New here, have some questions

Hi,

I have stopped by on many many occasions, but finally decided to join this site. My name is Donna and I am located in the suburbs of Chicago. Ever since I can remember I have loved the 59/60 Cadillac. I currently do not have a professional car, but have been searching for a flower car or ambulance. I know this is probaly one of the more sought after cars and it seems like I always miss a good find by like a hour or day. Anyways here are some of my questions, and please feel free to add any info.

I know there is a Superior, a M&M, a Eureka and a Royal...were there any other makers in 59/60?

What should I look for as far as rotting away/bad panels. I know the 59s are notorious for floors...does that include the ambulances?

Any search suggestions that help find one, I try hemmings, ebay, craigslist, oldcar trader.

I am looking for a project, a done one is out of my price rance and I do not want a ghostbusters replica. I guess my question is whats a good price range? There is a 1/2 sold one Eureka in Rockford but needs ALOT of work and the guy wants $10,500. Does that seem high to anyone else?

Your help/suggestions are greatly appreciated!
 
Well Donna, (wifes name Donna 2) welcome to the boards. All I can say is 59/60 by any coach builder seems to be the Holy Grail. I, too, would love to have one, but pockets are not deep enough, even for a rough one! Good luck with your search and save your bucks while your searching so you can pounce when one comes up.
Again, Welcome!
 
Welcome

Donna, welcome to our humble home! Next you need to take the big plunge and become a PCS member. You will find there are some terrific folks over in that neck of the woods that will be very helpful to you. I am not an expert on pro cars, but there are a couple things I will throw out as a starting point. First off ,as the guys mentioned stay away from the guy in Rockford! Rusted floor pans in the 59's seemed to be common, but that is a relatively easy fix and there are worse problems you can have. Make sure if you look at a car that the frame is solid and doesn't have excessive rust. The same goes for rotted out door sills and bottoms. These can indicate more serious problems.
Lastly, the best advice I can give you is to buy the best car you can possibly afford to begin with. While you may save some bucks up front by buying a "project" car in the long run this will prove to be false economy. Parts for these cars can be hard to find, and unless you are capable of doing a lot of the work yourself the cost of a quality restoration can eat you alive! Again, welcome aboard and good luck with your search.
 
welcome Donna

Donna,
Welcome to the party. Looking forward to your postings here. Good luck finding a coach or flower car to your liking. Hope to see you at a meet somewhere this summer. Thank you for the no ghost buster comment.
Mike
61 Miller-Meteor
 
Welcome Donna. You certainly have come to the right site and so many people here are anxious to answer questions. Enjoy the site!!

Wow, hit 1900 post with this one!!!
 
Donna, welcome to the family. Like Mike said, thanks for the GB comment, that is one thing a lot of us pro car guys hate to hear. Good luck with your search, and I'm sure you'lll make lots of friends here.

Josh
 
3 suggestions

3 suggestions to keep in mind:

1. Spend as much as you can UP FRONT, for the most complete car possible. Yes, you can save $$ up front, but then spend more $ and TIME getting it fixed up, and finally pay more than if you spent more in the beginning.

2. DO NOT buy the 1st unit you see, just because its kinda what you want.

3. Many times, the best unit is the least expensive.............

Food for thought. Dan Brintlinger, Decatur, IL:thumb:
 
Welcome Donna,

I have two '60 Eurekas (combo and 3way), two '59 cadillac cars(seville and SDV), and two '60 cadillac cars(CDV, SDV). The places most rotted are lower front fenders behind wheels (more so on drivers side), rockers, and rear lower quarters. Floor boards mostly on drivers side from salt. other places seem to be less likely to rust through. I think ambulances had more rubber mats and didnt have as much floor board rust.
My estimation: $3500-$4000 seems to be a fair price for a complete but needed restoration. $9,000-$12,000 should get a running driving decent paint one.
I live on the north side of chicago, dont be shy if you wanna see some '59/'60 cadillacs. In this case for the years you like, the hearse's and ambulances are a better deal, more car for less money. Regular cadillacs go for double the price of a completely restored procar

x2 not to buy anything from Rockford.

Nicholas
 
Welcome Donna,

I have two '60 Eurekas (combo and 3way), two '59 cadillac cars(seville and SDV), and two '60 cadillac cars(CDV, SDV). The places most rotted are lower front fenders behind wheels (more so on drivers side), rockers, and rear lower quarters. Floor boards mostly on drivers side from salt. other places seem to be less likely to rust through. I think ambulances had more rubber mats and didnt have as much floor board rust.
My estimation: $3500-$4000 seems to be a fair price for a complete but needed restoration. $9,000-$12,000 should get a running driving decent paint one.
I live on the north side of chicago, dont be shy if you wanna see some '59/'60 cadillacs. In this case for the years you like, the hearse's and ambulances are a better deal, more car for less money. Regular cadillacs go for double the price of a completely restored procar

x2 not to buy anything from Rockford.

Nicholas

Thanks for the tips, this really does help. I have a 56 Coupe DeVille so I completely understand the market on the "regular" caddys....when it comes to these specialty I feel lost.

I might actually take you up on that offer to come and see the Eukeka's, as much as I LOVE them I can actually say I have never seen one in person. It would be nice to know what should be there/shouldnt be there.

The Rockford guy has been written off, I was gonna go look this weekend but after all the horror stories I dont think I am even gonna answer my phone!
 
Welcome Donna

Your story reminded me of my own quest for years of finding a sedan based ambulance or combination. I searched Hemmings and the other car trader sites and everything was too bad or too much. I had pretty much gave up when one day I was in a parking lot in the Flats of Cleveland and found a landau combination, a 1980 S&S Victoria for sale and the rest is history. I now own four cars and had owned six. So the bug is going to get you. The 59 is probably the most sought after. You need to come to Ohio next year for the international meet in Akron. I know there you will be seeing quite a few 59s and those are owned by one guy! Good luck in your search but start coming out to our meets, join us I am sure you will fall in love with a coach soon.
 
I seem to be learning more and more about the different models here, this is great!

Is there a spot that lists the different makes/models with pictures?
 
To answer one of your questions, the major coachbuilders for the 59-60 ambulances or hearses would be : Superior, Eureka, Miller-Meteor, Sayers & Scovill. To see pictures of the various cars go to the picture archves on the Northland Chapters website. And I will echo the warning about Rockford Illinois
 
I seem to be learning more and more about the different models here, this is great!

Is there a spot that lists the different makes/models with pictures?

Welcome. There are many PCS members in the Chicago area, it should be no trouble meeting up with some at an event.
As Rick stated, check out the PCS Northland site, they have a huge picture archive. Here is the link http://www.northlandpcs.com/northlanddb/index.htm
 
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