Miniature Curbside Classic: 1994 Chrysler New Yorker by Brookfield Collectors Guild

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– Posted on May 28, 2012

This week, in honor of Memorial Day, let’s celebrate the last version of that most American-named car, the Chrysler New Yorker. The LH-based cab forward version was built only in 1994 and 1995, though its LHS sibling would last until 2001. A new company at the time, Brookfield Collectors Guild, did many Chrysler promotional cars in the mid to late 1990s, both in diecast metal and plastic. Our featured Mini CC is the 1994 version, looking very elegant in black over charcoal gray.

I remember when the LH cars came out, and I thought they were very cool. While I liked all three of the initial 1993 versions (Dodge Intrepid, Eagle Vision and Chrysler Concorde), the one I really liked came a year later, the 1994 New Yorker and LHS, replacing the Broughamed-out Landau-roofed 1993 New Yorker and Fifth Avenue.

I have been collecting model cars for a long time, and one of the places I got promotional models sent a newsletter showing the new, highly detailed Chrysler promos of the LH cars. At the time, I got a present if I got good grades at the end of the school year. In 1993, I passed muster, and Dad got me a black cherry metallic 1993 Concorde promotional.

It was very detailed, painted in authentic factory colors, and all four doors, the hood, and the trunk all opened. I liked it so much that a couple years later, for Christmas, I requested and received a deep forest green 1995 Chrysler LHS promotional. It was equally cool, and I still have both models today, in their original display boxes.

Years later, thanks to a certain online auction site, I was able to acquire a few more of these neat promotionals, including our featured model, a ’94 New Yorker. Basically, the LHS was the top of the line New Yorker, and was sportier than the NY with monochromatic paint and grille, bucket seats and a console with floor-shifted automatic. The New Yorker was meant for the more traditional buyer, with more chrome trim, a chrome grille, and bench seats with the time-honored column shifter.

When these came out, I thought they were really attractive. Although very different from the outgoing ’93 New Yorkers, they still looked like a Chrysler, with just the right amount of styling cues to meld both modern styling and traditional luxury car cues.

While the LHS was a minor hit for Chrysler, the New Yorker did not sell nearly as well, despite being virtually identical. In the ’90s, that bench seat was a big minus for Yuppies who were still buying cars. A few years later, they would be largely abandoning sedans for that status symbol of the decade, the leather lined, chrome festooned luxury SUV.

Brookfield did a number of 1/24 scale LH cars between 1993 and 1996, including Intrepids, New Yorkers, LHSs and Concordes. Sadly, they never issued an Eagle Vision.

They also did more traditional plastic promos, including a Sebring convertible and first generation Neons; I have an SCCA-decaled black Neon coupe somewhere too. The miniature 3.5L V6 was well detailed, despite being a single cast “sheet” instead of having a separate engine block, etc.

The trunk opened too. I got this particular NY sans box; it is also missing a chrome-foiled hang-tag that was in the trunk and detailed that this was a highly-detailed, limited edition promotional from Chrysler. My original-owner ’93 Concorde and ’95 LHS have theirs, though.

As neat as these cars are, they didn’t last long, and neither did the Brookfield Collectors Guild. For those so inclined, these do pop up on occasion on a certain online auction site, so they can be found. I’m glad I’ve got mine. The real LH cars may have had their issues, but they sure looked good!