Last of the Old School Rear Wheel Drive Mopars? 1983 Chrysler New Yorker Fifth Avenue Junkyard Find

Spotted this 1983 Chrysler New Yorker in the junkyard along with a 1988 model as well. This was the last year that the New Yorker name would be used in the M platform as it was now part of the extended K-Car platform. In 83 the rear wheel drive New Yorker also had the Fifth Avenue Edition emblems on it. And by 84, they were only referred to as the Fifth Avenue. This 83 appeared to be fully loaded with even a sunroof. It was pretty much all there and still in decent shape. Under the hood was the small block 318. I figured I would get a video on it as I had just made one on an extended K-Car New Yorker that was in that junkyard. That car was in pristine condition. One could definitely see the similarities in this M-car New Yorker and the extended K-Car version.

[@googleusergp]

Whoa Nelley, 1983 and it's over for thee. In 1982, the band The Who came out with a song called Eminence Front. It was about the facade and excess of the 1980s. This car is a bad example of that. LOL. It's nothing more than a gussied up Volare/Aspen at heart with some extra padding, trim and features. The "M" body that this is based on shared its' underpinnings and design with the Aspen and Volare. They rode and handled about the same: like a sack of potatoes. Yes, in 1983, you could get a front wheel drive New Yorker and a rear wheel drive one. Yes, from 1984 to 1989 they were just called "5th Avenue". Dodge had the Diplomat and Plymouth had the Gran Fury. Canada had the Plymouth Caravelle. The last "R" body full size (St. Regis/Newport/New Yorker/Gran Fury) was produced in April 1981 at the Lynch Road, MI plant which now houses a powder coating business. The "M" body was made to replace those and also compete with GM's luxury offerings, including the G body vehicles. We got the VIN, we win: 2C3 for Canadian made Chrysler passenger car, B for manual seat belts, F for 5th Avenue, 6 for Special price class, 6 for four door sedan, P for 5.2L (318) V8 with two barrel, 1 is a check digit, D for the 1983 model year, R for Windsor, Ontario Canada assembly and the rest is the production sequence. The Windsor plant opened in 1928 and still operates today under Stellantis, primarily serving as the main minivan production plant. This one was assembled on Wednesday April 27, 1983 at the 6:00 AM, as that is the MDH (Month-Date-Hour) stamp on the door label. That's a dealer campaign modification label. I'm not surprised, as the Holley two barrel used on these years was complete junk and was a notorious staller and trouble maker. Later on, 318 and 360 V8s actually got a Rochester Q-Jet as OEM equipment---a vast improvement. We got the tag, we can brag: N88 for auto speed control, P31 for power windows, P41 for power locks, L61 for dome lamp switch, rear doors, E44 for 318 V8 with two barrel, D33 should be for Torqueflite automatic transmission, 428 for Thursday, April 28, 1983 shipping date, U for US spec vehicle, VW3 for Pearl White exterior paint, R48 for power antenna, H53 should be for automatic AC and heater, C97 for trunk dress up, P45 for power deck lid release, SYM6 for red leather interior trim, 26 might be 26" radiator (because it has AC), END for end of sales codes. The Eldorado would be a good one to do a video on if you get the time to do it. Yes, 1988 and by then it was just called a 5th Avenue, with the VIN for the win: 1C3 for US made Chrysler passenger car, X for manual seat belts and driver's air bag, F for 5th Avenue, 6 for Special price class, 6 for four door sedan, P for 5.2L(318) V8 with two barrel, X is a check digit, J for the 1988 model year, W for Kenosha, WI assembly and the rest is the production sequence. After AMC was bought by Chrysler, Kenosha did assemble some Chrysler products such as these. The last year for the M body was 1989. For those that own a red "KR" series Snap On tool box, the "KR" means "Kenosha Red" for the style and color of the paint. As everyone here knows, I have a 1983 KRA59F nine drawer chest with a 1981 Sears Craftsman model 65053 bottom rolling unit. I will be seeing the person that gave it to me actually tomorrow morning. We got the tag, we can brag: B1 for Ice Blue exterior paint, B1 for Ice Blue interior trim, CBC for 60/40 split front bench seat, CGT for driver's air bag only, END for end of sales codes, MSA for "Limited" badging, NAE for California emissions, NCA for air pump, NDA for catalytic converter, NHM for speed control, JPC for power trunk release, LAG for warning chime system, LAM for door ajar warning lamp, MMF for daylight opening moldings, MRB for lower bodyside cladding, GFA for rear window defroster, GSJ for right side power chrome mirror, GTJ for power mirrors, HAB for AC with automatic temperature control, 608 for Wednesday June 8, 1988 shipping date, DGA for three speed automatic transmission, ELA for 318 V8 gasoline engine with two barrel, AFF for luxury group, APA for monotone paint, and U for US spec vehicle. The Kenosha plant stopped manufacturing vehicles on Friday, December 23, 1988 and then the plant was downsized for engine assembly which continued under Chrysler until about 2010. Whoa Nelley, two times Pentastar and not going very far. That's it, time to quit. Paint code B1 and it's done. One was made in WI and it's time to go bye-bye. Pearl White and soon to be out of sight. Eminence Front, "it's a put on, a put on" and these two are just about gone. Eminence Front from 1982, and these two are through. Going to be flat and that's that. Torqueflite lost a bite. 3-1-8 used to be great. M body looking kinda shoddy. The Google Man isn't really a big fan, and these two are ready for the trash can. MOPAR left with the doors ajar. Going to get squished and the "M body" faithful, probably UTG, some here, and only slightly so, the Google Man are going to be pissed.

