Though funerals aren’t high on my list of subjects I enjoy thinking about, it is easy to understand how many mourners would find comfort in a flower car displaying beautiful bouquets as part of a final send-off. That was the original intended purpose of this 1955 Cadillac, thanks to Superior Coach Company, which took ordinary Cadillacs and turned them into limos, ambulances, hearses, or whatever a buyer needed at the time. This one here on Facebook Marketplace probably hasn’t carried any foliage in a while, but it seems like a decent candidate for restoration and possibly turning into something that serves a different purpose. Located in Greenwood, Louisiana, this rare Cadillac is priced at $22,500, and we’d like to thank reader Zappenduster for spotting it and sending in the tip!
I’ve read that these are sometimes referred to as a Coupe de Flora, or a Coupe de Fleur, but whatever you want to call it, these are some real rarities in the Cadillac marketplace. I couldn’t find an exact number of how many examples Superior produced in ’55, but they’re certainly scarce, and this one is undoubtedly worth repairing and getting back on the road. Some lower-body rust is reportedly present, but the seller says it’s complete, and it seems to have more good bones than bad. I could also see someone with a vision perhaps restoring this one as an elegant El Camino-style pickup, which could prove more functional, but restoring it as a flower car and keeping things original sounds like a good idea as well.
The seller says he’s helping an 82-year-old friend sell his automobile collection, and it looks like there is a shed full of other vehicles that are looking for new homes. The listing provides few details, such as how long the Cadillac has been sitting inside or whether the crank will still turn over, but it’s a plus that the engine is still there. If original, it’s a 331 cubic-inch V8, paired with an automatic transmission. Most of what’s under the hood still seems intact, but if it hasn’t been running for years, the powerplant will probably need some mechanical attention or perhaps a rebuild.
From what I can see inside, I’m guessing it spent a few years outside before being moved to the shed, as the dash looks like it’s been baked to a crisp in the hot southern sun. The seat will need to be completely redone as well, but the speedometer and rest of the dashboard appear to be in nice cosmetic condition. There seem to be a couple of good restoration options, and while each will require plenty of work, I think this 1955 Cadillac could have a promising future. How do you envision moving forward here?
Very Cool ! ……Just not $22,500 cool.
It could be $22,500 cool if you weren’t sitting on springs.
Nothing a good Indian blanket couldn’t fix. :-)
The Chicken Man in the Pierce+Arrow complex in Buffalo had a handful of these cars if not more .
Very cool. Very desirable. Very, very, very overpriced!
Cadamino? Why not! Wouldn’t take much to make it so. And if by chance, you can’t get the original engine to turn over, there’s always the 472 or 500 cube V-8 option. And while you’re
at it, replace the Hydramatic with
a T 400 for more reliable driving.
I couldn’t say about the 55 autos, but the 4 speed automatic in my ’62 Caddy put the 390’s power to the rear wheels, leaving two black stripes.
Would definitely make into a Rat-Rod “El Camino”, make it safe, keep it kinda rough and enjoy the adventures!
Roof line of cab just looks weird to me, but I like the concept.
Yeh it doesn’t look right.
Bubble top ain’t cuttin’ the mustard. Hand me the saw.
I wonder how the bed floor is after all those trips with moist flowers.
And since I live maybe 15 to 20 minutes from the beach 🏖️, what
a rolling cooler this would make!
Just get the reefer unit working, add a cover for the bed and top it
with a solar panel, and enjoy cold
drinks sandwiches 🥪, and potato salad all day long! And that doesn’t even count the surf
board 🛹 either! All I need then
would be a nice young lady to spend the day with.
If I’m not mistaken, I seen something like this in the Godfather II. At Vito Corleone’s funeral at the cemetery. Very cool. I imagine it was pretty sharp looking with all that chrome when it was used.
Actually, these were commonplace when I was a boy. As I recall, all of the funeral processions in my area included a flower car just behind the lead car and before the hearse. In fact, my late uncle drove one in the mid 1950s.
The first time I saw one of these, it was carrying flowers to the funeral for Vito Corleone in the GodFather movie.
Could become Coupe de la El Cadillaco.
I could start my own funeral business !
” You plug ’em, I dug ’em “
You stab em, we slab em!
Retired undertaker here. Beautiful when new, also could be used as a funeral coach; casket rollers can be seen. Multi-use vehicle, then. Stainless steel rear top, and rear interior. Hand-crafted. Rotted portions will have to be newly fabricated as these behemoths will not be found in junkyards. Big project.
Got a bunch of questions. Did the tailgate open like on a pickup? What was the bed depth? There was a similar flower car some time back on BF with an underbead storage cubby for canopies, etc. Was this typical?
The one l had contact with back in the 60s had a tailgate like a pickup. Bed was about 18” deep, don’t know about storage underneath. Bed was LONG…l laid down in it, l’m 6’5”, and there was a bunch more room. 8 ft, maybe even 10.
