Can I interest you in a 30 Caddy roadster ?

[1950panhead]

https://www.ebay.com/itm/1930-Cadillac-Fleetwood-353-Roadster/332968629257?hash=item4d867a1409:g:gh8AAOSwC8pcHLIU:rk:7:pf:0&vxp=mtr

[ericmac]

Oh. I'm interested...now let me check my lottery ticket. 

[John_S_in_Penna]

One of the other threads delved deeply 

into how difficult it is to get Cadillacs of 

that era to be problem-free and enjoyable.

It sort of scared me away and made me think

that I should stick mostly to post-war cars.

 

Attractive styling, yes, but I'd really rather

have a Buick.  Maybe a 1976 Buick!

Edited December 23, 2018 by John_S_in_Penna (see edit history)

[C Carl]

Merry Christmas, John ! You would not have any inordinate labor or frustration owning one of these cars. And remember  : "difficult" is a relative term, and "problem-FREE" is an absolute never fully achievable with an old car, (or for that matter ANY car). Go for it ! QUICKLY ! For your wife ! For CHRISTMAS !  What a HAPPY NEW YEAR that will bring !       Your forum friend,  -  Cadillac Carl 

[SparkEE]

My parents drove a 1926 Cadillac coupe quite extensively after us kids grew up.  The only problem they really had was passing ...gas stations.  

[CHuDWah]

2 hours ago, SparkEE said:

My parents drove a 1926 Cadillac coupe quite extensively after us kids grew up.  The only problem they really had was passing ...gas stations.  

 

 

My Dad's favorite description of any fast, thirsty car, "It'll pass anything on the road except a filling station."  😁

[Joe in Canada]

9 hours ago, SparkEE said:

My parents drove a 1926 Cadillac coupe quite extensively after us kids grew up.  The only problem they really had was passing ...gas stations.  

I have a 1930 Cadillac model 353 and the gas mileage is not that bad to be poked and made fun of. Why I get at least 8 miles to the gallon going down hill and with a strong wind behind me. That is after I had the 360 gears made for it. It almost gets as good a mileage as my 2500 GMC pulling the enclosed trailer with a car in it by about 2 miles less.

All fun put aside that is a great tour car John and the only problem they seen to have is the Johnston carb that likes to flood over. If you buy it I will fix it for free IF you have that problem. If you were on the Glidden tour in NH a couple of years ago I redid a carb for a fellow in the parking lot with same problem.  Most also pop out of second gear under load. Easy fix is a new bushing. Been on a few national tours and many tours up here  have never had a problem with a 353.  Again very nice car.

Merry Christmas

Joe K

Edited December 25, 2018 by Joe in Canada (see edit history)

[Joe in Canada]

Very nice car I would not mind having in my garage with some different features. But what defines it as a Fleetwood.

[C Carl]

Fleetwood body rather than Fisher, but are you asking what styling cues distinguish a Fleetwood from a Fisher ? 

 

Merry Christmas, Joe, and all. It will be Christmas in 1/2 hour here.   -  Carl 

Edited December 25, 2018 by C Carl
Clarification (see edit history)

[daniel boeve]

I would like to wish everybody who reads this message a good christmas day .Our arch bisschop was asking in the radio to think about all the people who live in poverty and then i think about the fact that most of us play around with thousands of $$ while so many don't even have a $ to buy a bread.

[Joe in Canada]

Just noticed the louvered cowl vents that I have never noticed before.

Edited December 25, 2018 by Joe in Canada (see edit history)

[Johan Boltendal]

Joe,  you  have a PM 

[HarryLime]

Would a Chevy 350 crate engine solve the problems ???    ?

[Matt Harwood]

My '29 Cadillac with essentially the same engine/carburetor has been bulletproof reliable for nearly 10 years. Just gas and oil. Getting it there was a bit of a task, but not superhuman and now that it's in tune, it seems to stay in tune without much effort. I will be rebuilding the fuel system this winter, but that's only to get rid of some rubber hose that shouldn't be there.

