Pre War Cadillacs

[MikeGerman]

Hey guys,
it seems like the interest in the really old cars is getting less.
At least some ar continuing that hobby.
I am 28 years old and have the great luck to call a 1940 LaSalle Coupe and a 1941 Series 62 Coupe my own.
Who else is a pre-war enthusiast? Show your car!
Best from Germany
Mike

[Bob Hoffmann CLC#96]

Mike,
This club needs several hundred more guys like you!!! Keep up the good work.
Danke.
Bob

[Quentin Hall]

That’s a great pair Mike. Even better that you caught the bug early. I wouldn’t say the interest is less.
The world is rapidly changing and everyone is trying to catch up.
I was an Eldo man at your age. I’d just put a deposit down on a 59 Biarritz in Winnipeg and was planning a trip to bring it home. The next realm of marriage and kids and mortgages will slow you down.
Then suddenly you’ll be my age 54 ... which happens in a blink. I guess what happens is that it becomes a balancing act. Too many commitments and responsibilities.... but you still love them just as much.

[LaSalle5019]

My 1939 LaSalle in Michigan. I’m more of a pre-War enthusiast and not tied to a specific brand as my other two cars are a Studebaker and a Pontiac. Come to think of it......looks like I’m an orphan car fan. Actually I would love to get a late 20s Cadillac but don’t think it’s in the budget.
Scott

[quadfins]

I count myself as a prewar enthusiast, but don’t have one myself.

Yours are beauties! Keep up the enthusiasm.

Jim

[Lexi]

Great posts. Quentin was right when he commented that it was good "that you caught the bug early". Yes, the next realm will slow you down (that one nailed me big time), but hang in there. The "balancing act" gets easier over time. Very nice cars. Clay/Lexi

[Jamurray]

I love 1930's cars. Their styling stood out compared to what came before and after. The changes that took place in automotive styling and technology were never duplicated in any other decade. The styling of a a 1930 automobile was unrecognizable when compared to the same brand in 1940. Only Packard had air conditioning in 1940; a heater in 1930 was an option. A fully automatic transmission was nowhere in sight in 1930; Oldsmobile sold a bunch of them for an extra $75 in 1940. Side curtains disappeared in the thirties never to be seen again as a part of open air motoring.

For me, though it's the styling. A 1934 Ford roadster, a  1937 Packard convertible coupe, 1937 LaSalle convertible coupe and a 1939 Ford convertible coupe speak to me in ways I can't describe. I've always bought convertibles because it's been said they express the spirit of their times.

Those reading this who own closed cars don't be hurt. Your cars are what we rode in as kids. They are the ones that quit somewhere along the road until Dad could them to go again. They represent the memories.

[jyinger]

I have four pre-war Cadillacs.  All from 1942

I'll attach photos of three of them.  The fourth one, Barny, is in a bunch of boxes.

Here they are:  Blue Girl, Fiona and Sally.  Blue Girl, Fiona and Barny are Series 60 cars, Sally is a Series 61.

[Peter Cornwell]

Got my first prewar car when I was 25, 40 years ago, the 1941 Cadillac I have now is the newest and only car I have now, I had seven prewar cars at one point, my wife said I was out of control!
The picture of multiple cars show a 1930 Cadillac, 1928 Buick, 1928 Buick and a 1930 Buick. Others have included a 1931 Buick, 1926 Chevrolet, 1927 Chevrolet and a 1918 Hudson. Sold these to get a more modern car, thats where the '41 Cadillac came in, the joys of hydraulic brakes and more positive steering!
Kind Regards
Peter
England

[Jay Friedman]

I owned a 1932 Ford V8 Phaeton (4 door convertible) for more than 30 years.  It looked good and ran well, and being a Ford it was not a problem finding spare parts.  Over the years, two problems started to annoy me:

1. Driving it was not very enjoyable, unless at slow speeds for short trips.  It wouldn't go very fast, and it's mechanical brakes would barely stop it safely (and are difficult to adjust).  Approaching every green light I'd say to myself "stay green, stay green";

2. Fords of that era are annoying to work on.  They have closed driveshafts (torque tubes) which make it difficult to remove the transmission, change the clutch, etc.  And to remove the radiator, practically the entire front part of the car, (hood, grill, headlights and more) had to be removed.

At the same time I also owned my '49 Cadillac which can be driven at highway speeds, has good hydraulic brakes and steers perfectly.  Also, it is much easier to work on than the Ford was, as is has an open driveshaft and the radiator is easily accessible. 

Sold the Ford 8 years ago.

[Kevin M. Parkinson]

I'm a Cadillac enthusiast and have been an owner for 30 years of one or more. I love at least something from all of the decades.