Great question. All of the coach built flower cars I have seen and used had a swing away (single barn door) rear door, especially important when the car was used as a service/removal from place of death vehicle, or hearse. The length of the rear compartment would be compatible with the rear of a hearse, to accommodate a casket, or removal cot. Flowers would be placed on the top of the stainless roof, and/or under the rear stainless roof, reasoning the use of stainless steel. Some flower cars had a hydraulic top; some did not. Interesting vehicles to research.
Maybe I hear is Don Vito Corleone’s chilling promise, “I’m gonna make him an offer he can’t refuse
I grew up in the northern suburbs of Chicago. Our church had a few mafia members, there were a few funerals and weddings as well. One of the funerals there had to be 4 or 5 flower cars, as well as the hearse, and limo’s. It was quite a spectacle to say the least.
It’s amazing how the Mafia had interests in and actually owned many funeral homes.
Yep, and surprisingly the pallbarers often found that it felt like there were two bodies inside the casket.
A very rare and interesting find.. BUT I do not think $22k worth??? Rebuild it as close to original as possible and have the most talked about Ute at any event you took it to.. Put all the neighborhood kids in the back and take them Trick or Treating!!!!!!
I had an experience with one of these in 1962. When I graduated from high school my roommate and I rode bicycles from Lebanon TN to Miami FL where he lived. His next door neighbor worked for a funeral home that had a 55 Caddy flower car just like this one that he drove home every night. I had hunted rabbits and birds with a shotgun all my life, and we decided to go squirrel hunting. We drove to a wooded rural area, and as we went under some trees I,,,laying flat in the bed of the flower car…took a shot at a squirrel above me. I quickly learned that a shotgun recoil when you don’t have room for your shoulder to move backward can be an instructive moment. I carried a bruise that went from my neck to my elbow for a week, and remember it to this day! GLWTA!
I wonder how long this Cadillac flower car remained in service with the funeral home? I am going to predict 10-15 years.
I live not far away from a funeral home, and the Cadillac aftermarket stretched limousines, if you can call them that, look bad!
Have not seen a Cadillac flower car since the early 1980’s
I remember many years ago a gas station in Raleigh NC always had a bunch of these sitting in the back. The owner must have had a soft spot for them.
They are unusual looking but would make a nice hotrod.
The flowers weren’t actually displayed in the car. The funeral directors and staff would quickly move all the flower tributes received (a lot back in the day) from surrounding the casket in the funeral home to the car to quickly display them all around the open gravesite while the casket was brought there. It usually took so long to get the funeral procession going that the display at the gravesite was beautifully set when the mourners arrived.
That generator’s just a tad smaller than the one outside my house
if U have a fav make ‘lux0box’ a flower car is the ultimate find.
1/2 the wrk on your mod is right there.
OR
in this case 1/4… aahahaha
reminds of the 5 that were used in the godfather going into the cemetery.
Too many beers, and access to cutting tools! Total junk.
Very nice unit, appears fairly complete. The entry fee is in line with other service cars in this condition. Many funeral homes are restoring their older coaches which quite simply adds to their full service palette. Consider that a new funeral coach can exceed $130k, this can be a tempting route to pursue as the final figure will be close to the cost of a new one! I feel the asking price will eliminate the rat rodders, which is a good thing IMO.
It’s got the best-looking roofline of any El Camino/Ranchero I’ve ever seen. Almost as dramatic as the old C-cab Ford trucks from the 20’s.
Talk about rare!! How does one of these survive all this time? Rarity doesn’t alway equate to value, though…. Maybe a rogue funeral director will invest in this as compared to new…….22K is a bit too much even if you are sitting on the springs!!
In approximately 1970, I happened across a ’56? Caddy flower car. It was not long like this and did not have the rear side access doors. I think it was not a dual or triple purpose vehicle. Just for flowers. It did not have all the added stuff this one had. Just a stainless steel box installed. I believe it was the standard Coupe Deville length. It was very cool and I considered buying it as my daily driver. (But not selling my ’55 Chev. Convertible) But my girl friend of several years and had grown up in a hot rod family said she wouldn’t ride in it. Well I didn’t buy it and didn’t keep her either. Your statement:
“thanks to Superior Coach Company, which took “ordinary” Cadillacs and turned them into limos, ambulances, hearses.” I don’t know when Cadillac started to produce “Commercial” chassis vehicles. But it was quite a long time ago. It might look like a modified “regular ” Cadillac. But underneath, heavy duty chassis, axles, springs, etc. Being in commercial vehicles sales for over 20 years AND being a Cadillac dealer. I worked the fringes of this market. Having the two largest funeral home conglomerates for customers for standard Cadillac family cars, Suburbans for the same and Savava cargo vans for cadaver and flower duties. And running a repair shop who took care of funeral home vehicles. I can tell you there is not alot of regular Cadillac underneath these cars. That’s the reason that a majority of hearses, limos, flower cars are Cadillac. They already come equipped (when ordered properly) to do the job. “Just regular modifications need to be done”. Reinforcing frames, beefing up differentials, adding special springs and sway bars, etc. Already done. A regular dealer can’t even order a limo ready car. It is a separate franchise.
