News:

Due to a technical issue, some recently uploaded pictures have been lost. We are investigating why this happened but the issue has been resolved so that future uploads should be safe.  You can also Modify your post (MORE...) and re-upload the pictures in your post.

Main Menu

1940 Los Angeles area dealership

Started by MitchHodge, February 05, 2015, 05:37:49 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

MitchHodge

Trying to figure out which dealership sold this car, anyone understand what the ""GMAC Sight draft"" would be? Location? Dealership? Obviously Don Lee was the distributor? Too whom?

Thanks for any input

savemy67

Mitch,

GMAC Sight Drafts were a way for a dealer to immediately get the proceeds from a retail cash sale on a car for which GMAC had loaned money to the dealer for the wholesale purchase of the car.

GMAC would advance funds to a dealer for the wholesale purchase of a car in exchange for a lien on the car or the proceeds from a retail sale.  A dealer's retail sales contract would be "accepted" by GMAC (General Motors Acceptance Corporation) as, in effect, collateral.  If a cash sale was made, a dealer was required to pay off GMAC within 24 hours, but if a dealer wanted his share of the sale proceeds immediately, a dealer could go to a bank where GMAC had an account, and a dealer could write a Sight Draft and receive the money.

The box on the invoice marked route shows MC CBQ UP.  These are the railroads hauling the freightcar in which the car was shopped to Los Angeles - Michigan Central, Chicago Burlington & Quincy, Union Pacific.

Christopher Winter
Christopher Winter
1967 Sedan DeVille hardtop

MitchHodge

Thank you for the reply and the insight. The paper work supplied to me by Allied Vaughan really does not give me any more information than what I found myself. Though it does prove my car was sold in the Los Angeles area and backs up the stories/legend the car had always been a California car.  I just wish there was a way to confirm if it was sold in Pasadena or Los Angeles. Still the ""Ship to GMAC sight draft"" is not telling where it went too?
Thanks again for the reply, All the best

Steve Passmore

I was up against the same thing trying to find the history of my 37 convertible. It was sold in Beverly Hills but sadly every things a dead end from there.
Steve

Present
1937 60 convertible coupe
1941 62 convertible coupe
1941 62 coupe

Previous
1936 70 Sport coupe
1937 85 series V12 sedan
1938 60 coupe
1938 50 coupe
1939 60S
1940 62 coupe
1941 62 convertible coupe x2
1941 61 coupe
1941 61 sedan x2
1941 62 sedan x2
1947 62 sedan
1959 62 coupe

savemy67

Mitch,

There is an inverse relationship between how much information you have, and how much work you have to do to establish a car's provenance.  I was fortunate that my car's glove box had the original Protect-O-Plate with the original buyers name.  On the other hand, the original buyer was a company - my car was originally a company car.  Using some deductive reasoning and the internet, I found an obituary for a woman in upstate New York who was the daughter of the president of the company that originally bought the car.  Following up on the obituary I was able to find, and telephone the sons of the president, and the person to whom the president sold the car (this fellow is 88).  In turn the 88 year old sold the car to the person from whom I bought the car.  You will have more work to do than me since you have less to start with.

I am assuming you have gone through the car with a fine tooth comb and have salvaged every scrap of paper, regardless of its content.  Have you researched (library, old phone books, current dealerships, chamber of commerce) what dealerships might have existed in 1940?  Maybe an old-timer at a current dealership remembers a dealership that went out of business in the 1960's.  This could lead to the name of a family member of the defunct dealership.  Keep in mind that an old-timer might now be working at a Ford or Dodge dealer.  You could research tax maps of Los Angeles and Orange Counties, looking for likely locations for dealerships and maybe finding the names.  Los Angeles was a much smaller place in 1940.  Take those stories and legend

The information from Allied Vaughan is useful but not definitive.  You will get better results on your own.  In your case it may be a lot of work.  Most of the time, the information you need is out there.  It is a matter of devising a search strategy and executing it with as much effort as you are willing to provide.  A possible starting point is the stories/legend you mentioned in your most recent post.  As someone's tag line on this forum states, impossible only describes the degree of difficulty.

