cordova all the luxury you expect is here it's always gas mileage you can have high Style [Music] you brought in the second generation of the Cordoba Cordova was downsized for the 1980 model year the smaller second generation model used the J platform dating to the 1976 f-body Plymouth Volare along with its re-badged variant the Dodge marata Chrysler also revived the Imperial for 1981 as a third variant of the j-platform the Cordoba and murata featured the standard six-cylinder engine the 225 slant 6 that while very reliable did not seem to be suitable power at 95 horsepower for these slightly up Market Coupes but much detuned 318 cubic inch had 130 horsepower was an option as was the performance oriented code e58 360 cubic inch in at 185 horsepower though it would be dropped off the options list for 1981 and on the 1980 and 81 LS model which was originally intended to be the 300 featured in aerodynamic appearing nose cone nearly identical to that on the Morata with a cross hair Grill other features of this model were the deletion of a vinyl roof cover and a monotone color exterior in 1981 the second generation Cordoba sails were down substantially the industry downsizing of vehicles also affected the personal luxury models both the Chevrolet Monte Carlo in 1978 and the 1984 Thunderbird shrank in size aside from a NASCAR stint from 1982 through 1984 not much changed for the 82 Cordoba about the only change for this old classic was the decrease in sales with the changes in Marketplace Chrysler increasingly concentrated on its compact front-wheel drive models with four and six cylinder engines in the Cordova there was something there something which said the new small Chrysler would appeal to me well beyond tomorrow the Chrysler Cordova was eventually discontin continued in 1983. hey that about wraps it up on the Chrysler Cordova man what a car you know I didn't really appreciate the Cordova's back then as I do now I was a teenager back then and I gotta admit man they're not bad what was your favorite year on The Clash of Cordoba and or did you even like the Cordoba was it a piece of junk was it just the best you know out there we want to know leave us comments below once again thank you very much hey like the video subscribe and hit that Bell for future notifications this is Michael J with the Moco Brothers YouTube channel thanks for watching foreign [Music]

Channel: This Old Car

Views: 282,327

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Id: pJIZzKcNsxs

Length: 9min 25sec (565 seconds)

Published: Sat Sep 03 2022