After a blockbuster hit in 1948, nobody expected much from the 1949 model year. They were wrong. Shortly before the war, General Motors engineers had already realized that the old Cadillac V8 had to be replaced. They had reached the limits of the dependable, but aging, flathead  V8. The engineers had tried to modify the heads of the old engine for a compression ratio of 8.0:1. However, the highest possible return had already been achieved. There was no increase  more in power or decrease in consumption and breathing problems arose. It was time to move on. Ernest W. Seaholm, who was in charge of Cadillac's engineering department for 20 years, came to this conclusion long before his retirement in 1943. He had already worked on a new design for Pearl Harbor. After the war, GM's top engineers, now led by Harry F. Barr, Edward M. Cole and John F. Gordon, tackled the problem. Their final creation provided the foundation for engine design and performance for years to come, and it powered the 1949 Cadillac.

The new engine not only gave the car unparalleled performance but also did so with significant fuel economy. The engine weighed almost 200 pounds less than the old flathead and  because it stayed cooler, it required less radiator area, further increasing the weight saving (220 pounds). In addition to these benefits, Cadillac delivered an engine that was two inches shorter and four inches lower than the flathead. And while the compression ratio was only 7.5:1, the new powerplant was designed to take advantage of higher octane post-war fuels, as it could tolerate a compression ratio of 12.0:1 or higher. In 1948, 88 octane gasoline hit the pumps and the oil companies promised even higher octanes so it was important to look to the future. There was enough room to increase the engine capacity and this was increased to 365 CUI in 1956.

The engine was a real thrill. He was soon found on all kinds of race circuits in the country. Nearly standard Caddys with big race numbers on their sides were seen roaring on the tracks. The cars were so popular that the famous Briggs Cunningham even went to the 24 Hours of Le Mans in France with a Caddy. There, the Coupe de Ville finished tenth in the standings among the world's best racing cars. He rode the Mulsanne Straight at 200 km/h and completed the race at an average speed of 130 km/h. Briggs himself drove a car called 'Le Monstre', which also had the new V8 on board. Being shot off the track, which took him 20 minutes, he finished 11th behind the standard Cadillac. Well, standard, it had a double carburettor and a somewhat modified intake and a manual 3-speed transmission. That while the Hydra Matic was now standard. Quite an achievement that the car of, for example, a banker could easily drive the tough Le Mans race with even standard, but extra cooled drum brakes!  

​

Although there were few road test magazines in 1949, "Uncle" Tom McCahill reported in Mechanix Illustrated: "With this engine, despite its large size, Cadillac outperforms just about any car made today." He backed that up with acceleration from 0-60 mph in 12.1 seconds (with stick shift) and a top speed of about 105 mph. Anyway, probably only the lighter Olds 88 could keep up with him. In retrospect, the new Cadillac V8 turned out to have come at just the right time. The flathead had done its best along with the rise of the automatic transmission. But now that the roads were getting better and there were already a few 'highways' of which there were many more to come and octane numbers were rising, the new V8 could prove itself nicely. After its introduction it remained in constant development so that the first major redesign was not deemed necessary until 1964.

​

The heavier grille on the '49 was the result of a consensus between Earl and Hershey. When the '48 was designed at Hershey's ranch, there wasn't enough room to get a full clay model of the car in the room, but there was room for a full-size mock-up of the front. Earl stopped by the farm every week to see how far the design team had come. During one of his visits, he told Hershey that he wanted a delicate, almost jewel-like grille. Hershey obeyed and this "delicate" grille appeared on the '48. When it came time to facelift the '48er, Earl asked Hershey if he really liked the fine grill. Hershey said 'no'. Earl then suggested a coarser grill that would eventually grace the '49er front end.

The large bulge above the instrument panel that made the '48 beloved to so many car enthusiasts was replaced in the '49 model by a more conventional horizontal hooded speedometer. Critics have constantly pointed out over the years that the 1948-49 interiors were rather lackluster for Cadillac, especially the '49. Others praised the richness and simple elegance of the two model years.

​

The '49 Cadillac 62 Coupe de Ville is a sought-after model, a 'hardtop' convertible that was introduced late in the model year. Although Cadillac had to share the credit with the Buick Riviera and Oldsmobile Holiday, this trio was the first to market this design without B-pillars. The Coupe de Ville was in fact a Series 62 convertible fitted with a steel top, and fitted with a large three-piece rear window. The coupe de Ville, which was just as luxurious as the convertible, even sported simulated arches under the roof. That explains why the $3,497 price tag was just $26 less than the convertible's base price. Production of the Coupe de Ville reached only 2,150 units, but this new body style was destined to create a furore in the 1950s. Perhaps it's fitting, then, that when Cadillac produced its 1,000,000th car on November 25, 1949, it was the sporty Coupe de Ville that rolled off the Clark Street assembly line in Detroit. While this landmark car was the last Cadillac of the 1940s, in reality it was a car focused entirely on the 1950s. In November, Motor Trend magazine named it 'Car of the Year'. This was just the mention, there was no real award yet. The field was narrowed to three brands: Ford, Oldsmobile and Cadillac. Ford was the first to be eliminated. Despite "an all-new chassis and body, plus many mechanical changes," wrote motoring journalist John Bond, "it offers nothing new or remarkable from a technical point of view, as it now conforms to conventional designs that competitors had already developed before the war." The Cadillac was chosen over the Olds because, while they both have excellent new V8s that are similar, "they're not absolutely the same". The Cadillac, with 10% more displacement than the Olds, develops 18.5 percent more horsepower and weighs a few pounds less." In addition to the increased power of the new V8, Bond called "an even more important advantage" that of increased durability. also pointed out that the new V8 "...is brand new and can normally be expected to continue with minor changes for a period of at least seven years." In this regard, his assumption was certainly on the conservative side, Cadillac doubled that time period. Incidentally, Motor Trend continued the credit it bestowed on the '49 Cadillac by presenting the similarly designed '52 models, now at 190 horsepower and about 200 pounds heavier, with the Engineering Achievement Award. also put the text 'Car of the year' on the cover for the first time.It was not until 1992 that Cadillac succeeded again with the new Seville STS.  