Christopher Winter
Christopher Winter
1967 Sedan DeVille hardtop

MitchHodge

Much work indeed, and thanks for the reply. I do have a plate that was actually tagged to the car in the early 60's, since the car was obviously a California car from new, the serial number is in their system. I bet  the California DMV has a record from new.............. now how do I get an inside source to fill me in on any past owners. This will be my next attempt and possibly trace it back to a dealer very close to the original owner. Oh the fun and joys of owning an old Cadillac LaSalle. thanks again

Steve Passmore

Bob Hoffman informed me years ago that the DMV in California does not keep records back more than a handful of year so don't get your hopes up.
Steve

Present
1937 60 convertible coupe
1941 62 convertible coupe
1941 62 coupe

Previous
1936 70 Sport coupe
1937 85 series V12 sedan
1938 60 coupe
1938 50 coupe
1939 60S
1940 62 coupe
1941 62 convertible coupe x2
1941 61 coupe
1941 61 sedan x2
1941 62 sedan x2
1947 62 sedan
1959 62 coupe

J. Bice CLC #24805

DMV might have some microfilm records, but access to those is not for research purposes, and likely they are incomplete. Generally only used for LE purposes. DMVs electronic system is approximately 7 years.
J. Bice CLC #24805
1937 Lasalle 5019

Bob Hoffmann CLC#96

Quote from: S Passmore on February 07, 2015, 04:23:17 AM
Bob Hoffman informed me years ago that the DMV in California does not keep records back more than a handful of year so don't get your hopes up.
Mitch,
That info is still correct. Due to privacy laws, the DMV will NOT share any records. And... any employee caught doing so can lose their job. I would not count on the DMV for any help.
Good luck with your personal search.
HTH, Bob
1968 Eldorado slick top ,white/red interior
2015 Holden Ute HSV Maloo red/black interior.
             
Too much fun is more than you can have.

J. Bice CLC #24805

#9
Quote from: Bob Hoffmann CLC#96 on February 07, 2015, 04:31:51 PM
Mitch,
That info is still correct. Due to privacy laws, the DMV will NOT share any records. And... any employee caught doing so can lose their job. I would not count on the DMV for any help.
Good luck with your personal search.
HTH, Bob

Yes, no one is going out on a limb for a poor Cadillac owner. Otherwise I would be seeking the same info myself.  My Allied Vaughn info yielded only a ship to location as well, in my case an Oakland railhead.
J. Bice CLC #24805
1937 Lasalle 5019

Walter Youshock

All true.  I did a Title Search on my '57 years ago in PA and had no problem.  Between that and the Build Sheet, I was able to track the car back to Blake Cadillac in Harrisburg,  PA.  Neither the build sheet or title mentioned Blake but it was the Harrisburg dealer at the time.
CLC #11959 (Life)
1957 Coupe deVille
1991 Brougham

harry s

My '41 67 Series Limo came from Hillcrest Motors in Beverly Hills (probably the same dealer as your car Steve). Betty Grable was supposedly the original owner. I have tried all of the movie studios and as memtioned DMV records are not available but have not been able to verify her ownership. As the story goes the car went from her to the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, CO as a livery car. I was able to reach the gentleman that got it from the hotel in 1956. I found a registration card with his name on it in the car and was able to track him down through Whitepages. He said he remembered being told Betty bought the car new. The Stanley Hotel is now owned by a large hotel company and they have no records that go back that far. It is fun to try and trace ownership of these cars. All the privacy laws make it a tough job though.    Harry
Harry Scott 4195
1941 6733
1948 6267X
2011 DTS Platinum

Steve Passmore

Quote from: harry s on February 07, 2015, 09:02:00 PM
My '41 67 Series Limo came from Hillcrest Motors in Beverly Hills (probably the same dealer as your car Steve).

Absolutely correct Harry, mine was indeed sold from Hillcreast Motors. best I could find out was that these premises were taken over by a 'Lexus' dealership in the 80s I think and after emails and letters on the slim chance they might have some old records their response was absolute silence.
Steve

Present
1937 60 convertible coupe
1941 62 convertible coupe
1941 62 coupe

Previous
1936 70 Sport coupe
1937 85 series V12 sedan
1938 60 coupe
1938 50 coupe
1939 60S
1940 62 coupe
1941 62 convertible coupe x2
1941 61 coupe
1941 61 sedan x2
1941 62 sedan x2
1947 62 sedan
1959 62 coupe

jagbuxx #12944

About 10 years back when I received the invoice from my '47(now in Belgium), I found that the car was invoiced to Claude Nolan Cadillac in Jacksonville, Fl.
They are still in business so I sent an e-mail asking if anything existed from that time-I did receive a reply from the parts department and of course nothing was available but he did send out some swag! A couple of dealer emblems and dealer plates from the store.
Frank Burns #12944
76 Coupe d'Elegance EFI Galloway Green Firemist
70 deVille Convert San Mateo Red
61 Coupe Deville Bristol Blue
41 Series 61 Deluxe Coupe 6127D Black
08 STS 3.6 1SC  Thunder Gray
16 GTI Gray
03 T-Bird Black
16 Grand Cherokee Summit, Granite
19 Tiffin Phaeton 40AH
07 Corvette Blue
20 MB S450 White

"Whatever the occasion, there
is no better way to arrive than in a Cadillac.