want to buy Hearse

[NC-car-guy]

So maybe I'm morbid, odd, whatever.... i want a hearse.  Not only for my Halloween decor in front of my 150 year old creepy farm house, but to cruise around and make peoples skin crawl a bit.   Not really sure why they creep people out, we all get a ride in one at some point if it's in our final wishes, why not drive it first?  Ha ha ha. Anyhow, would like a hearse project. Id be willing to do a partial trade if anyone wants. Prefer to buy and add to my collection though. Not looking to spend a lot, hence project. Prefer older, creepier looking rides.

Edited September 18, 2016 by wndsofchng06 (see edit history)

[MCHinson]

I am not that familiar with this particular era but I expect it is a combination car that could be used as both a hearse and an ambulance like the 1961 Cadillac that I had in my youth. It is currently painted as an ambulance. It is in Wilmington. I can get you the owner's contact information if you are interested. It is in a collection of old movie cars and has been sitting there for a year or more. Let me know if you want me to get more information on it. 

[NC-car-guy]

That's too cool, I'd love to know more.  My luck it was in a bunch of movies and they want a ton of money....but only one way to know...

[MCHinson]

I will see what I can find out for you.

[Rooster]

That's a ripper if you can get hold of it Matthew.  And in the same State too.

Edited September 19, 2016 by Rooster
spelling (see edit history)

[MCHinson]

I stopped by today and got some more photos. The owner was not there so I don't have any price information. I have left a message for him to call me. I would guess that was actually used primarily as a hearse but it got a quickie white paint job, lights, siren and a gurney to turn it into an ambulance for a movie. Here are some additional photos.  

[Buicknutty]

A few months ago there was a '49 Professional car for here in Ontario. It is a project that has been put on hold due to poor health of the owner. I do not know if it is still available, but can check it out if you are interested. It may be too much of a project for you, but the body work that was done looked to be decent. The engine has been removed and a Caddy 500 put in.

 If you have an interest in it, I can check it out for you.

 Keith

[50jetback]

No shortage of Buick hearses - this one has been for sale in Queensland ( Australia ) for awhile with no takers!!

May have something to do with the asking price?

 

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/1937-BUICK-HEARSE-/282179066249?hash=item41b32ed989:g:Q4QAAOSw0UdXqRpr

[NC-car-guy]

1 hour ago, MCHinson said:

I stopped by today and got some more photos. The owner was not there so I don't have any price information. I have left a message for him to call me. I would guess that was actually used primarily as a hearse but it got a quickie white paint job, lights, siren and a gurney to turn it into an ambulance for a movie. Here are some additional photos.  

Cool, gritty, needs love, i like it....

[NC-car-guy]

44 minutes ago, Buicknutty said:

A few months ago there was a '49 Professional car for here in Ontario. It is a project that has been put on hold due to poor health of the owner. I do not know if it is still available, but can check it out if you are interested. It may be too much of a project for you, but the body work that was done looked to be decent. The engine has been removed and a Caddy 500 put in.

 If you have an interest in it, I can check it out for you.

 Keith

I imagine it would need to be a real bargain to reconcile shipping from Canada..... sounds expensive,  but hey who knows...

[NC-car-guy]

5 minutes ago, 50jetback said:

No shortage of Buick hearses - this one has been for sale in Queensland ( Australia ) for awhile with no takers!!

May have something to do with the asking price?

 

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/1937-BUICK-HEARSE-/282179066249?hash=item41b32ed989:g:Q4QAAOSw0UdXqRpr

LOL. Shipping that really would break the bank. 

[Beemon]

You ever think about taking one of your Buicks and affixing junk yard parts to make it look like Christine? Might get a bit more chills if you put a purple film over the headlights. Might be easier than a hearse.

 

 

Get the teeth with the sheet metal and everything going.

Edited September 20, 2016 by Beemon (see edit history)

[NC-car-guy]

Lol

[MCHinson]

I realized that I forgot to upload two of yesterday's photos. I did open the hood and got a shot of the engine. In hindsight, I don't recommend doing that by yourself in light rain. The wet hood slipped and cut and banged up one finger a little but I will heal. The other photo shows what is left of an oppossum or similar small animal behind the grille bars. Somehow that seems appropriate for this car.

   

[NC-car-guy]

Hope your finger isn't too bad.   Clearly better than the opossum though....  They sure have the electric fuel pump far from the tank... Hope to hear back from them soon.

[Rooster]

Damaged little pinkie, grovelling in dust, grime, skeletal remains and all in the rain.    Now that's true Buick dedication to the cause.  You might get a Buickman nomination for this Mr. Hinson if it comes off !!

[60FlatTop]

 

I like the stretcher and the rollers; kind of a "belt and suspender" approach to health care.