[@ClassicRideSociety]

"like a sack of potatoes" 😂

[@googleusergp]

@@ClassicRideSociety In 1996, my friend bought a 1978 Aspen with a "Super Six" (225 CID "LTP" with a Carter two barrel BBD carburetor, VIN code "D" engine) for a commuter and the guy that sold it to him said, "Runs great, handles like a sack of potatoes". He wasn't kidding. The car ran great. My friend kept it for about three or so years and then he junked it. He offered it to me but I was using my '84 Delta 88 at the time, so I passed. I followed him to the yard, a yard that we both used to get parts at, and it's closed now, as the owner died and his family sold the property. That same yard sold me a trunk full of parts for $5 on Christmas Eve. "Don't tell the owner", the manager said. He was a bit "boxed" that day. When we junked the Aspen, the yard owner said to my friend, "Son, you sure you want to junk this? It's a running car". My friend said, "Yea, I don't need it anymore". The yard owner gave him a few bucks and I drove him back home with my Delta 88. Same friend gave me a 1995 era Sears Craftsman USA mechanic's tool set that was his dad's. Missing only 10 pieces, I found most of them inside other sockets. Got the missing ones off Ebay, cleaned up the ratchets, and I've been using it ever since.

[@markhamrick9078]

Impressive body of knowledge.... Thanks for posting! 👍

[@googleusergp]

@@markhamrick9078 Sure thing.

[@corneliusharrisoniii964]

I recently bought a 1983 Chrysler New Yorker in excellent condition. And...excellent is an understatement. Nothing is wrong with this car. I mean flawless. I traveled from Texas to Oklahoma to get this baby. It only had 24,000 miles and its was for sure garage kept. Everything original. Back in it day, it definitely was a luxury car.

[@robertwhite9898]

Back those vehicles had style & class.

[@donaldcurtis9229]

Yes I have one 1982 Chrysler Fifth Avenue showroom condition garage kept all its life my parents gave it to me beautiful car

[@markhamrick9078]

This girl I knew back in the day had one of these... Even the same color! 👍

[@DeathRowCrushing.]

SWEET! 😎 My friend Aaron steal has my dads 85 fifth avenue at his part yard I sold to him when my dad past away 8 years Da same place where I did the walkaround on da 63 Chevy impala!💙💪😁💯👍

[@OsbornTramain]

This was the New Yorker......but they changed the name to the Fifth Avenue which had been a package before....when the front drive New Yorkers came out......they sold so many of them and it was the most profitable car for Chrysler that they decided to keep the car in production. In fact, most people don't know this....the sales were so strong, that Chrysler went to AMC and made an agreement where AMC would build the Fifth Avenue......starting in the 1987 model year......so the 88 in the video was built in Kenosha Wisconsin at the AMC factory...............after Chrysler did the deal in early 1986, they would eventually buy AMC.....everyone said they bought AMC because of the Jeep, but they bought AMC for three or even four reasons....1 production capacity, 2 Jeep, 3 The Eagle Premier product line and 4 the dealer network.........I love these Fifth Avenue....they are related to the Aspen and Volare by real DNA, but have none of the negativity associated with the Aspen and Volare

[@nathankim7664]

The blue parking badge has an expiration date of September 30, 2021, so we know that it was on the road sometime in 2021. Wonder why it's here instead of on Craigslist/FB Marketplace. Looks to have been a high school car until the young person graduated community college/university? Sucks that it ended up here after staying on the road for almost 40 years. Wonder what's wrong with it? It looks like you could drive it away anytime! Plus it has the original cassette radio. That itself is rare!