 

Joe, can you tell me about the bushing to fix the popping out of 2nd gear problem? My car does pop out of 2nd now and then if I'm not paying attention and when I'm accelerating hard. I had the transmission rebuilt a few years ago and it helped a little, and Ed Minnie supplied me with a new top case and shifter mechanism, but I haven't eliminated the problem. Is there something else I can do? 

PS: Thanks for the tour information, I'm sure we'll see you this summer!

[chistech]

Often statements people make about the unreliability of some cars are nothing more than stories being repeated over and over, embellished each time, and often told by those who dislike the brand, or are jealous of others having the brand. One that comes to mind that I have tons of first hand experience with is the venerable GM 6.2 Diesel engine. Many will talk of it being a converted gas engine, it won’t get past 20,000 miles, blowing up, etc. Most of these stories are like Aesop fables as many repeating the stories never owned a 6.2. Were they powerhouses, no, never intended to be that, did they blow up in 20k miles, no, many of mine have gone easily over 200k and a few over 300 with not much work. Less face it, car stories are like todays news, nothing too much based in fact, only inexperienced opinions meant to sway others even less informed.

Edited December 25, 2018 by chistech (see edit history)

[chistech]

Forgot to ask this. I have a 31’ V8 Caddy coming in for some work. Any tips on peculiar oddities it might have. Prefer first hand knowledge please. (See my post above😆)

[edinmass]

36 minutes ago, chistech said:

Forgot to ask this. I have a 31’ V8 Caddy coming in for some work. Any tips on peculiar oddities it might have. Prefer first hand knowledge please. (See my post above😆)

 

Lots of the available parts are incorrect and will cause all sorts of issues. If you need any help, PM me. I have driven 1931 Cadillac 355A series cars tens of thousands of miles.  They can be a handful to an inexperienced owner or mechanic.

[John_S_in_Penna]

40 minutes ago, edinmass said:

Lots of the available parts are incorrect and will cause all sorts of issues. 

 

Ed, can you expound on that a bit?

This forum is a great way to learn from others' experiences.

It sounds as if certain reproduction parts don't work well.

[Marty Roth]

2 hours ago, 23hack said:

Would a Chevy 350 crate engine solve the problems ???    ?

 

WHY HACK UP A MAGNIFICENT AUTOMOBILE WITH A TOTALLY ORDINARY CRATE ENGINE WHEN THE ORIGINAL IS LEGENDARY ??

 

I've driven a 1929 Cadillac V8 roadster and can assure you that it is a delightful experience

[edinmass]

1 minute ago, John_S_in_Penna said:

 

Ed, can you expound on that a bit?

This forum is a great way to learn from others' experiences.

It sounds as if certain reproduction parts don't work well.

 

John, don’t want to step on anyone’s toes. It’s a fair assessment to say that much if not most reproduction stuff is either poor quality, not engineered correctly, and my favorite......made by people who don’t even own any of the cars. I have had others make “identicle “ replacement parts for much less than what my projects sold for......but my stuff worked and installed correctly. 

[edinmass]

Matt.....if the detent springs and main shifter spring didn’t fix it.......and I have done a dozen of them over the years and it has worked on every one so far, this is the next option. It is not how we say, a Sunday walk in the park. If you need this fix, I woud get another transmission and rebuild that one first, then swap them out. I have a good spare on the shelf now, and will be fixing a jumping 2end gear next month on our touring car. As you know, I’m a fix it once and fix it right kind of guy, but the bushing is a BIG project, and can open up a big can of worms. I find on the eights you are  in 2end so little, and 99 percent of the time just for two or three seconds I’m not sure it practical for most people to attempt the repair. You car with the gear splitter may make it harder or easier depending on how it was done. It’s probably fifty hours work, and then the clutch is another 750 from Fort Wayne so parts will be about 1500 all in. Also the ball flange should be changed out, and that’s another 750 last time I checked. We plan on doing a total frame off on our car that’s jumping out now in three or four years, so I will do the top cover fix, and see what the results are, but I have the bushing in stock, and the clutch rebuild is fortunately a fast turn around. And the shipping can cost half as much as the clutch rebuild. Ed

