1959 S&S in New Zealand

[Philip Scanio]

In the June 1 issue of Old Cars there is great story on a 1959 S&S that was restored in New Zealand and is back in service.

 

[Jeff Hookway]

Link -

https://www.oldcarsweekly.com/features/car-of-the-week-1959-cadillac-hearse-from-new-zealand

 

[Kurt Arends]

That's not a "restoration" at all. That's a resto-mod. Nothing original about the interior. Partition is gone, not the original front seat, rear was gutted and modernized, etc.

 

[Dave Hopping]

Well, it IS more a resto-mod than a restoration, but it makes economic sense to have more modern and reliable parts on the platform. After all, this car is going to do serious professional work, rather than (say for example) be trailered to the New Zealand equivalent of Pebble Beach. Moreover, I can only imagine the difficulty, not to mention expense, of finding 1959-era correct parts--on the other side of the planet, no less-- to bring it to exactly as it was when delivered to the original operator.
Sure looks good, doesn't it?

 

[Rick Franklin]

I would rather see it resto-modded this way than to see it as an incorrecto Ecto

 

[John ED Renstrom]

As the car all ready had the engine swap when they received it the only thing i can fault is just not keeping or replacing the 350 with another one. The ida of putting a computer controlled engine in a car that did not have it before, to me is the biggest wast of money you can do. Looks cool but it not a daily driver. It's a limited use car. Why add things to it that will not get the max out of the engine. My 6.2 right now is averaging in the low 19s, In my crew cab pickup. That's over all from the time i left home. 8 in the 59 says to me its not hooked up right. But live and learn . To me is always the kiss princable. You can add chrome for wow.