Our prewar Cadillacs are:
Delco, a 1925 Cadillac 5720 7 passenger Custom Suburban.
Buck, a 1941 Cadillac 6719 5 passenger sedan

[Chris Cummings]

Hi Mike,

Good work getting those beauties!  I fell in love with pre-war Cadillacs when I was 15.  I wanted a V-16 but I couldn't find one I could afford, so I bought a 1941 Series 75 sedan, and then a 1941 Series 61 coupe.  Those were my high school and college transportation and we had a lot of good times together.  I finally got that V-16 when I was 53, and the '41s are now in Europe (the 75 in Spain and the 61 in Sweden). 

Here's to many happy miles.

Chris

[39LaSalleDriver]

This is my 39 LaSalle which I bought three years ago (my how time flies). I know many CLC members will cringe at this, but I too am not a brand loyalist. I just like pre-war cars. I just accidentally fell in love with a 39 LaSalle while shopping for a Model A Ford! Have never had another vintage car, and likely won't have any others. This one has been bigger handfull than I expected when I got it. Still a ways to go until it's finished, but here are some photos of what it looked like the day I first got it (on the left hand side), and what it looks like today (on the right). If I may brag a bit, I have done about 98% of the work myself, along with the assistance of this forum and it's members for which I am grateful.

[Barry M Wheeler #2189]

Jon, where on earth did you find the chrome stone guards? I have never seen a pair (one the Series 61.) Talk about rare!

[Barry M Wheeler #2189]

Today, speaking with Warner Young, I was reminded of a years ago "prewar" occurrence. At the time, some forty or fifty years ago, I had obtained a 1938 Series 60 coupe with no engine. A local friend had a 1937 LaSalle coupe. Please note that I said "1937." I was standing on the car's right side and the owner opened the door.

I was suddenly confused. I looked at the hood grille openings. Yep. 1937 all right. However, the dash did not have big, round cream colored dials for the clock and speedometer. The clock was a tiny little thing stuck in the middle of a bunch of plastic. The car had a 1938 dash in it and also a three on the tree transmission shift lever. The owner didn't "know anything about it." Of course I told him that "usually," a 1937 LaSalle coupe would have a floor shifter.

Could this have been a very late car with the "new" type shifter? I can see having a 1938 car with a 1937 dash installed to get away from the early plastic, but there would be no real "reason" to switch it the other way.

Has anyone ever seen this car? At the time, it was owned in Mid-North Indiana and this would have been in the mimeograph era of the S/S. Probably the later 1960s. It was owned by the man in IN that made the repro stone guards and advertised all the time in the "small" Hemmings. (My memory is still pretty good, but not that good to recall his name.)

This is what happens when you get old and can recall odds and ends of useless (?) information. I'll probably sit up in the middle of the night and recall it.

[39LaSalleDriver]

Jon, where on earth did you find the chrome stone guards? I have never seen a pair (one the Series 61.) Talk about rare!

Sleep well this evening Barry...I don't have chromed stone/gravel guards. 

Mine are the rubber covered type which I strongly suspect are the ones it left the factory with. My car seems to have gone through a partial rennovation/restoration about 30 years ago if I had to guess. It's been an interesting project with a good degree of detective work to assess what has been redone (usually poorly) and what hasn't. Usually I just have to shake my head and ask "why?" some things were done the way they were. It may boil down to what was available at the time it was done. Certainly the decision was made in the past that certain things and attention to detail was "good enough" rather than my decision to take it back to factory stock as closely as I can. For example, I had it for over a year before I figured out that my trunk hinges were from a Buick rather than a LaSalle! It took some time to find them, but I was finally able to source the proper hinges and put them on.

Addressing your second post, I do once in a while run across quirky things which puzzle me. My 39 was a later year production model which as we know has some differences from early year production models. One which really comes to mind is that based on what I can tell, early 39 engines have a long, curved dipstick tube without a secondary breather cap. For 1940, it appears that they went to a straight dipstick tube with a secondary breather cap. Mine (original engine with matching numbers) is a hybrid of both...it is a long, curved tube with a secondary breather cap. Dunno. I suppose it could have been changed at some point, but doubtful. Likewise, I have an air cleaner that appears to be a 1940 model rather than a 1939. But who knows? That would have been pretty easy to replace (though I can't imagine why you would) at some point. The problem I see is that for all I know, my car was built far enough into production that they were already transitioning into 1940 parts for some items (like an air cleaner). I certainly wouldn't want to spend the money or take away from the originality by putting a "39" air cleaner on there when it left the factory with a "40" model. Doubtful I will ever know for sure, so I plan on leaving it as is.

[Barry M Wheeler #2189]

I guess we have two Jons in the thread. I was speaking of the 1947 Series 61 stone guards in chrome/stainless. There were very few 1947 Series 61 Series around. I think there were 1941 Series 62 aftermarket chrome/stainless that show up from time to time. I had "one" years ago. Not too good a workmanship but perhaps better than chewed up rubber.

[39LaSalleDriver]

  Right you are! I didn't even notice that! Given the rarity of that spelling variant, I generally forget that there's an outside chance someone else in the room may share it.