Chrysler celebrating 20 years of modern concept vehicles

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click on this photo of the Portofino for a HUGE gallery of Chrysler concepts

At the 1987 Frankfurt Motor Show, Chrysler opened a new chapter in its history with the introduction of the Portofino Concept (above). The Portofino introduced the world to Chrysler’s cab-forward design philosophy that would dominate its next generation of mainstream cars. In the two decades since, Chrysler has continued to crank out at least 3-5 new concepts every year, some making their debut in Detroit every January, while the rest were revealed in locations like Geneva, Frankfurt, Paris and Tokyo.

In that time, the team from Auburn Hills has created some truly inspired vehicles and others that are not so much. Some of the design details have made it into production, while some vehicles have been moved straight to the assembly line such as the Viper, Prowler, first-generation Neon and the upcoming Challenger. Other concepts that people clamored for such as the Plymouth Pronto Spyder and Dodge Copperhead did the show circuit and then faded away. Then again, some concepts that made it to production might have been better left in the museum like the Crossfire. One of the consistent themes that has popped up every couple of years is a flagship for Chrysler, and after some gorgeous models like the Atlantic Coupe and the Chronos have all gone unbuilt, it appears one is getting called up for active duty on dealer lots. We’ve learned that the Imperial sedan will start rolling off the line in a couple of years. Regardless of your opinion of any individual Chrysler concept, the debut of new ones are always highly anticipated at auto shows, and they are rarely dull.

[Source: Chrysler]

Gallery: Twenty years of modern Chrysler concepts