This low-mileage 1950 Chrysler New Yorker is a mechanically sound, better-than-new stunner.
The late Robert Huelsman and his son Tom combined their mechanical know-how to transform a low-mileage 1950 Chrysler New Yorker into a mechanically sound, better-than-new stunner.Freeze Frame Image LLC
In the fall of 2002, Robert Huelsman discovered an original, low-mileage 1950 Chrysler New Yorker four-door sedan in the car corral of Fall Carlisle. The seller had recently purchased the car from the Cumberland, Md., estate of the original owner. The New Yorker had clearly been well cared for over the years, but the building in which the car was stored for decades had an old-style heating system that operated on fuel oil. Over the years, the heater caused the New Yorker’s door seals and other rubber components to dry out and deteriorate beyond repair. Although it had been appreciated, there were other signs that time had taken its toll on the New Yorker, making it the perfect example for a body-off-frame restoration in order to make it like new again.
Upon spotting the New Yorker, Robert approached the seller about buying it.
According to Tom, Robert’s son, “Another person tried to buy it before my father knew it was for sale, but he couldn’t come up with the funds to do it. The [seller] made the statement, ‘The first person who comes up with the asking price, gets it.’ My father overheard the conversation and heard the seller’s bold statement. Dad approached the seller, reached into his pocket, handed him all the money he had, and asked him to give him a couple hours to come up with the rest of the money he was asking for it."
“My father also told the seller, ‘If I don’t show up with the rest of the money in two hours, you can keep the money I have already given you.’
“The seller agreed, and a short time later, well before the two-hour deadline, Dad had the rest of the money [and] he was the new owner of the ’50 New Yorker.”
Once Robert secured the New Yorker, he was left with just one problem — how to get his surprise purchase home.
“My father didn’t intend to buy a car at the Carlisle event, and wasn’t prepared to take it home at that moment,” Tom recalled. “After making the purchase, he asked a police officer who was standing nearby if he knew someone who would let him store it until he could get back to Ohio, grab his truck and trailer, then make the trip back to Carlisle, Pennsylvania, to retrieve it. The police officer said, ‘Sure, you can store the New Yorker at my place.’”
Even the Prestomatic Fluid Drive transmission case was restored to show standards, along with the rest of the chassis and engine.Freeze Frame Image LLC
A New Yorker state of mind
While his 1950 Chrysler New Yorker purchase appeared to be an impulse buy, Robert had long wanted to own such a car. In his youth, he caught sight of a 1950 Chrysler New Yorker as it drove past him while he was working at his shop in Chickasaw, Ohio, and immediately took a liking to it. He hit the books and read up on the car, its eight-cylinder engine and its mechanical drivetrain. After seeing one in person and educating himself on its engine and transmission, he told himself, “One day I’d like to own one.”
For 1950, Chrysler squared off its cars’ rear fenders and lowered the taillamps to the ends of the fenders.Freeze Frame Image LLC
Developing a mechanical bend
In 1967, Robert Huelsman purchased Huelsman’s Garage from his father, Charles, and years later named it “Huelsman Automotive.” Back in 1927, Charles started Huelsman’s Garage in a lean-to structure that was attached to the overhang of a local blacksmith’s garage. Over the years, the business evolved, the size of the building expanded and Charles added a business partner. That arrangement lasted until 1947, when Charles bought his partner’s share of the business and went solo. Twenty years later, Charles was ready for retirement and offered the business to Robert, who agreed to take it over from his father.
Robert learned much of his trade while serving in the United States Air Force where he was a highly skilled mechanic. He later passed his mechanical knowledge onto his two sons, Tom and John. Tom joined Huelsman Automotive in 1974 and John joined four years later. Under their father’s mentorship, they built Huelsman Automotive into a team of highly skilled technicians. It’s a family-driven operation that now includes Tom’s son, Kyle, who joined the team in 2001, and John’s son, Brian, who joined the team in 2005. Under the watchful eye of owners Tom and John, and with encouragement from Robert, who continued to work at the shop during the transition, Huelsman Automotive continued to grow. It is regarded as a highly successful, four-generation business that’s a fixture within the community.
In the last year for Chrysler’s straight-eight engine, it produced 135 bhp and had 270 lb.-ft. of torque.Freeze Frame Image LLC
A long wait to restoration
More than a decade ago, I met Robert and his wife, Marlene, along with their son, Tom, and his wife, Kathy, at the Motor Muster Car Show at Greenfield Village in Dearborn, Mich., where they were debuting their freshly restored 1959 Chevrolet Impala Sport Sedan (Old Cars Weekly, May 21, 2015). During the Impala photoshoot, Robert mentioned the restoration of their 1950 Chrysler New Yorker was in the works, and I asked him to call me when its restoration was completed. Years later, Tom called me to ask if I wanted to see the finished ’50 New Yorker. Not long after, I was heading south from Michigan on I-75 to Chickasaw, and once there, Tom told me more about the restoration process and how he and his father worked together for more than a decade on the New Yorker, doing most of the work themselves.
Tom then led me to a garage adjacent to the Huelsman Automotive facility, and when we walked through the front door, I was greeted by a smiling Robert dressed in dark-blue coveralls standing next to the shiny 1950 Chrysler New Yorker. He’d been finishing up some last-minute details before my arrival.