[@olikat8]

The 90⁰ oil filter adapter, power trunk popper and-if an '89- the bracket, alternator & AC compressor set up...

[@anthonycoach4551]

That's the year one I remember..I like the back end on these ones..

[@ClassicRideSociety]

👍

[@walterburson2931]

You are correct...in 1983, there were 2 totally distinct vehicles in Chrysler's lineup. The "K-car" based New Yorker arrived. It was like nothing before it. Lots of technology. This car; (known as the "Chrysler New Yorker Fifth Avenue" was a carryover from the long proven RWD Chryslers. But it never got the high - tech gadgetry that the newer cars received, such as the "talking voice reminder system"; and the "travel computer" (MPG, distance to empty, avg. fuel economy, etc.). This body style was reused many times in Chrysler's attempt to save the company and please the buyer at the same time.

[@SpockvsMcCoy]

This Chrysler malaise mobile is an example of what Lee Iacocca did best...make a profitable quasi-luxury car out of a cheap 4-door Sedan. Many customers at the time thought these New Yorker 5th Avenues looked classy.

[@adape0884frank]

I remember these cars that back then you had to put these in the garage every night and they had to be in perfect weather or they would fade on the paint or the leather would crack and tear.

[@GreyRockOne]

You are correct! The rear wheel drive NY, Diplomat and Plymouth Fury with the 318 was up until 1989, and the front drive NY aka Fifth Avenue (and Dynasty) came out in 1988, go figure.

[@paulravitsky8085]

Hey Benny, the 5th Avenue was pretty popular. My mother in law owned a 1984, but hers was all black

[@anthonybaker967]

Love those 80s Fifth Avenues!

[@oldyellow8120]

"Why?" - because they are really very nice cars, and they have become quite unusual! I'm really glad to see you make videos on them, as well as the one or two "F" body Volare or Aspens that you filmed a while back. One of them that you filmed was a super unusual Aspen T-top! The Volare/Aspen "F" bodies were the original ancestors of these "M" bodies - the Fifth Aves, the Diplomats, the Furys. All were very cool cars which got a bad rap because of being rushed to market too quickly in '76 resulting in initial expensive recalls which the haters love to use to trash the entire line. Actually, after mid '77 and definitely from '78 on these were really good cars. I have a beautiful low mileage '78 Aspen wagon with slant Super Six and manual four speed that I wouldn't trade for anything. Not nearly as plush or cushy as these M bodies, but a rarely seen wagon today.

[@dave11686]

Love these

[@The_R-n-I_Guy]

Definitely need more videos on 80's cars and anything different or strange. Those are my favorite videos. Also the more info you can give on the car, the better

[@emeyer6963]

Looks like a lotta Corinthian leather in that place Benny!

[@googleusergp]

Ricardo Montalban would approve. LOL.

[@emeyer6963]

@@googleusergp Lol!

[@googleusergp]

@@emeyer6963 Yup. Lol. Hope the bad weather missed you. My friend that gave me the Sears air compressor and the GM NOS parts just retired and splits time between FL and up north. He just moved to Ocala.

[@QuelloVeloce7]

The police package version handled better than I expected

[@emeyer6963]

Dylan McCool channel just rescued an 86 Police Package Diplomat

[@olikat8]

As long as the "Iso-clamp," which was even on the A38/AHB F&M bodies unless specifically ordered to not have it, is not in place. While it'll handle better than a "Civie" M or F, the rubber-wrapped springs & cradle donuts make the chassis jello-y. Absolute best-handling vintage Mopars? The A38 & A51 Darts & Valiants. With a 360, they are even a bit faster than the B & C bodies

[@garymckee63]

I had an 81 Le baron same color but it was a slant six they look almost the same 😆

[@googleusergp]

"Leaning Tower of Power". A great engine. The carburetion was junk, but the Slant Six was unbeatable.

