If you’ve ever been to this great event, which takes place in October near Harrisburg PA on the grounds of the chocolate company, you know the headline is not an exaggera¬tion. At most car shows you’ll see everything you care to in an hour or two. Not Hershey, where it’s impossible to visit all of the thousands (really!) of vendor’s spaces, if for no other reason than you can spend all your time visiting those who only sell Cadillac parts. I went to Hershey with ‘49ers Joe Cutler and Art Gardner October 6-10. After 3½ days I found some neat ‘49 stuff, and went through the car corral where there were hundreds of great cars for sale and several I had to have. (You know the feeling.) Upon departing, I was cheered by the thought that next year I’ll be doing it all over again. Below is Joe’s article on Hershey from a ‘49ers perspective.

It’s that time of year again: 2010 dues are due. If you haven’t yet paid your $8 dues for 2010, you will receive a post card in the mail reminding you to do so. To make a payment, please enclose the post card and an $8 check payable to Jay Friedman in an envelope and mail it to me at: 1530 September Chase, Decatur, Georgia 30033 USA. Canadian members can send me cheque in Canadian Dollars at the exchange rate of the day for 8 US Dollars. Members in the Euro Zone can send a 5 Euro note. If you don’t get a post card, your 2010 dues are paid and you can enjoy another year of the Times, which appears every March, June, September and December, without further ado.

May all Forty-Niners have a Merry Christmas or Happy Hanukah and Happy New Year and anything else you might celebrate this time of year, and may your ’49 (or ’48 or’50) always start quickly and run sweetly.

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From my hometown of Novato in Northern California, about 30 miles north of the Golden Gate, I toured south to Bakersfield and across the desert with three other cars from our NorCal Regional club: Don Barnes in a ’58 Biarritz, Dave & Patti Ricci in a ’61 SDV and Larry & Jo Ann Brennan in a ’60 Biarritz. We traveled early and stayed overnight in Bakersfield in an effort to beat the heat and make the trip more leisurely. It was necessary to keep the top up on my convertible just to get the shade and cope with 90+ degree heat, but all of us made the trip without a problem. Las Vegas is like an adult Disney World constantly under construction, but I was able to cruise my ’49 up and down the glamorous strip with Frank Sinatra crooning from my boom-box — a long time fantasy come true. Also, seeing the Hoover Dam was awesome — a tribute to what massive projects Americans can build.

The Las Vegas Region did an outstanding job of planning and executing a great event. Having the car show indoors provided a secure, air conditioned space, and the lights really made those Cads and LaSalles sparkle. I was the only entry in my 48-49 judging class. There was a beautiful dark cherry maroon ’48 convertible, but it was entered as display only.

Las Vegas GN Indoor Show Field Showing Charles’ ’49 Convertible
Next To Ed Cholakian’s Original, 15,000 Mile 1950 Cadillac

A Closer Look At Charles’ Convertible In Front Of Caesar’s Palace

Scanning the April of 2008 list of 49ers and the list of people in attendance, I believe ‘49er chapter members attending besides me include Dan Fisher, Ed Cholakian, Frank Stagnitto, Herman Desser and Larry Brennan. There may have been others.

The photo on the previous page is the First Place award I won. Needless to say, I was thrilled even though the competition was absent. [Ed. Note: But, as can be seen in the top two photos, the award to Charles’ gorgeous convertible was richly deserved, regardless of competition.]

I think everyone who drove or trailered a car across the Mojave Desert to Nevada could easily be named a winner just for that effort alone. I left only a small amount behind in the slot machines, and as evidenced by my thorough exhaustion upon arriving back at home, I can definitely state that I had a great time

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which should be a great one. Unfortunately, I won’t be able to go myself due to various other commitments, but my absence will be more than made up for by the Forty-Niners Chapter Member-at-Large, Frank Stagnitto, who will be attending. Frank has promised a full report on the GN activities of ’49s and their owners, which will appear in the September issue of the Times.

The Cadillac-Lasalle Club recently sent a flyer touting the virtues of the 2nd edition of the ’48 and ’49 Cadillac Authenticity Manual to all CLC members who are owners of such cars but who have not yet bought a copy. Get a copy of the 2nd edition of the manual by sending a $65 check to CLC Director of Technical Services, Bill Anderson 2198, Johns Hopkins Road, Gambrills, Maryland 21054-1614.

There are four Series 62 4-door sedans featured in this issue, which is only fitting as they were the most popular ’49 Cadillac mode, with 37,617 being sold or more than 40% of all ‘49s produced.

Now that summer is upon us, take your ’49 out and drive it whatever the model. That’s what they’re for!