You are absolutely correct in regards to the commercial chassis. My 63 S&S Victoria 3 way that I owned in the 80’s sat on the same wheelbase as the limousine that was built by Fleetwood but had a much beefier rear axle, I believe it was a modified full floater that had 5 lugs the same size as a 3/4 ton truck! It also had an 8 leaf spring pack that rivaled the 78 GMC I owned at the time. When I obtained it fresh it fresh out of service with only 62k miles on it, it wasn’t pristine, but was exactly what I needed to transport full engines on cradles to our shop in Vail from Denver. It never broke a sweat on the high passes with well over a ton on board. I also pulled a travel trailer from Eagle CO to Hillsboro KS and handled it beautifully. That coach empty would cruise on the eastern plains at 115 and pull over 70 on the high passes! Incredible coach. Identifying correct parts for brakes & suspension was a bit of a challenge, but they were all GM parts. The GM dealership I currently work at are authorized to service professional cars and they give the parts department fits! But if documentation from the coach builder is present(as it should be) it rarely poses a real problem. Apologies for the long post, just my experience with these.
Apologies for the lengthiness? It was a great contribution to this thread. Not many of us remain that remember these magnificent machines. A different time. Thank you very much for your post.
Yeh it doesn’t look right.
Bubble top ain’t cuttin’ the mustard. Hand me the saw.
A fish without bones is not fish.
I see a cool bike transporter when restored
I can only imagine that if you lived in a strictly run HOA type of development there would be all kinds of HOA board members scrambling trying to find a reason that you could not park this in your driveway or have it in your garage.
The snobs would have a hissy- fit and classify it as a commercial vehicle.
That is why I live out in the boondocks on 55 acres of land with several barns/sheds to hide my junk from sight..
Me too. But still not enough roofs so all can be out of the Nevada sun.
Hey guys! The young lady at Caddy Girl Garage just bought a strange looking ’55 or ’56 hearse
with a body on it that I’ve never seen before. Makes me wonder
who built it. It has three window
openings on each side with some
really curvy rear glass at the rear
door. Anybody out there wanna
hazard a guess as to what it is?
She really lucked out as she and her boyfriend got it running and
driving without too much trouble.
As for this flower car, it would make a great equipment hauler
for a musical group. Just don’t
tell Harry Hinthorne about it LOL!
Seller is dreaming, asking 25 large. I had a ’74 Eldo-Camino that proved difficult to sell. The buyer pool shrinks way-down for custom/oddball vehicles like this.
There was a ski boat company
( in California?) that had 2 of these “El- Caddy’s” built to trailer their boats to shows, etc.. I believe they were V8 boats like a Sanger/drag style.
The St.Louis Car Company was selling one of them around 1987. They were asking apprx.$6g. The one pictured above looks like the one I remember that was 4sale.
There was a ski boat company
( in California?) that had 2 of these “El- Caddy’s” built to trailer their boats to shows, etc.. I believe they were V8 boats like a Sanger/drag style.
The St.Louis Car Company was selling one of them around 1987. They were asking apprx.$6g. The one pictured above looks like the one I remember that was 4sale.
Flower cars were historically a regional thing, and more recently an ethnic thing, with mainly African American firms operating them now. There are Western style and Eastern style, but I don’t recall off the top of my head what the difference is. If Superior built more than a dozen a year I’d be amazed. S&S might have made a few too, in any given year.
Having sold to funeral homes all over the country. It is definitely a regional thing. Color is a local choice of the local home. (White in ElDorado AR, Dark red in Prineville OR, Dark Grey in Toledo OH, etc) But also the style of vehicle. In talking to the director in Arkansas, their local populace prefer unassuming vehicles, so he used Yukon XLs/Suburbans for family vehicles and the same rule in Oregon. In the Toledo area, fancy was the rule. (Go out in style?) So Cadillacs and Lincolns were the order.
I miss the 80s before everyone went with boring black/white/silver livery…Kriegshauser blue, Kutis gold, Baue white with black half top, Alexander maroon. You could see a procession coming and know exactly which mortuary it was from a distance.
Interesting. You weren’t using the Yukons for hearses, were you? It seems that true limosines have gone out of style except for proms and weddings. You don’t want to show up at the funeral in a stretch limo with party lights and a drinks cabinet. Black Uber seems the way to go.
No they were using Yukon XLs with the 3rd row seating for family cars. Sold a few in white to that area. I do know that they had white hearses.
Have seen them in the Chicago area, mostly from Black owned funeral homes. My ex daughter in law is a goth, and her daily driver is an 80s vintage Lincoln hearse. It can haul more than my pickup.