Driving a car from the past is always a journey worth taking.
It began as one of those classic gray, misty, moist days on California’s Monterey Peninsula, where I was about to fire up a rolling piece of Cadillac history—a 1941 Cadillac Series 62 Deluxe Convertible Coupe—and I was more than a little anxious.
The opportunity to pilot a classic piece of American iron was one I leapt at when the opportunity hit my inbox prior to the annual Monterey Car Week, but once I was actually moments away from sliding behind (underneath?) the Caddy’s comically large steering wheel, the thought crept into my mind of balling up a car that’s about to be auctioned off for more than $100,000.
But, hey, I know how to wrestle with a three-on-the-tree manual transmission like this Cadillac Series 62 has. And from what I was told by RM Auction honcho and friend Rory Carroll, who joined me for the short drive (RM sold the car later in the weekend for $145,600), it’s a pussycat. Nothing to it, right? Right.
Getting To Know All About You
Thankfully, there was nothing too exotic about operating this classic Cadillac, other than the fact that, you know, there’s a lot of the manual stuff you’d expect from a car of its era. No power steering, brakes, or anything else really, just a good old-fashioned, old-school American automobile.
Powered by a 346-cubic-inch V-8, the ’41 Series 62, styled by legendary General Motors designer Harley Earl, is one of Cadillac’s more beautifully executed prewar (or perhaps midwar, given the 1941 vintage) mid-century modern designs. Its curved sheetmetal shapes intertwine with numerous horizontal lines to create the feeling of a classic American diner on wheels. Its cream color mixes masterfully with the red leather interior and tan vacuum-powered soft top.
Chrome trim pieces are screwed into the Series 62’s dark wood dash. The pushbutton radio looks as though you could pull it out and place it on a shelf as a museum piece, and it’s framed by the speedo and a clock. The Series 62 convertible was only available as a Deluxe model, and as such, it incorporated high-style touches including rear fender skirts, wheel trim, and other decorative flair.
This particular car’s provenance is somewhat unique in that it was refinished extensively by RM’s Auto Restoration arm back in the mid-1980s and hasn’t been retouched to any degree since. It’s a car that still looks factory-fresh on the outside, while the interior has an inviting, well-worn patina, a baseline set of gauges, and that era’s take on the Cadillac Crest—ducks (aka merlettes) and all—dominating the center of the wheel. In essence, it’s what you’d expect to find if the original owner cared for it meticulously but also drove it often.
Handle With Care When Underway
When it was my turn to drive the Series 62, job one was to simply get it out of the parking lot of RM’s auction HQ at the Monterey Conference Center without incident. Though I knew there was no power steering, I wasn’t prepared for how much you have to yank and pull and cajole the steering wheel to actually turn the front wheels. I almost ran over a bunch of cones set up in the driveway, and I honked the horn accidentally as I did. Not an auspicious start.
But everything loosened up as I made a right, hit the gas, and headed for the coast. Somehow, the clouds and gloom of the typical Monterey day dissipated as we made our way to Ocean View Boulevard, with its absolutely astonishing views of Monterey Bay. With the sun beaming down into the cabin, the Cadillac Series 62 became the pussycat it was billed to be, wafting over the road like a land yacht. It was hard not to think back to the era just before WWII, how the car’s original owner would have enjoyed similar rides at a leisurely pace, the V-8 purring under that long, rounded hood. Its new owner will undoubtedly do the same.
It wasn’t all rainbows and unicorns. The transmission is fussy, especially when attempting to downshift. Hit the brakes with any force and you’re liable to hit the skids. And I’m not sure I’d be super excited to drive this car on a freeway. But those misgivings are expected with a car of this vintage. The Series 62, like any machine of its time period, needs to be driven in a different way: deliberately, and with care.
You should also always make sure you have enough gas. On the way back to the conference center, we ran out of it. Thankfully, a good samaritan took pity on us and escorted us to a gas station and back. Once we’d flipped up the Series 62’s fuel-tank filler hidden in the left rear taillight (a feature that would become a Cadillac signature) and poured in some gas, we got it started and returned to the conference center without incident.
It all amounted to one heck of an experience, one that is forever etched in my automotive memories. That’s because driving a car of the past, like the Cadillac Series 62, is always a fascinating exercise in understanding where the industry has been, and how far it’s come.