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1949 was a special year for Cadillac, although the body design wasn’t changed significantly. The most noticeable difference was the grille. (The single piece windscreen was to be introduced in 1950.) However, engineers had developed a new V8 engine. This was inevitable because compression, an important precondition to improve power and efficiency, couldn’t be increased much with the traditional L-head design. The valves were moved into the heads, resulting in better cooling along with a differently shaped combustion chamber that reduced loss of combustion energy to the cooling system. Despite a small decrease in displacement, the first version of the new engine delivered 10 brake horsepower more. The basic construction underwent light improvements before some design changes became necessary in 1957.

The drawing below shows that the new engine was more compact than its predecessor. This was made possible by a flat water pump and mainly by a new crankshaft with shorter piston rods. Weight was reduced by 220 lbs.
In independent tests a maximum speed of about 100 miles per hour was measured. Acceleration time from 0 to 60 miles per hour was 15.8 seconds. In midyear Cadillac introduced the 62 Coupe de Ville, the first hard top model industry-wide. It was priced at $3,497. The cheapest model (61 Club Coupe) bore a price tag of $2,788, and for $4,839 you could buy the top model Fleetwood 75 Business Imperial. Of 92.554 cars built, 80,880 were registered during the calendar year, resulting in a market share of 1, 67% and 18th place in sales ranking.

Power steering and power brakes (not really essential) were not available in 1949. The optional standard heating system came with only one heater under the front seat, while the costlier deluxe Automatic Heating System had two under-seat heaters. This seems curious today, but don’t forget that until the late 1950s buyers could order a new car without a heater.

The chassis was state of the art: knee action shocks, hydraulic drum brakes, coil springs in front and leaf springs on the rear axle. Buyers could choose between a 3-speed manual transmission and a 4-speed Hydra-matic, both with column shift.

Hydraulic windows and front seat were optional on Series 62 coupes and sedans, but standard equipment on Series 60 and 75 Sedans, the Convertible, the Coupe de Ville and Series 75. The hydraulic pump is essential on convertibles to move the top up and down. The Convertible also came with a full leather interior. (Cloth would soak water in an unexpected shower.)

That 1949 has a special significance in Cadillac’s history is underlined by the fact that there is a special interest group within the American Cadillac & LaSalle Club. This group even publishes its own magazine, the ’49 Times.

Ed. Note: Michael is one of 2 Forty Niners Chapter members in Germany. Besides owning a gorgeous ’49 convertible (which can be seen on page 7 of the March ’05 issue of the Times), he is the editor of “Pre-‘50 Magazine”, a German language publication for enthusiasts of American cars of that era, in which this article first appeared.

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After more than a year of work by 13 committee members, the 2nd edition of the 1948-49 Cadillac Authenticity Manual for Series 60S, 61 and 62 cars is now on sale. With 123 pages, much more detailed content, as well as 150 mostly color illustrations, this new, improved edition of the manual has more than twice the information on judging and restoring as the 1st edition. Also, being spiral-bound it can be laid flat for easy use. The cost is $65 postpaid. Make your check payable to The Cadillac & LaSalle Club, Inc. and mail it to Bill Anderson, 2198 Johns Hopkins Road, Gambrills, Maryland 21054-1614 USA. Bill can also be contacted by email at rivsrgr8@aol.com and by telephone at 410-849-3376.

In this issue of the Times there are several excellent “how-to” technical articles. In the last issue in September, readers could not have failed to notice that the lead article on the CLC Grand National in New Jersey was lavishly illustrated with two pages of color photos, a Times first. This entailed extra printing expenses for which we thank Times Editor, Art Gardner, for a generous contribution.

It’s that time of year again: 2009 dues are due. If you haven’t yet paid your $8 dues for ’09, you will receive a post card in the mail reminding you to do so. To make a payment, please enclose the post card and an $8 check payable to Jay Friedman in an envelope and mail it to me at: 1530 September Chase, Decatur, Georgia 30033 USA. Canadian members can send me a cheque in Canadian Dollars at the exchange rate of the day for 8 US Dollars. Members in Great Britain and in the Euro Zone can send a 5 Pound or 5 Euro note. If you don’t get a post card, your 2009 dues are paid and you can enjoy another year of the Times, which appears very March, June, September and December, without further ado.

May all Forty-Niners have a Merry Christmas or Happy Hanukah or whatever you celebrate this time of year. Besides the usual Happy New Year, 2009 is significant for Forty-Niners since 60 years ago last month, in November 1948, the first 1949 Cadillacs were sold. So have a great ‘09 as we celebrate the 60th anniversary of our favorite car.

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The Wooden Wheel Chock

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48 And 49 Design Differentiation

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Authenticity manual

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Fire extinguishers

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Grand national 2005

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