​

The Milestone Car Society, which honors the crème de la crème of post-war cars, has granted "Certified Milestone Car" status to the following models: 61 Sedanet,  62 Sedanet, Cabriolet and Coupe de Ville; 60 Special; 75 Sedan/Limousine. The Cadillac Division could certainly be proud of the achievements of the 1940s. Franklin Q. Hershey could also be proud of the fact that he was finally able to design production models of his first love.  Cadillac. In fact, with his development of the tail fins and the flowing lines, he had redefined Cadillac. And only about one million examples of the "Standard of Excellence" separated his last production Caddy from the first his mother, Clara, had ridden in 1903!

After leaving GM, Hershey founded his own design firm. Harley Earl tried to lure Hershey back to GM. Hershey thanks for this. Years later, he learned that had he gone back he would have been Earl's first choice to replace him as GM's Vice President of Design.

After several years at Packard, Hershey moved to Ford, where he designed the 1953-1957 full-size Fords. According to an interview Hershey gave to James W. Howell in 1995, George Walker had been hired as the public face of Ford design. Hershey also designed the signature Ford Thunderbird, admitting it in a 1954 interview. That caused friction between Walker and Hershey. After leaving Ford, Hershey also worked as a designer for Kaiser Aluminum and Rite Autotronics. Frank Hershey died in California on October 20, 1997.

Cadillac began to lay claim to American luxury car leadership in the 1930s and established itself there for good in the 1950s. This achievement was symbolized by Packard's death in 1958. Once America's largest prestige brand had become too dependent on cheaper models, a crippling merger with Studebaker 1954 killed the brand. Lincoln would never be a threat to Cadillac in the 1950s, partly due to a limited range of models. Chrysler, which launched Imperial as a separate brand in 1954, was not a real competitor either.

Several developments in the 1940s laid the foundation for Cadillac's success in the 1950s. When the luxury market recovered from the depression, the division refocused on the prestige car market after 1940 after the LaSalle was discontinued.  Not much later  only had Cadillac  great successes, the tail fins,  overhead valve V8 and also the hardtop coupé (with Olds and Buick), which was immediately popular. All Cadillac needed in the 1950s was styling and features that would delight buyers. This was amply fulfilled.

These Caddys were the ultimate expression of America's post-war prosperity and Detroit's ambitions, four-wheeled tributes to the "jet-age," new technological marvels both serious and silly, and promised the good life of cutting-edge, commodious homes in safe, spacious new suburban areas. communities. It was a time when owning a Cadillac gave instant status  as a symbol of wealth and achievement. Elvis Presley owned a Cadillac, just like captains of industry, Hollywood moguls, and even war hero President Dwight Eisenhower owned one.

No other luxury car brand had this appeal: not Lincoln,  Not Chrysler's Imperial, and certainly not Packard, which quickly faded into oblivion after 1958. And while Lincoln and Imperial would occasionally rise to the challenge, neither could overshadow Cadillac in terms of sales or prestige. Quite simply, in the four decades from 1950, Cadillac had no serious competition in the US market.

Of course, the race results mattered less in the showrooms than the smooth and powerful V8 itself. Cadillac had another advantage in the 1950s. The equally smooth and efficient Hydra-Matic transmission  from GM, now standard on all models except the Series 61. Although the V8 would keep a displacement of 331 CUI through 1955, it did gain more than 100 hp in the meantime, reaching 270 hp on that year's Eldorado. Prices for the 1950 line started at $2,761 for the Series 61 coupe (although few models sold for less than $3,000) and reached about $5,000 for a 75 sedan or limo. The 61s cost about $575 less than comparable 62s. Sales reached 100,000 units in 1950. The basic design from 1948 was good enough to remain largely intact until 1953. A fairly significant change is that, unlike the other GM brands, Cadillac completely abandoned the fastbacks in 1950. This was no real surprise. Cadillac styling chief Bill Mitchell said: "A traditional look has always been preserved. When a grille was changed, the fin was left alone. When the fin was modified, we kept off the grill. For 1950, that meant a new windshield from one piece, a redesigned grille and a slightly coarser design of the underside and a one-piece rear window and evocative "Dagmar" bumper pieces in 1953. The stainless steel sombrero wheel covers replaced the chrome caps in 1950 although the molds were identical. standard on the Coupe DeVille.The millionth Cadillac was a 1950 Coupe DeVille built on November 25, 1949.

They no longer needed a 'slip-on', so the 61s were dropped after 1951 and came  never back. Rival Packard, meanwhile, sold cars up to $750 cheaper than the Series 61, a mistake Packard realized too late. The prestige image crumbled.

The first designs for the 1948 model