Rare Rides: A 1989 Chrysler TC by Maserati - the Lemon Mix-up
The heart of a K-Car, the styling of a LeBaron, the build quality of an Italian, and the price of a Corvette. Just one car in the history of the world managed to combine all these virtues together into a gelatinous, custard-like vehicle.
And our Rare Ride today just happens to have a similar color, too. Come have a look at the majestic Chrysler TC, by Maserati (not really).
Introduced in 1986 at the Los Angeles Auto Show in America, the idea behind the TC was solid: A luxury grand touring convertible in the finest tradition. Designed and built by Maserati, with the parts sharing, reliability, and common sense of Chrysler (and its vast checkbook).
Born from a friendship between Chrysler CEO Lee Iacocca and Alejandro de Tomaso of Pantera fame (and then-owner of Maserati), the two companies signed an agreement in the mid-1980s to develop a coupe. Available at 300 select Chrysler dealers between 1989 and 1991, the TC started with the heart of a Dodge Daytona. It’s actually the same 2.2-liter four-cylinder we recently saw in the Shelby Charger. For 1990 and ’91 Chrysler upped the ante and the displacement, using a 3.0-liter Mitsubishi V6 like you’d find in a Dodge Dynasty.
Of the 7,210 total model run, just 500 examples received a special engine. Matched to a manual transmission was a 2.2-liter turbocharged Maserati-developed unit, which was actually made in England by Cosworth. Cosworth’s production stopped short of finishing each engine, shipping them to Italy where Maserati would tighten some screws and apply its stamp.
Meant to be a halo car for the Chrysler brand, the TC’s development took longer than expected. Unfortunately, the years between the 1986 auto show reveal and 1989’s dealer deliveries revealed the TC’s biggest problem — the new LeBaron. It didn’t share a body, it didn’t share a platform, nor was the interior the same. But it looked just like the TC, had the same engine, and was considerably less expensive.
A loaded up LeBaron GTC convertible with the Mark Cross package cost $19,666 in 1989. For the same year, the TC started at $33,000. Here are some other competitors’ prices from 1989.
- Corvette Convertible, $36,785
- Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz, $26,738
- Lincoln Mark VII LSC, $27,569
- Buick Reatta, $26,700
For this absurdly high price, you received a special hand-made, sumptuous Italian leather interior in either camel or black. This photo is how it originally looked from the factory — our example today has had some cheap leather work done on the seats.
All versions came with a plastic hardtop featuring a unique opera window for use in more formal occasions or when the weather was frosty.
Located in Washington state, this 1989 TC has many new parts, and is asking $6,300 from a seller who is likely desperate to unload it at this point.
[Images via seller, Chrysler]
Interested in lots of cars and their various historical contexts. Started writing articles for TTAC in late 2016, when my first posts were QOTDs. From there I started a few new series like Rare Rides, Buy/Drive/Burn, Abandoned History, and most recently Rare Rides Icons. Operating from a home base in Cincinnati, Ohio, a relative auto journalist dead zone. Many of my articles are prompted by something I'll see on social media that sparks my interest and causes me to research. Finding articles and information from the early days of the internet and beyond that covers the little details lost to time: trim packages, color and wheel choices, interior fabrics. Beyond those, I'm fascinated by automotive industry experiments, both failures and successes. Lately I've taken an interest in AI, and generating "what if" type images for car models long dead. Reincarnating a modern Toyota Paseo, Lincoln Mark IX, or Isuzu Trooper through a text prompt is fun. Fun to post them on Twitter too, and watch people overreact. To that end, the social media I use most is Twitter, @CoreyLewis86. I also contribute pieces for Forbes Wheels and Forbes Home.
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The 2-door 3-door 4-door thing has been done. I first saw one in a magazine long ago. Story was a 4-door door had been seriously side-swiped and the owner found a donor 2-door car of same make and model. He grafted on the rear quarter of the 2-door in place of the damaged parts. The windshield post and hinge area were the same. Door bolted right on. Owner/builder said he liked it as he was tall and had to squeeze out of the smaller driver's door of the original car. I saw one of these mods in a parking lot in the 80s. Had to get out and walk around it to be sure I was not confusing two different cars. Both were larger American cars. Don't recall the make.
Wasn't this the JoHn Voight car?