Meet the Classic Cadillac With a Whale of a Tail Fin

WSJ ^ | 25 Sept 2021 | A.J. Baime

[DUMBGRUNT]

This 1959 Series 62 Coupe has a design flourish that passersby can’t help but notice

There it was, all 225 inches of it [nearly 19 feet long].

The price was much lower than I thought it would be for a Series 62 Coupe—about what it would cost to buy a basic new Toyota. My brother said to me, “Todd, if not now, then when?” And he was right. I bought the car and had it shipped it back to California.

Surprisingly, I get more comments about the Vegas turquoise paint than about the outrageous styling.

[DUMBGRUNT]

—”I had forgotten how massive they are.”

My wife drove Suburbans for years, we bought one for our Alaska trip.
So I had to look it up, 220 inches in length, the Caddy shown is 225!

[Does so]

Drum brakes kept US drivers civil!

[SaveFerris]

“Crusaders rule”

J-75, was it?

https://images.app.goo.gl/KbsBHLum5VUpCA1g9

Oh, wait...

[SaxxonWoods]

Mad Magazine had a nameplate for cars that looked like that, the glory of Detroit: ‘Byzantine Gargantuan’.

[Smellin Salt]

To the love shack, duh!!

[Smellin Salt]

Sweet, but nowhere near as cool as a 59 Impala.

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/da/26/19/da2619b83b59206cf26cdfe84b43ac1e.jpg

[Southside_Chicago_Republican]

That’s fitting!

[DUMBGRUNT]

—” because the local shops lost their parking. “

Same near us.

Car show in the strip mall(?) lot.
One evening the fire department show up and drove the trucks down the aisles???

Fire Chief said Ace hardware complained.
So I complained to ACE and NEVER returned.

I was very happy when that Ace became a pharmacy.

[Southside_Chicago_Republican]

I drive a Mercury Grand Marquis, which is 212 inches, but that Cadillac just looks much, much longer.

[AlaskaErik]

It’s as big as a whale! Where is it heading?

Not the Love Shack. That was a Chrysler.

[outofsalt]

One Piece at a Time
~Johnny Cash

Well, I left Kentucky back in ‘49
An’ went to Detroit workin’ on a ‘sembly line
The first year they had me puttin’ wheels on Cadillacs
Every day I’d watch them beauties roll by
And sometimes I’d hang my head and cry
‘Cause I always wanted me one that was long and black

One day I devised myself a plan
That should be the envy of most any man
I’d sneak it out of there in a lunchbox in my hand
Now gettin’ caught meant gettin’ fired
But I figured I’d have it all by the time I retired
I’d have me a car worth at least a hundred grand

I’d get it one piece at a time and it wouldn’t cost me a dime
You’ll know it’s me when I come through your town
I’m gonna ride around in style, I’m gonna drive everybody wild
‘Cause I’ll have the only one there is a round

So the very next day when I punched in
With my big lunchbox and with help from my friends
I left that day with a lunch box full of gears
I’ve never considered myself a thief
But GM wouldn’t miss just one little piece
Especially if I strung it out over several years

The first day I got me a fuel pump
And the next day I got me an engine and a trunk
Then I got me a transmission and all of the chrome
The little things I could get in my big lunchbox
Like nuts, an’ bolts, and all four shocks
But the big stuff we snuck out in my buddy’s mobile home

Now, up to now my plan went all right
‘Til we tried to put it all together one night
And that’s when we noticed that something was definitely wrong
The transmission was a ‘53 and the motor turned out to be a ‘73
And when we tried to put in the bolts all the holes were gone

So we drilled it out so that it would fit
And with a little bit of help with an adapter kit
We had that engine runnin’ just like a song
Now the headlight’ was another sight
We had two on the left and one on the right
But when we pulled out the switch all three of ‘em come on

The back end looked kinda funny too
But we put it together and when we got through
Well, that’s when we noticed that we only had one tail-fin
About that time my wife walked out
And I could see in her eyes that she had her doubts
But she opened the door and said, “Honey, take me for a spin”

So we drove up town just to get the tags
And I headed her right on down main drag
I could hear everybody laughin’ for blocks around
But up there at the court house they didn’t laugh
‘Cause to type it up it took the whole staff
And when they got through the title weighed sixty pounds

I got it one piece at a time and it didn’t cost me a dime
You’ll know it’s me when I come through your town
I’m gonna ride around in style, I’m gonna drive everybody wild
‘Cause I’ll have the only one there is around

Uh yow, Red Ryder, this is the cotton mouth
In the Psycho-Billy Cadillac come on, huh, this is the cotton mouth
And negatory on the cost of this mow-chine there Red Ryder
You might say I went right up to the factory
And picked it up, it’s cheaper that way
Uh, what model is it?

Well, it’s a ‘49, ‘50, ‘51, ‘52, ‘53, ‘54, ‘55, ‘56
‘57, ‘58’ 59’ automobile
It’s a ‘60, ‘61, ‘62, ‘63, ‘64, ‘65, ‘66, ‘67
‘68, ‘69, ‘70 automobile

[anton]

My daily driver from 1974 to 1980 was a 70 coupe deVille. 2 inches longer than the whale but nearly as stylish.

[Adder]

Nice...real nice.

Miss those old cars.

[Fiji Hill]

My next door neighbor, growing up, had one (in that color!) that he kept until his death in the ‘80s. Before he died, he went back to Italy to visit, and HAD THE CAR SHIPPED WITH HIM, to show his kin he had “made it” in America.

The Italians undoubtedly gawked at this big American incrociatore straddale (road cruiser).

[adorno]

We used to have ‘dumb phones’ before we got to the age of smartphones.

We now also have smart TVs and smart card.

That Cadillac and all cars of that time, were ‘dumb cars’. We may have to go back to building dumb cars, since there is a massive shortage of the chips required to build today’s cars. New car dealers have been turned into used car dealers. I know; I went shopping for a new car, and most of the new car dealers had lots full of used cars.

[FreedomPoster]

I can’t imagine trying to drive that car in Italy. Heck, a Golf is a largish car over there!

[FreedomPoster]

They both seat about 20!

[MrLucky1966]

We used to have ‘dumb phones’ before we got to the age of smartphones.

And CB radios. B-)

We now also have smart TVs and smart card.

I still use a 1982 Zenith with 1959 rabbit ears. I was 16 when we bought it, April 4th, 1983, still got the bill of sale and I'm 55 now.

That Cadillac and all cars of that time, were ‘dumb cars’. We may have to go back to building dumb cars, since there is a massive shortage of the chips required to build today’s cars. New car dealers have been turned into used car dealers. I know; I went shopping for a new car, and most of the new car dealers had lots full of used cars.

I joked, "Well Ford can go back to their Duraspark system of the 1970s and the others do the same with their trademarks." WE could go back to points and plugs too.

[MrLucky1966]

Should have used this in Love Shack by B52s. Instead used a Chrysler.

Even so, many Chrysler products were monsters. My neighbor had one, a 1970, can't remember the model, resembled a dumbed down Chrysler 300 I think. They called their car the Titanic. My Aunt Jean had a 1957 Plymouth with great big tail fins and later on, she and my Uncle Chuck had a Plymouth Station Wagon that resembled my neighbor's Titanic. I remember my cousins and I playing Matchbox Cars in the back, it was so huge.

[Kartographer]

To the Sugar Shack of course!