[@jittychitty]

The first car is worth saving. That could be a serious sleeper

[@danh2134]

Go for it , it's waiting on you and your trailer

[@FatSal619]

Well ill be dipped benny where do u find all these goldmines💪🏽👀

[@donaldcurtis9229]

Yes I have one 1982 5th Avenue showroom condition was my parents card I gave to me beautiful white burgundy leather interior like new

[@The_R-n-I_Guy]

There's a late 80's Plymouth Gran Fury Police Interceptor sitting in a field down the road from me. It's been there for at least the last 10 years. It looks like it's complete from what I can see. Even the whip antenna and dog dish hubcaps are there. I've been thinking about trying to find the owner to see what the deal is with it. But I haven't had the money to make an offer and I don't like to waste people's time. My main concern is that it's been sitting in the grass in Northeastern Kentucky for years and I'm kinda scared of the frame being rusted out. I'm not worried about body panels. I can make my own patch panels if I can't find anything to replace them with. I could fix a rusted frame too, but it would be too much time, money and effort for a car that most people would scrap.

[@marygarner5249]

Don't see many of those any more on the Road brings back memories of my Uncle always had a Big Dodge or Chrysler always smoking the most stinky cigar 😁

[@michaeldickens7493]

I'm sorry but I do like these lol the front wheel drives were the fwd 4cyl turbos, I had a new 88 with a 318

[@CR7659]

A clean rear bumper for these is supposed to be hard to find. I see they took the one off the 88.

[@PHXez7939]

I liked them.

[@walterbatman7949]

We had a 86 Fifth Avenue my dad bought new gave us many years of great service the interior was not very good design headliner material on the a pillars did not fare well with the sun had re done 2 times 2nd time the headliner also had to gut the entire interior to remove the trim panels Suspension was weak also wit 3 people in the back

[@justanothertroll9476]

I'm surprised there's a complete vehicle that's in the salvage yard, that would definitely be put back in the service if it was around here

[@santinocappellaro7468]

Benny looks like this yard's got a lot of '80s vehicles. Real nice variety in that yard . Looking forward to more videos of this yard great job Benny! 😎

[@ClassicRideSociety]

I've got a few more from this place including a 20 minute walk around video of the yard

[@santinocappellaro7468]

@@ClassicRideSociety hey Benny just want to wish you and your family a Happy Thanksgiving and keep up the great work on the videos of the yards God bless 🏁 😎 🏁

[@ClassicRideSociety]

@@santinocappellaro7468 appreciate ya 👍 and happy Thanksgiving to you and yours as well

[@datsun210]

1:45 SHHS (Sam Houston High School?) So, it ended its days as a high school kids ride. Sad

[@dowen1511]

Yeah regular new Yorker was the fwd and the fifth ave was rwd .

[@dowen1511]

Crazy that's a 40 year old car now 😳😂

[@sneakerfreak2002]

Go on KZbin type in “Terrence Gold Fifth Ave” You can see my Fifth Ave i owned several years back. When Absolutely pristine with tinted windows, they have the presence of an old Rolls Royce. Also people constantly stopped to talk, people getting my attention at stop lights and once,tourists wanted to take a picture lol

[@robertwhite9898]

Wow!

[@michaelcoffey7362]

Cool 😀

[@oliverpetroski4205]

The first looks too nice to be there. My guess is grandparents passed away, their family didnt wanted the car. Not my desired car, but the condition of it looks solid.

[@jeffreyanderson6973]

Am Stereo (C-Quam)/FM Stereo Radio with Cassette

[@andregonsalvez9244]

Great 👍 video ! I remember these cars back in the day, they were basically a fancier Diplomats/Grant Fury and were based on the Aspen/Volares chassis.

[@oldskool1979]

Im not gonna have a nightmare with a mad circus clown behind the wheel of that 1983 Chrysler New Yorker chasing me !

[@googleusergp]

I had a dream the other night that I was deciding a trim tag but it was a tag but like a build sheet. GM tag too. I was saying to myself in the dream, “What the……”. Lol. Google Man nightmares.