 

 

Edited December 25, 2018 by edinmass (see edit history)

[chistech]

2 hours ago, edinmass said:

 

Lots of the available parts are incorrect and will cause all sorts of issues. If you need any help, PM me. I have driven 1931 Cadillac 355A series cars tens of thousands of miles.  They can be a handful to an inexperienced owner or mechanic.

Will do, thanks. Not sure when it’s coming as of yet. The owner had severe property damage to his garage of cars during one of the major storms that went through the NE a while back. He’s waiting on the insurance to settle before he can even get into the building much. A few cars were badly damaged I believe but the Caddy was unharmed but still buried behind others that were.

[Joe in Canada]

12 hours ago, Joe in Canada said:

Most also pop out of second gear under load. Easy fix is a new bushing.

Sorry I misspoke should not have said an easy fix. As for some folk a lack of time, tools, knowledge, help or  a location to perform the work can be a major factor for maintaining your car. For some it can turn into a do over and there others can do it on the side of the road and carry on. At present I have the engine out of my 12 T and striped down to block with crank and pistons still in it. I plan to rebuild at home here except for Babbitt if it needs it and do some of the machine work at a friends.   

Ed has posted a source for your second gear problem part.  

Edited December 25, 2018 by Joe in Canada (see edit history)

[C Carl]

2 hours ago, Marty Roth said:

 

WHY HACK UP A MAGNIFICENT AUTOMOBILE WITH A TOTALLY ORDINARY CRATE ENGINE WHEN THE ORIGINAL IS LEGENDARY ??

 

I've driven a 1929 Cadillac V8 roadster and can assure you that it is a delightful experience

 

5 hours ago, 23hack said:

Would a Chevy 350 crate engine solve the problems ???    ?

 

Yeah, when I read this it almost knocked me off my butt too. But, BUTT : I checked 23hack profile and resumed at ease mode. The gentleman joined us in the old age demographics a whole month ago, and has been around here for quite some time. Combine that with the fact that he hails from Western Pennsylvania, and I think it is safe to say he has just introduced some holiday levity to our delightful forum !

 

HOLIDAY LEVITY TO ONE AND ALL !!!     Having had quite a bit over my years,  -  CC 

[Grimy]

10 minutes ago, C Carl said:

The gentleman joined us in the old age demographics a whole month ago,

Carl, who ya talkin' about?  You're two years younger than I am!  I'm like Peter Pan in that I don't want to ever grow up!  Growing OLD and growing UP are two different things!  Merry Christmas!

[C Carl]

🍸, or 🍺, or 🍷, or 🍹, but in any case : A toast "TO YOUR CONTINUING YOUTHFUL  GOOD HEALTH AND SPIRIT !!!".     Old beyond my years, without the wisdom,  -  CC 

[Guest]

4 hours ago, edinmass said:

Matt.....if the detent springs and main shifter spring didn’t fix it.......and I have done a dozen of them over the years and it has worked on every one so far, this is the next option. It is not how we say, a Sunday walk in the park. If you need this fix, I woud get another transmission and rebuild that one first, then swap them out. I have a good spare on the shelf now, and will be fixing a jumping 2end gear next month on our touring car. As you know, I’m a fix it once and fix it right kind of guy, but the bushing is a BIG project, and can open up a big can of worms. I find on the eights you are  in 2end so little, and 99 percent of the time just for two or three seconds I’m not sure it practical for most people to attempt the repair. You car with the gear splitter may make it harder or easier depending on how it was done. It’s probably fifty hours work, and then the clutch is another 750 from Fort Wayne so parts will be about 1500 all in. Also the ball flange should be changed out, and that’s another 750 last time I checked. We plan on doing a total frame off on our car that’s jumping out now in three or four years, so I will do the top cover fix, and see what the results are, but I have the bushing in stock, and the clutch rebuild is fortunately a fast turn around. And the shipping can cost half as much as the clutch rebuild. Ed

