Needed 1939 Series 60 Parts

[usafinfantry]

Hi this is K Carter (CLC member #33671) a new member and recent purchaser of former member Mr. Donald "Don" Heffner's (estate)  '39 Caddy Series 60 Special from Dayton OH.

I have some parts that I need to find/purchase and seeking as much advise that I can get on being a new Prewar Cadillac owner.

A. Seeking a chrome red painted "Cadillac" bumper plate (see attachment of vehicle)

B. Looking for a Bakelite Unity fog light knob/switch to match my other knobs which are a white (my fog light switch is brown)

C. A vent/louver assembly set that mounts in front of the radiator and between the front grille area, used to regulate the air flow into the radiator/engine compartment.

D. A point of contact (POC) for plugs, disturber cap, rotor button, points, condenser and anything else for a completed tune-up ( I have a miss) .

E. A specific GMC/Cadillac maintenance manual for this year and model (not a Chilton's general manual).

F. A set of front and rear era correct light brown material matching front and rear floor matts or rubber matts from Cadillac (or a source/POC to acquire them.)

G. Advice on owning a prewar auto such as, how do I check the brake fluid level (and the reservoir location), how much oil should be in the air breather bath bowl? and how to change/clean it? The location of the oil filter or if it even has one? It has 20wt Valvoline oil, but I has told by the local parts store clerk to use Valvoline 20/50wt with Zinc additive which is needed for the older prewar engines!!  It dripples oil when I park it into the garage and was told by a local mechanic to add Blue Devil main rear seal additive because the car had sat after Mr. Heffner's passing. A suggestion for a good prewar mechanic shop in the Mid Atlantic area, I'm located in southern WV near the town of Beckley, WV and close to the southwest Virginia border and will be able to trailer the vehicle to a reputable prewar vehicle mechanic.

H. Why does the shifting from 3rd down to 2nd results in the grinding/mashing of gears and from 1st to 2nd the same?

Any advice is welcome and hoping leads to the above parts is forthcoming. (If I'm in the wrong location just let me know which forum I need to be in and I'll redirect these questions.)

Respectfully and Thankful,

KC

[Tom Boehm]

Hello K, Beautiful car. I have a 1940 Lasalle. Welcome to prewar Cadillacs! The shop manual is reproduced. www.faxonautolit.com. It is about $30. From the factory, your car had full carpeting front and back. I assume you have that already and you are looking for additional mats to protect it. That was not a Cadillac factory accessory and I am not aware of a source making floor mats to fit or match your car. That would have to be custom made. Look at www.hirschauto.com for appropriate carpet. The master cylinder is accessed through a panel in the driver side floor. As for the oil bath air filter, the shop manual says to dump the old oil out and clean the reservoir and the mesh with a solvent. (book says gasoline) Replace oil with one pint of straight 50 weight oil. Do not pour oil on the mesh. Your car did not come from the factory with an oil filter. They were available at the time as a dealer add on or an aftermarket add on. The oil filter system of this time period did not filter all the oil. It was designed that way. They were not all that effective. Some owners insist on having an oil filter system and track down and install a period NOS system. My opinion is that is not necessary. If you are concerned about it, just change the oil more often. Back then, motor oil did not have detergents in it. This allowed contaminants to settle out in the bottom of the pan. The oil filter system on modern cars filters all the oil all the time. Modern motor oil has detergents in it which keeps the contaminants in suspension so the filter can remove it.
  As to motor oil, the shop manual says to use 20w oil. 10w-20 or 10w30 would be OK. The Valvoline 20w-50 with the ZDDP in it is OK. Older cars with flat tappets require the additive ZDDP in the oil. This used to be in all motor oil but they stopped using it because it interfered with catalytic converters. Modern cars use roller tappets. Hemmings magazine sells motor oil intended for use in older cars with the ZDDP in it already. There are a few other sources of classic car oil with the ZDDP already in it. The additive is available separate which you can add to any motor oil. The use of ZDDP in classic cars seems to be a matter of opinion. Some say it is not required and nothing will happen if you do not use it. Others will chime in on this subject. Do a search on this forum on this topic.

Why do you need a set of shutters/louvers for your car? It appears to be restored. That is a major surgery to replace. The shutter frame holds the whole front of the car together.

