1955 GHIA "ST Special" Show Car at Auction


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This restored GHIA was offered for Auction at MECUM AUCTIONS Phoenix in March 2019
Here's what the seller had to say about this rare GHIA Show Car:

1955 CHRYSLER GHIA "ST SPECIAL"

1 of 4 Produced
Displayed at 1955 Turin Motor Show

Engine:  331/250 HP
Trans:  Automatic
Color:  Copper/Ivory
Interior:  Copper/ivory

Chassis no. N558768
The last design in the collaboration between legendary stylist Virgil Exner and Ghia chief Luigi Segre that lasted from 1951-1955
1 of only 4 produced, two each for French and Italian customers
Designed by French Chrysler importer Charles Ladouch
Exhibited at the 1955 Turin Motor show
Subsequently acquired by Oscar Lacroix, CEO of French plastics company Gilac
Nut and bolt restoration completed by Wayne Davis in 2014
Factory-commissioned Ghia coachwork fitted to a Chrysler New Yorker chassis
331/250 HP Hemi V-8 engine
4-barrel carburetor
2-speed Powerflite automatic transmission
Power steering
Power brakes
Finished in original two-tone Copper and Ivory
Matching Havana leather upholstery
Ivory dash
Period correct wire wheels

From 1951 to 1955, Chrysler's styling boss, Virgil Exner, collaborated with Italian coachbuilder Ghia to produce a series of stunning postwar show cars. The combination of radical new styling, Italian coachwork and American V-8 power caught the fancy of consumers, the motoring press and the French Chrysler Importer Charles Ladouch, who commissioned Ghia to produce a limited series of Chrysler Specials for sale. The example on offer is one of just four such Chrysler "ST Specials" by Ghia in 1955. Displayed at the 1955 Turin Motor Show, this ST Special features a Chrysler New Yorker chassis outfitted with a 331/250 HP Hemi V-8 engine fitted with a 4-barrel carburetor and 2-speed Powerflite transmission, all draped in a stunning two-tone, copper and ivory Ghia body. Replete with matching two-tone Havana leather interior and ivory dash, this Ghia Special benefited from a comprehensive nut-and-bolt restoration by Wayne Davis in 2014.
Don Long says: This one was designed by both Exner and Luigi Segre working together on it at Ghia.

 

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