Turbine Dreams: The Chrysler That Whispered Like a Jet

Turbine Dreams: The Chrysler That Whispered Like a Jet​

America’s Most Radical Car Experiment Still Turns Heads 60 Years Later​

In the early 1960s, Chrysler dared to do something no other American automaker had the guts to try: build a car that ran on a jet engine. The result was the Chrysler Turbine Car, an experimental vehicle that looked like it belonged on a sci-fi movie set and sounded like it was ready for takeoff. It was bold, beautiful, and way ahead of its time. And even though only 55 were ever built, its legacy still burns bright today.

Turbine Dreams: The Chrysler That Whispered Like a Jet

Learn about the Chrysler that whispered like a jet, the Turbine Car, and its unforgettable legacy in automotive history.

moparinsiders.com

 

[TripleT]

Last year while at the UK motorsport museum, I didn't realize that, I believe it was Austin (i googled it was Austin and Rover but think they were pretty inbreed at that time), had a mirror program like Chrysler with pilot cars and everything. It no wonder as this is the home country of Whittle the unsung inventor....

That said it was NO WHERE a LOVELY as this vehicle.

 

[redriderbob]

The Chrysler Turbine cars are simply amazing...

 

[redriderbob]

 

[bill burke]

Here I go dating myself. Some will be cruel, call me old, out of touch, past my prime. But I’m the guy with the memories, the real deal. Here’s a good one.
When the Turbine car was released Chrysler had a lottery that gave these cars to regular folks to drive. I applied, I was sure I’d get one, after all, I bled Chrysler, I was special…..The call never came.
The closest I got to the Turbine car was driving next to one, yes for miles, filed with envy, driving on the Belt Parkway in Brooklyn. SOB in my car!
I’ve seen these engineering marvels at car shows over the years, but seeing one, the one I deserved to get, driving right next to me, in Brooklyn yet, remains both a thrilling and disappointing memory, a real life memory.
Old enough to have lived it and young enough to remember. The real deal.

 

[patfromigh]

ThIs one photo caught my attention.

Remove the Disco Era excess; the upright grill, T-bar roof, opera window and landau top. (The last item is hard to tell from this angle.) Even if Chrysler becomes a people mover brand, the brand needs something special. The micro turbine range extender ventures of the previous decade all ended in failure due to cost and complexity. A conventional IC engine range extender would work just as well in a contemporary two door Chrysler on the STLA large platform.

 

[TripleT]

put a wing across the front and call it Daytona