There are a quite a few regular participants on this forum knowledgeable about late 1930's/prewar Cadillacs like yours. There are more who are familiar with the 1936-1948 Cadillac flathead V8 engine.

The Cadillac and Lasalle Club publishes an authenticity manual for class 10 (1939 Cadillac series 60s and 61, 1940 Cadillac series 60s, 62, and 72.) It is available on the club website, under "technical". That would be a help to you in becoming familiar with your car.

[harvey b]

Nice car, Rockauto has the shop manuals and lists some tuneup parts as well,the shutters are nice to have,but may cause problems with overheating if they dont work right,better to not have them?.Another thing you might look for is a Master Parts List,it gives you all the right part numbers and will tell you what other cars might have a part that will fit.Ebay is a good place for stuff too.These cars normally grind when downshifting into 1st,non syncro trannys,the other noises may be a worn syncro rings.The technical forum is a good place to ask that,lots of guys there who can help. haarveyb

[usafinfantry]

Harvey B,

Understand on the shutters, I was just told by the Son of the former Owner that it was one thing he kept looking for and couldn't find, so I thought it was a required item.  The car doesn't overheat at all when I take it down the four lane at 55/60 MPH.  If the syncro rings are worn is that something that I can fix or would I need to go to a transmission specialist? I've posted this on the technical forum.

Thank you very much for your information, knowledge, and time.

Kevin

[usafinfantry]

Tom,

Thanks for the great information, you've answered many questions and given me great POC information.  I didn't know that the matts wasn't an accessory at the time, thanks.  See my post to Harvey B on the shutters.  I'll start getting the brochures required and start reading. 

If anyone on the forum reviews this thread and have knowledge of a Red Cadillac Bumper plate (Missing from my rear bumper) I'd appreciate any leads.

Tom, I'm excited to be a trustee for such a neat auto and know that you are as well.  Once I get the car tuned up I'm sure it will cruise down the road nice. 

Thank you for the great information and POC information on just owning it. 

Kevin

[Tom Boehm]

Hello Kevin, I am trying to figure out what is missing on the shutter system on your car. Is there anything in front of the radiator on your car? On a modern car the thermostat regulates the temperature of the engine by controlling the flow of coolant. On these prewar Cadillacs the thermostat regulates the temperature of the engine by controlling the flow of air through the radiator by opening and closing the shutters. The thermostat is in the top tank of the radiator on the side facing the grill. When the thermostat gets warm it pushes the stem out the front which opens the shutters by a lever and a rod. Is there a thermostat in your radiator? Working ones are getting very hard to find and therefore expensive. I have heard of them being repaired. On my 1940 Lasalle the shutters cannot be removed from the frame unless they are bent and pulled out or cut out. The radiator and the fenders bolt to the frame holding the shutters. Maybe they are removable on the '38-'41 60s. I tried to look that up in my reference material but could not find a firm answer. Like someone else mentioned, working shutters are not absolutely necessary. Some owners wire them open if they cannot find a working thermostat. Most if not all driving of these collector cars is done in warm weather.

[usafinfantry]

Tom,

Thanks again for the information, no shutters are on my car at all.  It does run a little hot, but hasn't overheated so far.

[Tom Boehm]

OK Kevin, here is the correct information on the shutters. I asked a CLC member who knows more than I do about prewar Cadillacs. On the 60 special, the shutter assembly bolts to the core support. You do not have to take the front of the car apart to install shutters. What the previous owner told you makes sense. Sorry for the temporary misinformation.

[usafinfantry]

Tom,

No problem and thank you for gathering more information on the shutters.  I have a question for you.  On your 40 LaSalle do you have a trip odometer beside the speedometer? If so do you have a way to reset it each time you want or as I'm suspecting you just let it roll around until 999 and start over?   Since I plan on servicing my oil every 1,000 miles (as suggested by a fellow club member on the technical forum) I would use this as my reminder.

Kevin

And thank you for your advice and patience with me.

[Tom Boehm]

Yes there is a trip odometer on my Lasalle. There is a flexible shaft out of the speedometer with a small knurled knob at the end to reset. It is mounted on the bottom edge of the dashboard. I looked it up and your car should have one too. The reset knob is to the left of the cowl vent knob.

[usafinfantry]

Tom,

I went out and located the knob in the exact location you recommended.  I thought that after I purchased the vehicle, I had went over it with a fine tooth comb checking it out, evidently not.

Thanks much,

KC