[@sasz2107]

I always thought these cars were SO nice, and SO elegant. Very luxurious and NICE. It's a bit confusing in these years because the rear wheel drive platform was supposed to be phased out sooner than it was. Instead it was kept much longer than originally intended, since gas prices went down in the mid 80s and enabled rear wheel drive cars to stay in production longer. In 1978 - 1981 these cars (the M body) were known as the LeBaron, and came out the same year as the Dodge Diplomat. The New Yorker in 1978 was a C body, and in 1979 - 81 it was an R body. In 1982, the K car version of the LeBaron came out, and the R body had been discontinued, so this M body car became the New Yorker - for the 1982 model year ONLY. Then in 1983, the smaller New Yorker, like the tan car you filmed, came out. So in 1983 ONLY the rear wheel drive car became the "New Yorker Fifth Avenue". That was too confusing to have the New Yorker and New Yorker Fifth Avenue on different platforms, so in 1984 until 1989, they were just called the Chrysler Fifth Avenue to prevent confusion with the front wheel drive car. So: 78 - 81: LeBaron, 82: New Yorker, 83: New Yorker Fifth Avenue, 84 - 89: Fifth Avenue. Over at Dodge, the name stayed "Diplomat" the whole time from 78 - 89. And there was also the Plymouth Gran Fury, which began in 1982 and ran until 1989. These cars were derived from the 1976 - 80 Aspen and Volare.

[@231gnx]

Well put.100% correct.

[@googleusergp]

Canada got the Plymouth Caravelle as well. The US got a front wheel drive version as I recall.

[@nicholasmcelhose9195]

Hi Benny thank u for the 📹. I'm curious if u can let me know where this junk yard is and if u know how they operate? Thank u

[@ClassicRideSociety]

Place is called Garland auto recyclers in Dallas Texas. It's a self serve yard. You gotta pull your own parts

[@richroggio]

very good video Benny, with the old Chrysler NYer and 5ave . they were nice back in the day

[@bforbes433]

Hey cool video! Did you happen to see a Diplomat or Grand fury from the 80s ? I need a header panel, hood and right fender. Where is this located?

[@brianbeswick3646]

Well you sound old enough you should know that the front wheel drive car was a New Yorker and the rear wheel drive was the fifth Avenue, and the fifth Avenue was built until 1989.

[@ClassicRideSociety]

1983 was the only year that Chrysler used the New Yorker name on both the bigger rear wheel drive M-body and the smaller extended K-Car body. Only reason I know this is because I googled it 😄. You are correct in that I'm old enough to know about this from first hand experience being around in the 80s. But a little history about me. My family was not into these cars. The first front wheel drive car we had was an 89 Taurus and that was in the early 90s. My mom was into gm gbodys at the time and dad wouldn't be caught dead in anything front wheel drive. So since I was never into anything Chrysler related after the 70s, I know next to nothing about these cars

[@robertlyman9789]

Take a harder look at the 79 eldorado and see if it’s the Gucci edition

[@kc0lif]

5th Avenue is nice.

[@sarbjeethayer4919]

Looks like this junk yard is going to give you lots of material for your channel, looking forward to it!

[@ClassicRideSociety]

I got a few more videos coming up from this place. One is a 20 minute walk around of the yard

[@alexcastillo8983]

Benny. where did you found this beauty? I have one like that 2 doors (mexican)and need some parts. I will appreciate!

[@ClassicRideSociety]

Garland auto recyclers in south Dallas

[@alexcastillo8983]

I will be this coming weekend on Those Dallas junkyards! I really appreciate your job on these videos and scouting for these antiques!

[@seanpool8028]

I wonder if you could make a video of Dodge Aspen or Plymouth Volare station wagons if you can find any?

[@googleusergp]

He's done a few videos on them in the past.

[@seanpool8028]

@@googleusergp yes the sedan and coupe versions but not the wagon versions yet

[@googleusergp]

@@seanpool8028 I do not think so yet.

[@billweller64]

Was that a 76 or 77 Cutlass 4 door next to that last car?

[@ClassicRideSociety]

76

[@googleusergp]

@@ClassicRideSociety Video on that one?

[@dowen1511]

In Mexico one could get a 2 door dodge dart in this body line like a diplomat bit called a dart and they sold one called a magnum and it could be had with up to a 360 and a 4 speed . 225- 6 318, or 360. And there was a super bee in the older duster body. Look up Mexican mopar's they got some cool stuff actually. And even a charger r/t in the old dart body shell up through 1980 I think.

[@mightyducks5867]

What junk yard? I need parts from this car

[@ClassicRideSociety]

It was at Garland Auto Recyclers in South Dallas Texas

[@robertlyman9789]

Didn’t snag the panties.😂

[@kennethsouthard6042]

I've always wondered if you could turn the headlights on these upside down and make it a Fury or a Diplomat?