When it came time to restore the 1950 Chrysler New Yorker four-door sedan, Robert and Tom approached the project as an opportunity to work on something classic while showcasing each of their talents. Robert’s area of expertise was rebuilding engines. He took great pride in his work and passed that ethic onto Tom. Both Robert and Tom have an exceptional eye for detail, which I knew from the ’59 Impala photoshoot. And their New Yorker looked just as beautiful as it did when it was new, just like their previously restored Impala.
As part of its commitment to comfort, Chrysler ensured its New Yorker interior not only provided ample space, but a great level of plushness. Note the pleasant blue colors and its many details, such as the chrome-plated handles on the front seat back, and how the striped upholstery on the armrest matches the seat material.Freeze Frame Image LLC
A Chrysler for comfort
In 1950, Chrysler was in the second model year of its first postwar redesign and had a not new engine in the works, but that engine — the Hemi — wouldn’t be available until the next year. Until it would become Chrysler’s focus, the company relied on its reputation for solid quality, riding comfort and proven inline L-head engines (the 250.6-cid six-cylinder in the Chrysler Royal and Windsor series and the 325.5-cid eight-cylinder in the Saratoga, New Yorker, Imperial and wood-trimmed Town and Country). Factory features such as “Hydra-Lizer” double-acting shock absorbers, “Cyclebonded” brake linings and “Prestomatic Fluid Drive” transmissions made Chrysler automobiles safe and comfortable to drive, and gave the company buzz words to use when advertising them.
The chrome plating on the speaker cover, radio face and glove box door across the passenger side of the instrument panel is also original.Freeze Frame Image LLC
Chryslers might have lacked the more-adventurous styling of some of the competing automobiles of the time, but Chrysler still had plenty to boast. Thanks to company president K.T. Keller, Chrysler interior layouts focused on generous headroom (enough to wear a hat), chair-height seats and other creature comforts.
“A car of comfort, class, that’s the New Yorker,” wrote Motor Trend Editor Walt Woron after road testing a 1950 four-door sedan during a private press preview of the 1950 Chrysler.
The six-cylinder Windsor four-door sedan on the 125.5-inch wheelbase was the overall sales leader for Chrysler in 1950 with 78,199 sold. Placing a distant second in sales was the eight-cylinder New Yorker four-door, which rode the model’s 131.5-inch wheelbase and sold 22,633 examples. The New Yorker series also included a club coupe, convertible, station wagon, Town and Country convertible and a Newport two-door hardtop that debuted midway through the 1950 model year. The four-door Chrysler New Yorker four-sedan like the Huelsman car was tagged with a base price of $2,758, and with 22,633 built, it was the most popular New Yorker body type of the total 29,335 New Yorkers produced for the 1950 model year.
While the Huelsmans undertook a complete restoration of the Chrysler, the interior was so well-preserved that only the carpet and seat material needed to be replaced.Freeze Frame Image LLC
The 1950 Chrysler core bodies and chassis were largely the same as in 1949, when the company introduced its first completely new automobile design after World War II. There were many new design features to distinguish the 1950 model, however. For 1950, the front grille became simpler, but was still bold by industry standards. The taillamps were placed lower on the newly squared-off rear fenders to add a sense of greater length, and the rear window was enlarged to give the rear seat occupants a larger view while allowing more light into the interior.
Under the hood, the “Spitfire” eight-cylinder engine — with its 3.25-inch bore and 4.88-inch stroke — was rated at 135 bhp at 3,400 rpm and 270 lb.-ft. of torque at 1,600 revs.
“It was not noted for its amazing head snapping or amazing acceleration,” noted Woron in his review. The 1950 Chrysler’s lack of tire burning or put-you-against--the-seat-back acceleration really wasn’t the fault of the engine. The Prestomatic Fluid Drive functioned like a four-speed semi-automatic transmission that eased into gear with smoothness and convenience, and without the snappy shifts.
Motor Trend was able to finesse the gearbox between the high and low ranges during their testing process at the track. Acceleration was clocked at 20 seconds from 0-to-60 mph, with their best time getting down to 22.3 seconds in the quarter-mile. Fuel economy was 11.34 mpg in city driving, but improved to the mid-teens during steady highway driving.
Worn reported that he found the New Yorker maneuverable for its size, with “positive stopping” from the vacuum-boosted brakes.
Flight-inspired hood ornaments were all the rage among luxury manufacturers in 1950.Freeze Frame Image LLC
A New Yorker stands tall
Today, the Huelsmans’ Newport Blue 1950 Chrysler New Yorker four-door sedan performs as well as Worn’s test car did back in 1950, and it looks just as good. The paint finish is flawless, the body panels are laser straight and the blue cloth interior is eye-catching. We’ve witnessed the crowds that the car draws wherever it goes, and many are impressed that the car retains much of its original factory-installed interior with only the carpet and seat material replaced.
The New Yorker’s restoration was completed by 2014, so Robert had several years to enjoy the car and the fruit of his labor before he passed away on July 25, 2022, at the age of 90. He was a member of the Chickasaw Volunteer Fire Department, the National De Soto Club, the Chrysler Restorers Club, and the MoPar Village Car Club. No doubt many of his fellow club members were impressed with his dedication for the hobby, and toward the restoration of this 1950 New Yorker that his family continues to cherish.
The underside of the 1950 Chrysler New Yorker looks as good as its top side.Freeze Frame Image LLC
Taillamps were moved to the rear of the more squared-off 1950 Chrysler fenders, which added a greater look of length.Freeze Frame Image LLC
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Brian Earnest
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