Bernie

[smithbrother]

The floor mounted long rollers prove it was built to hold/roll a casket in place.  IMO

 

My Dad ordered and sold several FLEXIBLE coaches over many years, they were the quality units of that time.

 

Dale in Indy 

[NC-car-guy]

This would be great to get it looking like a hearse again on the exterior and  park it out in my fake grave yard with the strobes and fog machines.   Then during the "off" season it would have lots of covered cargo area for hauling anything from home improvement projects to dogs....   :-)

[60FlatTop]

Yeah, you are getting it. Use the stretcher to put them in and the big box on the rollers to take them out if things don't go well.

 

Just imagine the reception at one of those Sundays when you take the cars to the old people's home. "Come on out for a ride, Granny."

 

Bernie

[MCHinson]

Look closely and you will see that the rollers flip over. Most are up but some are flipped down. One side gives you rollers for a casket. The other side gives you a flat floor for use as an ambulance. The original color is obviously black, so I am sure it was used as a hearse. I think you could probably strip the quickie white paint off of it and have a black hearse again.

 

The later cars, like my 1961 Cadillac Miller Meteor hearse had larger rectangle panels with rollers on one side and flat matching flooring on the other side. These earlier cars simply had rollers that pop out and flip over to reveal smal flat but decorative panels. 

 

I can tell you that owning a hearse is fun. I had loads of fun with mine when I was in high school. After I joined the local rescue squad I had to sell it. It was not a very practical vehcile for use as a first responder to medical emergencies or car crashes. For some reason, people did not like an EMT arriving in a hearse.  

[NC-car-guy]

21 minutes ago, 60FlatTop said:

Yeah, you are getting it. Use the stretcher to put them in and the big box on the rollers to take them out if things don't go well.

 

Just imagine the reception at one of those Sundays when you take the cars to the old people's home. "Come on out for a ride, Granny."

 

Bernie

terrible!!!

[NC-car-guy]

4 minutes ago, MCHinson said:

 

 

I can tell you that owning a hearse is fun. I had loads of fun with mine when I was in high school. After I joined the local rescue squad I had to sell it. It was not a very practical vehcile for use as a first responder to medical emergencies or car crashes. For some reason, people did not like an EMT arriving in a hearse.  

HA HA HA HA HA   holy crap that's funny!!!!  :-)

[Thriller]

Is it just the angle of the photo or does that straight eight look like a tail-dragger?

 

thanks for the laughs you grisly crew. 

 

[NC-car-guy]

1 minute ago, Thriller said:

Is it just the angle of the photo or does that straight eight look like a tail-dragger?

 

thanks for the laughs you grisly crew. 

 

While I'm sure one could put lots of shine in the back end of these, I don't think it would have the performance to outrun the law man...

[Thriller]

I just meant the engine photo. When I look at my '41 or '52 straight 8, it is more or less level. It could be something to do with camera angle an Matt trying not to bleed on his camera...I'm having difficulty discerning a 3-D rotation of the 2-D image. 

 

[smithbrother]

I can't believe the engine is setting at an angle due to a bad camera angle, more like the tranny is out.

 

Dale in Indy

[50jetback]

1 hour ago, Thriller said:

I just meant the engine photo. When I look at my '41 or '52 straight 8, it is more or less level. It could be something to do with camera angle an Matt trying not to bleed on his camera...I'm having difficulty discerning a 3-D rotation of the 2-D image. 

 

These later motors were not sitting level. If you look at the intake manifold you can see the rear intake port sits about 2 inches higher than the front port - all to keep the carby level.

[MCHinson]

7 hours ago, Thriller said:

Is it just the angle of the photo or does that straight eight look like a tail-dragger?

 

thanks for the laughs you grisly crew. 

 

It is the angle of the photo. I was trying to use one hand to hold the wet hood open while I took the photo with my other hand using my phone camera. After the hood slipped and pinched my finger I decided that I did not need any more engine photos.

[Rooster]

What's happening with this hearse ?

I'm dying to find out.    

[MCHinson]

I have not heard back from the owner yet. I may have to make another effort to track him down through another source. 

[MCHinson]

I tracked down the guy and spoke with him by phone. This car is one of a group of "Picture Cars" that have been used in movies and TV shows here in Wilmington. In my experience "Picture Car" people tend to fall into a few categories. Some are reasonable. Some think that anything rare is worth crazy money. I certainly have an opinion about the price of this car and I am hesitant to even post his quoted price here. 

 

The guy I spoke with said that he is keeping the car for the actual owner who is in New York. He indicated that the car is "Very rare. Only about 50 or so of them were made. It is all original except for the gurney which was added and the repaint. It is in running condition."

