The significance of this 1948 Chrysler Town & Country Woodie Convertible cannot be overstated. Up until 1946, only station wagons had been adorned with the wood-bodied look. The woodie look had been the bane of the upper class who lived in the suburbs or on western ranches, or vacationers who were picked up at train stations by wood-bodied depot hacks to be delivered to their north woods resorts. Then Chrysler broke the mold by building wood-bodied luxury convertibles which appealed to the same class of buyer. The Town & Country style convertible appealed to an iconic American ideal that the American dream was to own property in a rugged rural landscape in which this woodie convertible would fit right in.
From 1946 through 1948 Chrysler produced the Town & Country Woodie Convertible, the only production series woodie convertible ever produced in America with a true wood body. Click here to see dozens of high resolution photos of this 1948 version of Chrysler’s Woodie convertible. In 1949 they changed to a steel-bodied convertible with wood accents for the Town & Country model.
To be exact, it was the only wood-bodied convertible built in series on a luxury chassis. They say about 8,400 wood-bodied Town & Countries were built by Chrysler between 1946 and 1948. This 1948 Chrysler Town and Country Convertible is a complete frame off restoration. It is now offered for sale by Gateway Classic Cars through their Louisville, Kentucky store. Note the clean red and plaid Highlander Scottish interior. Also note the power top with clear back window. Wood as an exterior body material enjoyed a resurgence in the years immediately following World War II expressing the American fascination with suburban estates. The outdoors-ish image of varnished wood was a reminder of vacations in the northwoods.
Be sure to view Gateway’s video walk-around on this great collector car, seen below.
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