“Why sit around waiting for a summer breeze to come up when you can create quite a stir yourself?”
1986 was the last model year for Chrysler’s Town & Country convertible. Basically a special version of the LeBaron convertible, the Town & Country was first available in 1983 and was intended to remind potential buyers of the classic (and valuable) Town & Country convertibles in production from 1946 through 1950. The newer Town & Country was not especially successful, selling only 3,721 units in four years, with only 501 sold in 1986.
Like all LeBarons, the Town & Country‘s front and rear fascias, headlights, grilles, and taillights were all updated with a more rounded and aerodynamic look in 1986. The center-mounted brake light mandated for all 1986 vehicles by U.S. federal law was mounted atop the trunk lid. Inside, the standard digital instrument cluster was redesigned for better legibility.
Also for 1986, a throttle-body fuel injected K 2.5 liter/152 ci inline four producing 100 bhp replaced the carburetted 2.6 inline liter four built by Mitsubishi as the base engine. The optional fuel-injected Turbo I 146 bhp 2.2 liter/135 ci turbocharged inline four remained for an additional $628. Both engines were paired with a TorqueFlite three-speed automatic. Mileage with the base engine was 23 city/25 highway by the day’s standards (20/23 by 2025 measures). The Turbo I was rated at 20 city/24 highway—not a big price to pay for a significant percentage of extra horsepower.
The base price for 1986 Town & Country was a non-trivial $17,595 (about $52,600 in today’s dollars). For that money, you got halogen headlights, dual horns, power brakes, wire wheel covers with locks, and the Town & Country’s distinctive white ash moldings and teak appliques on the body sides. Inside, you got a very attractive Mark Cross leather interior along with air conditioning, power mirrors, a power driver’s seat, and the Ultimate Sound System AM/FM stereo cassette with a graphic equalizer and six speakers.
Packages included the $302 Deluxe Convenience Package (cruise control and tilt wheel) and the Power Convenience Discount Package (power windows and power locks).
The View From 2025
A small set of enthusiasts is collecting these eighties Town & Country convertibles, and I have seen nice examples at several AACA-judged shows. You see them for sale in the Hemmings Motor News classifieds, on eBay Motors, and on Bring a Trailer. As I update this blog entry in October 2025, there’s a White 1986 LeBaron Town & Country with almond seats and 178,000 miles for sale on Hemmings, asking $14,000.
Of course, these Super K convertibles also started Chrysler’s long tradition of making convertibles that might occasionally be sporty but were not sports cars—a market niche they finally exited with the demise of the Chrysler 200 convertible at the end of the 2014 model year.
I still like what Chrysler was trying to do, and I appreciate how these cars look. Make mine White, please, with that killer Almond/Cream leather interior.
I have also written about the debut 1982 Chrysler LeBaron convertible.
Last updated October 2025.
Eighties Cars 