Photos inside Flxible's Factory: '59 Buicks under Construction

[Centurion]

60Buick has sent me scans of some photos taken inside the Flxible factory, documenting the construction of Buick professional cars (hearses and ambulances) during 1959.

If you have not seen the factory photos of the completed '59 Buick hearses and ambulances, you might enjoy checking out this previous topic. I have added a rear view photo that 60Buick has furnished.

http://www.aaca.org/ubbthreads/showflat....sb=5&o=&fpart=1

Here's the peak inside Flxible's factory:

It is not surprising to see Flxible busses under construction alongside the Buick professional cars, since the bus business was a much greater and longer-term focus for the company.

In another thread (regarding the 1961 Flxibles), 60Buick has offered some insight into the construction of these cars, and I think it's worth repeating here:

"Flxible used Buicks most of the time but They also used Cadillac, Pontiac and Chevrolet. 90% of all Flxibles were Buick. They had an alliance with Buick since the 20's but would build on anything you drove in the door if you had money. All the hearse people hear I have a Buick hearse and think "Oh, I'm sorry" like I couldn't find a Cadillac. The common misconception is that they were used because they were cheaper but in reality Buick was used for quality and power. They were not sold as a cheaper alternative. In many cases the Flxible cars cost more than there Packard and Cadillac competition. Flxible always advertised the things that made Buick a better platform to build on. It the early days the cars were more custom built and quality came first. Each car was mostly hand built from scratch and adapted to the modified Buick front clip and frame. Flxible cut cost with the way the cars were built(1959-up)and used that to build better cars. Instead of building more from scratch with a commercial Chassis they started with Electra Stripped Chassis and Lesabre stripped Chassis for the Flxette (1960). The Lesabre stripped Chassis were 2 door sedans on convertible frames with Electra drive train and front sheet metal. They had a dash and front seat. No decklid or rear glass. Very basic hulls. The Electras were the same thing only electra 2 door hardtops without the unneeded parts. Basically a cut and splice job. That kept it simple, strong and light. The weight saving was a big plus for ambulances. I have driven 60's and 70's caddy hearses and they are pigs. I can just imagine it burdoned with lights and medical gear. They are to dang heavy to perform. My Buick has one 5.0 under its belt and will just plain fly. I would guess a difference of 2000 pounds or more in weight between the 60 Flx and 60 Caddy. The Flxible is not widened, The floor has a metal frame but wood consruction, Uses standard Buick drivetrain and lots of other parts. The Caddys are metal floor widened as much as 4 inches, much higher roof and heavy drivetrain. The 60 doesn't corner worth a flip due to the top heavy feel but it will and has surprised a few people in acceleration. I have to keep the caddy people in their place, 2nd."

In view of 60Buick's comments, it is interesting that the first photo above appears to show a LeSabre 2-door sedan (without trunk lid) at the front of the left row of 1959 Buicks. These appear to be the vehicles as they were received from Buick, and I'm guessing that the LeSabre 2-door sedan was destined to become the prototype '59 Flxette, of which only one was constructed.

[Guest 70 Electra]

Centurion,

Those photos are GREAT! Thanks for posting them. For some reason, I am fascinated by factory photos, and these commercial vehicles under construction are priceless!

[Centurion]

70Electra, I'm glad that you liked the photos. Like you, I really enjoy seeing the factory photos.

My hope is to locate some Flint factory photos showing '59 Buicks on the assembly line and loaded onto car haulers.

[furrycritter]

These photos are neat! Kinda gives you a "behind closed doors" look at how professional cars were made.

[Duece-N-Quarter]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Centurion,

Those photos are GREAT! Thanks for posting them. For some reason, I am fascinated by factory photos, and these commercial vehicles under construction are priceless! </div></div>

I too love to see factory photos. They are great, thanks for posting.

[Guest 60Buick]

I have never noticed the car in the front had a post. Makes me wonder if that is the first Flxette or if all 59's were built from post. The information I get is found to be incorrect sometimes or what the factory originally intended may have changed and they all started being built off post. Or maybe 60 was the first year built off hard tops. Its anyones guess. Good Eye!

[centerman]

I also enjoy the older factory photos which show cars (especially Buicks) on assembly lines, etc. The GM store has several from various periods. Prices are a bit high for reprints, but still fun to look at. I have several in my collection that I have picked up over the years. Thanks for posting the Flxible's factory shots. Wish they were all convertibles.

[Philippe Racicot]

Is there somebody who has pictures that shows the rear view of a 65 Buick Flxible?

[Guest 60Buick]

Go here. This was the last Flxible built. There were only 2 65's built, a Flxette and this Premier.

http://www.geocities.com/crypticcoach/1965BuickFlxibleLimousineStyleAmbulance.html

[Philippe Racicot]

Thanks for the link! I was wondering what it looked like from the rear.

[Philippe Racicot]

There is a 1967 Trinity coach ad for sale on Ebay, it features a 67 Wildcat.

See Attachment.

[WQ59B]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I have never noticed the car in the front had a post. Makes me wonder if that is the first Flxette or if all 59's were built from post.</div></div>

Gregg Merksamer's book <span style="font-style: italic">Professional Cars</span>(Krause- good book) states the following (in part) for 1959 Buick: "The 48 funeral cars & ambulances {Flxible} built that year by stretching an Electra 4730 stripped chassis 23.2 inches to create a 149.5-inch wheelbase." Also states: "Flxible constructed a single standard-length Flxette from a model 4490 LeSabre stripped convertible frame."

Sure looks like 4 or 5 2-dr hardtops or 2-dr sedans to the left above... so Merksamer seems to cloud the issue even further. I could see having 1 fully-assembled '59 on hand in order to visualize & measure certain things from (like trim location), but more than 1 for reference purposes doesn't make much sense.