 

 

 

Stiffer detent springs worked for me. If they don't, I agree the bushing is a terrible job that can easily turn into a can of worms. I'd short shift it from first to third, and/or hold a little pressure on the shifter handle while in second. If the problem became too severe, I'd keep my eyes open for another transmission. ( which admittedly may or may not be better than the one you have) It's a crap shoot, but they are not hard to find  for around $1500, and are fairly easy to swap out.  

[Matt Harwood]

I usually keep my hand on the shifter in 2nd but it pops out, usually on decel, when I forget to keep my hand in place. Not often, but when it does happen, it's quite startling. BANG! I'd say it only happens one time out of 15-20, so not terribly common and I think I can live with it if it means taking the transmission out again. The new shifter tower and springs helped 80% (it used to pop EVERY time). I've also had it happen several times on the 100-point 1930 V8 convertible coupe we've got in stock that was restored by D&D, so I figure mine is probably pretty average in that regard. I only use my overdrive in high gear and at speed, never in 2nd, so it doesn't load the transmission any differently, although I find on my car, the gap between 2nd and 3rd is pretty dramatic and I stay in 2nd longer than a few seconds, particularly if I'm accelerating from a stop and going uphill. Short-shifting makes my car fall into a torque hole that takes A LOOOONG time to crawl out of. Once it's at speed it's great, but I do dread the 2-3 shift simply because it's going to be way off its power curve. My car has the optional "high speed" 4.75 gears rather than the standard 5.25 (5.30? I don't quite recall) gearset, which is surely part of it. 

[HarryLime]

Hmmmmm......The holiday levity. Not quite so. I have a 1929 Pierce in the garage for the last two years and have clocked less than a mile in it.  Brakes, steering box, instruments, carb out for overhaul (it's junk) , Exhaust manifold all cracks.  At my age I can't sleep nights. One recently a crate engine occured to me as vastly cheaper way to the road at the end of the driveway. But I doubt the wood wheels will handle the horsepower. Just explaining   not to hijack the thread. I've b een in old cars for 50 years. If I did the 350 Chevy I'd just have to change clubs. And get the tar and feathers off me after leaving here.  Best Wishes for a happy New Year ! Really !

[Dynaflash8]

1 hour ago, Matt Harwood said:

I usually keep my hand on the shifter in 2nd but it pops out, usually on decel, when I forget to keep my hand in place. Not often, but when it does happen, it's quite startling. BANG! I'd say it only happens one time out of 15-20, so not terribly common and I think I can live with it if it means taking the transmission out again. The new shifter tower and springs helped 80% (it used to pop EVERY time). I've also had it happen several times on the 100-point 1930 V8 convertible coupe we've got in stock that was restored by D&D, so I figure mine is probably pretty average in that regard. I only use my overdrive in high gear and at speed, never in 2nd, so it doesn't load the transmission any differently, although I find on my car, the gap between 2nd and 3rd is pretty dramatic and I stay in 2nd longer than a few seconds, particularly if I'm accelerating from a stop and going uphill. Short-shifting makes my car fall into a torque hole that takes A LOOOONG time to crawl out of. Once it's at speed it's great, but I do dread the 2-3 shift simply because it's going to be way off its power curve. My car has the optional "high speed" 4.75 gears rather than the standard 5.25 (5.30? I don't quite recall) gearset, which is surely part of it. 

Sounds like a '40 Cadillac 60-S I didn't buy after this surprise situation.  Back to you: would you buy this 1939 Buick Special 41-C convertible sedan?