 

My personal observations are that is description is fairly accurate except it has been sitting long enough that I doubt it will actually run until you go through the fuel system and possibly the brakes. He quoted me a price of $20,000 and said that unless someone was interested in paying something in the ballpark, he would not even call the owner and bother him. If anybody is interested in that price range, you can call Jim Knowles at 910-352-7077. Please don't kill the messenger and please remember to keep any responses civil and within the forum rules. 

[NC-car-guy]

Matt thank you very much for all your hard work tracking this car.  I'm sure it is no surprise to you that at that price I'm out.

[MCHinson]

Not a surprise at all. 

[John_S_in_Penna]

On 9/20/2016 at 2:57 AM, Beemon said:

You ever think about taking one of your Buicks and affixing junk yard parts to make it look like Christine? Might get a bit more chills if you put a purple film over the headlights. Might be easier than a hearse.

 

That movie was so long ago that few children

would even understand the connection.  

"Christine" wouldn't likely scare anyone at Hallowe'en!

 

Years ago--or maybe still, in some small towns--

the funeral directors' hearses were called to do ambulance duty.

That's why the white vehicle looks like it could have been either.

[Matt Harwood]

I drove a black 1974 Cadillac Miller Meteor hearse throughout college. Expensive to feed, but perfect for moving your dorm gear. I put a couch, table, and end chair in the back so it could seat 7 or 8 and charged for rides home at Thanksgiving and Christmas, so it kind of paid for itself. Awesome curtains on the windows, chandeliers on the rear quarters inside, and a sliding divider between the windows, so everyone in back could hang out, drink, play cards, whatever. It was like a living room on wheels. The high-beams had a built-in flasher system and it came with a half-dozen of the little purple flags, so I'd hand them out to friends and we'd run red lights up town. I think I paid $1200 for it in 1988 and it had 42,000 miles on it plus a hellacious valve tick. Was certainly distinctive. Girlfriends hated it, but it got a lot of use.

 

A fraternity brother was injured at a hockey game so we loaded him in the back of the hearse and roared off to the emergency room. We came screeching in with squealing brakes and a cloud of smoke and a sleepy-looking orderly came out and asked, "Dropping off or picking up?" LOL

 

Also great for tailgating and camping. I think I sold it for $200 and it died in an impound yard somewhere when the guy I sold it to couldn't move it out of the parking lot where he broke it. Meh.

 

Still plenty of these around at very reasonable prices, I'm sure.

[Rooster]

$20,000 , that's a shame Matt.    And he can't even get it out of the weather for that price.  

[John_S_in_Penna]

On 9/17/2016 at 8:58 PM, wndsofchng06 said:

.... I want a hearse....  Not looking to spend a lot, hence project. Prefer older, creepier looking rides.

 

I looked at the forum of the Professional Car Society.

I don't know much about hearses, but I see that the

older ones (1940's) in excellent condition aren't cheap.

But those from the 1970's in #3 condition can be had

for $4000 to $6000.  Evidently, as funeral homes update

their vehicles, supply exceeds demand.

 

In a way, these vehicles are just big Buick or Cadillac

station wagons with custom bodies.

Forgetting their funereal origins, I think the long, wide

windowless rear compartment would make them warm

and cozy vehicles for camping in!

Edited September 29, 2016 by John_S_in_Penna (see edit history)

[John_S_in_Penna]

Here is a 1991 Buick Roadmaster hearse that 

appears to be in top condition.  It even has a

plush maroon interior, which I think is a seldom seen color.

It's for sale by a dealer in funeral-related vehicles,

but I didn't see an asking price:

http://www.limoandhearseforsale.com/listing/1991-buick-roadmaster-coach/

 

And by the way, it's now antique!

 

Edited September 29, 2016 by John_S_in_Penna (see edit history)

[buick5563]

I did some work on a 48 Pontiac Hearse for a funeral director recently. He shared a lot of knowledge about the hearse / ambulance combo. He said that if there were two ambulances in a small town, the second to arrive would often block the rear door so the first ambulance couldn't load a patient, thus giving up the job. They also began making dual side loading doors for similar reasons. 

It was a fascinating two hour discussion that we had. I am not nor ever will be a fan of death, but he helped to demystify some things for me. This was actually necessary before I worked on this car. I got the bad kind of goosebumps when it came into my shop.

He still uses this 1948 for veteran funerals, both WWII and homeless vets who would otherwise not be buried with dignity.

One last thing to consider... I have a fully equipped shop with lifts available to me which has made me really disdain crawling around under cars with a creeper. This nearly 22 foot beast would not fit on my four post, and was too wide to fit on my two post lift. Replacing the front motor mount was not fun for me.

Edited September 29, 2016 by buick5563
Added pics (see edit history)