The Bill Mitchell/Harley Earl team modernized most of GM’s designs starting in the late 1930s. The changes at Cadillac jettisoned old-fashioned running boards, incorporated headlamps into fenders, and relocated the spare into the car’s interior. In 1941, Cadillac introduced the Series 61/62, which was longer, lower, and wider than previous models. Sales surged, supporting the company’s philosophical direction. Here on craigslist is a very original version of a 1941 Cadillac in a special body style, the fastback sedanette. The seller is asking $17,500, and the car is located in Lodi, California. Thanks to T.J. for this great tip!
Cadillac’s 346 cu. in. flathead V8 is featured in the engine bay; it was rebuilt in the 1990s when the car was partially restored. Output is about 150 hp. A three-speed manual gearbox brings the power to the rear wheels. General Motors’ four-speed Hydramatic automatic became available at extra cost in 1939, pushing up the price of a Cadillac considerably. This car’s underside is looking spiffy despite the passage of time, but the seller indicates some rust is present on the inner rockers. The wiring harness was replaced with a cloth-covered version for authenticity, but the car was left as a 6V. While the sedanette will start, run and drive, it has travelled only about 1000 miles since the bout of work in the 1990s. The new owner should attend to the brakes, which were not marvelous to begin with.
Cadillac gave its all when it came to cabin appointments. This interior was restored when the engine was rebuilt and still shows well. Bench seats upholstered in leather, a clock, a radio, and a heater were hallmarks of the luxury trappings of Cadillac. The Series 61 sat on a 126″ wheelbase, while the 62 came in at 129″; aside from this, the two were differentiated by exterior trim bits, particularly on the sill, where the 61 might have a rocker cover trim piece, or nothing at all.
The seller notes that the car’s chrome is “driver quality” but he has purchased replacement pieces for those bits that aren’t up to snuff. The paint is “said to be original” and in need of care to look its best. Values for cars from the ’40s are drifting down, though certain makes and body styles have held up better than others. The fastback style is somewhat rare; Mecum sold this restored example recently for $55,000, a good showing in a generally soft market. This project car is limping along in the very low four-figure range. Is a pre-war Cadillac on your shopping list?
Now here’s a real bargain for you!
An early ’40s Caddy at a VERY fair price. But like other pre war cars, prices are falling because the generations that admired and
collected these cars have either
passed on or have aged out of the hobby. Sadly, our younger folk out there couldn’t or wouldn’t
give 2 hoots in hell about this fine
car because it doesn’t have automatic everything. Me, I recall a time when a car like this would
fetch as much as 50K dollars and do that trick all day long. Don’t know about a cloth wiring harness though as they were prone to wire fires that could destroy the car completely. I’d relent on originality and upgrade the brakes and cooling system so the car could stop and run cool too. A Caddy with a 3 on the tree 🌴? Why not!? A great anti theft
feature today.
Ditto.
GM must have had a sneaking suspicion that there was a war in the process. A presidential vehicle would be needed to keep him on track and going in the right direction in style, too bad Rolls Royce offered their golden sleds for service to the US market.
A great GM body style.
Cadillac never called their fastback coupes a sedanette. That was a name that Buick used. Cadillac called this, their lowest price car, a Series Sixty-One 5-Passenger Coupe.
The interior modifications on this one are atrocious.
Correct. Only Buick used the term. And Buick spelled it “Sedanet.” The term “sedanette,” let alone “fastback sedanette,” was never used by GM for any car brand’s body style or model but seems to have caught on with enthusiasts apparently unaware of Buick’s use (and spelling) of the term.
My father traded his 1937 Studebaker Dictator Coupe (similar to the one on BF last week) for a used 1941 Cadillac Model 61 Coupe almost identical to this in 1949. He was SO proud of it. He was a young engineer with an excellent job, wife and 3 young kids, a lovely house in an upscale suburban neighborhood and now a “CADDY”. He had arrived! We hung onto that car until 1955, though it was past it’s useful life, and in New England winters was a real chore to start. Traded for a new Ford “Ranch Wagon”, which was a piece of junk from the start.
My Dad had a ‘41 Cadillac convertible. When he found it, it was parked in a vacant lot and needed just about everything. Talk about a cool car to drive in the fall with the top down.
Didn’t ZZ top have one customize at one time
Billy Gibbons from ZZ Top’s car was called Cadzilla and it was a 1948 Caddy
Is any one near Lodi CA looking for a little inspection pay? I can’t get a response from the seller.
And now the posting is deleted.
It’s gone.