Have you heard the news that the Royal Family recently added a new baby to the regal flock? This would mean that Prince Williams’ lovely bride “had a cake in the oven,” as my late Mom jokingly referred to a pregnancy out of wedlock! I’m sorry to disappoint you, but the Royal Family I’m referring to doesn’t reside in Buckingham Palace, but rather in my garage. The fateful day occurred in March of this year when the phone rang and a gentleman named John Raftery, a longtime CLC and Forty Niners member from Jamaica Plain, Mass., asked me if I knew of anyone in the area who could do some mechanical work on a 1949 Cadillac 60 Special he owned. I told him I’d make a few calls and get back to him. As we continued our conversation, John mentioned that he owned a second ‘49 Cadillac and was interested in selling it. “Curiosity killed the cat,” as the old adage goes! Throwing all caution to the wind, I asked him what model it was, and learned that is was a ‘49 Cadillac model 7533X 9 passenger Business Sedan, a.k.a. a limousine! I then proceeded to ask him all the “essential” questions regarding the condition of the vehicle, when it last ran, is it currently drivable, etc., etc. John explained the car had a rather interesting history. He purchased it from the original owner in the mid-seventies, an African American gentleman who had served as a chauffeur for a federal Judge who lived in the Boston area. The judge retired in 1949, and evidently was so endeared to his longtime chauffeur, that he instructed him to visit Peter Fuller Cadillac, the largest Cadillac dealership in New England at the time, and pick out any new 1949 Cadillac he desired, and the generous Judge would pay for it! Are there any wealthy judges out there looking to hire a retired Teacher turned chauffeur? I should be so lucky!
John said that he had been driving the car until one day last Fall, when pulling into his garage, he saw, much to his horror and chagrin, smoke emanating from the engine compartment. In a panic, he quickly raised the hood and emptied a fire extinguisher on the melted bundle of wires leading to the starter. Some “mechanic” had installed a 6/12 Volt converter that malfunctioned, causing this tragedy. This is when he lost all interest in the car. If this wasn’t bad enough, he had recently shelled out almost $1,000 for four new wide whitewall tires, so understandably he was pretty discouraged. Continuing our discussion, he revealed the car had run well before the fire, but wouldn’t start when the engine was hot, thus the 6/12 Volt “converter” (see “6 Volt Starting Problems”, March 2011). On a brighter note, John assured me that the car had always been garaged and was totally rust-free, it had its original interior in nice condition for its age, and was 99% complete. My curiosity piqued, I asked him how much he wanted for it, just in case I ran across “someone” interested in such a vehicle. He replied that he had no idea what the car was worth, so I promised to do a little research.
Already cognizant of the fact that this was a low production vehicle, I first consulted a fascinating book I bought in the ‘70s, “Production Figures For U.S. Vehicles” by Jerry Heasely, and discovered that a scant 626 were built! This is a pretty rare beast, I said to myself, and even rarer considering it has a factory 3-speed manual transmission! Less than 4% of all ‘49 Cadillacs came equipped with a standard transmission; most buyers opted for the 4-speed Hydramatic transmission. I then referred to the “Old Cars Price Guide” in order to get an idea of the car’s value, and concluded that it could be affordable if I could obtain it for the “right price.” Now things are starting to get “dangerous”! Finally, one Saturday morning in early April I decided to go and view the car. After all, “It doesn’t cost anything to look!” (Translate: It usually DOES!) Arriving at John’s home, I caught first sight of “Her” and, as fate would have it, it was “Love at first sight”! Here we go again! Being prepared, “just in case,” I brought a wad of cash with me; always a good bargaining tool, I’ve learned from experience. I made an offer, and after some back-and-forth negotiating, arrived at a fair price. I immediately contacted my good friend and “trailer man”, Jim Powers, and arranged to bring home the new “baby” the next weekend. With a 136″ wheel, base and a weight of 4,930 pounds, it occupied most of the trailer! Immediately after unloading Her in my driveway, I went to work doing a thorough cleaning consisting of a hand washing, vacuuming the interior, scrubbing the whitewalls, etc. After a few hours of work, She looked like an entirely different car! I then spent about six hours cutting back all the melted wiring and soldering new wires. I removed the starter and carburetor and had both rebuilt.
All this accomplished, the “moment of reckoning” was at hand. A little gas down the carburetor and She fired right up, “purring like a kitten”! I changed the oil and antifreeze, installed new plugs and wires, and embarked on the long and tedious task of rebuilding the Hydro-lectric system, as power windows, including the partition window, was standard on this model. Upon checking the data plate, I found this to be body #572 out of the 626 built, so this is a “late” one, perhaps built during the last month of production. The original color was Tyrolian Grey, with broadcloth interior in the passenger compartment, and full leather, including door panels and headliner in the chauffeur’s compartment. Besides the partition window, there are two jump seats which fold into the back of the front seat, allowing for extra passengers. The craftsmanship on this vehicle is absolutely amazing! All interior window garnish moldings are solid steam-bent black walnut, and the door handle escutcheons are gold plated! The running boards are solid stainless steel. Besides power windows, the car is equipped with optional fog lights and electric clocks in the front and rear compartments, dual undersea heaters, a deluxe radio with rear shelf speaker, dual back-up lamps, glare-proof rearview mirror, vacuum-operated power antenna and windshield washers.
I obtained a copy of the original factory invoice from GM, and learned that the car was shipped by rail to Boston on June 28, 1949. It very well may have arrived in Boston on my birthday, July 7, 1949! The total cost was $4,061.59; a LOT of money in 1949! I named Her “The Countess,” sister to my other two ‘49 Cadillacs, The Duchess and The Baroness. She is a joy to drive, and though not quick off the line, is like a locomotive once you get Her rolling, cruising effortlessly at 65-70 MPH! Long live The Queen!
