Re: Manual versus Automatic (ULTRAmatic), post-war

Posted by Rusty O\'Toole On 2015/6/12 16:14:43

Tom McCahill's own car was a 1950 Cadillac model 61 hardtop coupe with manual trans. This was Cadillac's smallest model, based on the B body usually seen on Oldsmobiles and Buicks. It was the last year for this model, and they only made 4 hardtops with manual trans. McCahill's and 3 they sold to sportsman Briggs Cunningham.

Cunningham entered 2 of them in the LeMans 24 hour race that year (yes, really). One with stock hardtop body, the other with a vast "streamlined" racing body designed by a Grumman engineer. They finished 10th and 11th.

The next year Cunningham came back with a sports car of his own manufacture, the first Cunningham racing cars.

So, Cadillac would build a manual trans car as late as 1950 if the customer wanted one. I believe they made Hydramatics only from 1951 on, and ceased to make manual trans cars.

Not sure, but I think Hydramatic had been standard equipment on Cadillac for several years, with manual trans an available option.