1955 Cadillac Series 62

As the world returned to civilian life following World War II, there was little time for new ideas, designs, or concepts as automakers rushed to meet the surging demand for civilian vehicles. Manufacturers focused their efforts on returning pre-war models to showroom floors. Minor fine-tuning, adjustments, and improvements were made along with mild styling enhancements. As the decade came to a close, new models began appearing, and supply caught up with demand. Performance and style became more relevant. General Motors fueled the public's imagination with their Motorama, a traveling motor show that exposed the buying public to the latest in 'idea cars' and the newest, chrome-trimmed products from Harley Earl's Art & Colour Department.

Among the most luxurious American cars on the market were the Cadillacs and by 1949 were powered by one of the most significant engines ever designed. The new 331 cubic-inch overhead-valve V8 offered 160 brake horsepower. It had five main bearings, hydraulic valve lifters, and breathed through a Carter WCD two-barrel carburetor. This was the most powerful and lightest weight engine Cadillac - or any other American automaker - had ever built. The engine would remain in production, practically unchanged, for a half-century to follow.

1953
Buick celebrated their 50th anniversary in 1953 with the introduction of the Buick Skylark, Oldsmobile Fiesta, and Cadillac Eldorado. The Eldorado was the top-of-the-line Cadillac but their bread-and-butter model remained the Series 62. Both of these models were the epitome of Harley Earl's fifties-style design, offering a beautiful balance of modern extravagance and classic lines.

1953 was a monumental year for Series 62 as it was the first time it offered over 200 horsepower. This was accomplished with the help of a four-barrel carburetor and a Hydra-Matic transmission. Many styling changes occurred in 1953 and 1954. Subtle refinements appeared in 1955, such as wider spaces between the grille blades, repositioned parking lamps, and small yet distinct changes in various trim pieces. The public agreed with these changes and sales rose nearly 25 percent, setting a new record for the brand. An impressive accomplishment considering the intense competition among domestic luxury car manufacturers. Chryslers had dramatic new styling courtesy of Virgil Exner. The Hemi-powered Imperial was no longer a top-of-the-line Chrysler, as it was now being offered as a separate nameplate; and Packard models had all-new styling, a modern V-8, and torsion bar suspension. Despite their attempts, the Cadillac remained the leader in the luxury market.

1954
General Motors issued a new series of 'C' bodies, used by Cadillac, Buick, and Oldsmobile, in 1954. They were sleeker and lower than previous designs, with numerous space-age-inspired design cues. An Eldorado-type wraparound windshield was applied to all 1954 Cadillacs, and round, jet-style dual exhaust outlets were incorporated into the bumper extensions. The bumper was entirely new, and in the front were dagmar-style bumper guards. Distinguishable features of the Series 62 included the lack of rear fender louvers.

The Series 62 had a longer wheelbase that measured 129 inches. The Series Sixty Special Fleetwood had a 133-inch wheelbase platform and the Series 75 Fleetwood had a 149.8-inch wheelbase. The 331 cubic-inch, overhead valve V8 engine had hydraulic valve lifters, five main bearings, and delivered 230 horsepower at 4,400 RPM.

list of standard equipment included power steering and brakes, a Hydra-Matic transmission, power windows, a four-way power front seat, windshield washers, courtesy lights, fog lights, wide whitewall tires, preselect pushbutton radio and in-dash clock, directional signals, reverse lights, parking-brake warning light, front and rear cigarette lighters and ashtrays, and gold anodized license plate frames.

1955 Cadillac Series 62
With all-new styling introduced in 1954, Cadillac entered 1955 with only minor updates, including a redesigned grille with wider spaces between the blades. The parking lamps were moved directly below the round headlights. The rub rail moldings along the body side traveled from the front of the car, traveling rearwards, above the front fenders, and ending just after the front door, where it formed a right angle and traveled vertically, connecting with the window chrome molding. The sedans gained Florentine curve rear window treatment, and the Coupe DeVille had a golden script nameplate located on the upper body just ahead of the rear window pillar.

The two-door hardtop coupe had a base price of $3,880, an increase of approximately $50 over the previous year. The sedan listed for $3,980, the Coupe DeVille at $4,300, and the convertible Coupe at $4,445. The Eldorado Special Sport Convertible Coupe listed for $6,290.

Coupe deVille
In 1949, Cadillac introduced its first two-door hardtop, and the name Coupe de Ville was an elegant carriage era term, and in French, it translated to 'of the town.' The first 'Coupe de Ville' was shown during the 1949 Motorama and was built on a Cadillac Sixty Special chassis. The Cadillac Series 62 Coupe de Ville, introduced late in the 1949 model year - along with the Buick Roadmaster Riviera and the Oldsmobile 98 Holiday, were among the first pillarless hardtop coupes ever produced. The 'Coupe de Ville' name would be part of the Cadillac lineup for many years, through the mid-2000s, and in 1956 it was joined by the Series 62 Sedan de Ville, Cadillac's first production four-door hardtop. Like the Coupe de Ville, it was more luxuriously trimmed and more expensive than the standard four-door counterpart.

The Eldorado Special
The rear-end styling treatment of the Eldorado was inspired by the Cadillac El Camino and La Espada show cars of 1954. The open rear wheel wells were a postwar first, and rather than being incorporated into the fins, the taillights were bullet-shaped twin units contained in sculpted tubes flowing back from the rear quarters and finishing at the base of sharp-edged new vertical fins. They wore wide chrome body belt moldings and rode on tubeless tires.

Engines
The 1955 Cadillacs came equipped with a 331 cubic-inch V8 engine with overhead valves, hydraulic valve lifters, five main bearings, a 9.0:1 compression ratio, and delivered 250 horsepower at 4,600 RPM. Along with higher compression than the previous 1954 engine, the 1955 331 CID V8 delivered twenty-five more horsepower. Along with compression changes, the manifolds were redesigned, and despite the higher power, fuel economy also improved. Although already favored by the vast majority of Cadillac customers, a four-speed Hydra-Matic transmission was finally made standard.

The Eldorado came with a two four-barrel carbureted version of the 331 CID V8 engine delivering 270 horsepower at 4,800 PRM and crowned by a distinctive 'bat-wing' air cleaner assembly. This engine was available in other models as a 'Power Package' for an additional $161. In keeping with Cadillac's conservative approach, there was no external identification when the Eldorado engine was specified.

Optional convenience accessories include air conditioning, heating, a new electrically operated antenna, fog lights, side-mounted spotlights, a new signal-seeking pre-selector AM radio, a remote-control trunk, and six-way power seats.

Production
Cadillac produced 140,777 units for 1955, setting a new record for the company, with approximately 84 percent being Series 62 Cadillacs, including 3,950 Eldorado Specials. The most popular body style was the Series 62 with 44,904 examples built followed by the Coupe DeVille with 33,300 built, and 27,879 of the hardtop coupe. Additionally, seven chassis were built for outside coachwork and 396 were export sedans, shipped to foreign countries.

by Daniel Vaughan | Sep 2019