No. 049 of 207
While it was completely built by Cadillac, the LaSalle was its own brand. It was conceived by General Motors as a "companion marque" to Cadillac to compete with Packard and other brands. The LaSalle cars were built by Cadillac with the same care, attention, and quality that it dedicated to its own brand and used a significant number of Cadillac components to minimize parts and development costs. The LaSalle brand was introduced to the market in 1927, but by 1940, the decision to draw the curtain had been made, and production ended for the LaSalle.
The 1937 LaSalle coupe combined utility, comfort, and style. The LaSalle cruised at 50 miles per hour. Plush upholstery, heater, radio, watertight windows, and room for luggage added comfort. And General Motors' Styling Section, headed by Harley Earl, added streamlined and Art Deco touches to complete the package.
LaSalle was advertised as "Easy to Buy - Economical to Own" in 1937. While sales of 32,000 LaSalle autos in 1937 was a great improvement, it remained far behind the Packard.
The Series 50 was also no longer available with a V8, which was a distinction shared with all Cadillacs, and now only available with an Oldsmobile sourced flathead inline-eight, while Buick continued to offer the more technologically advanced overhead valve straight-eight engine exclusive to Buick. The LaSalle was the first Cadillac to use hydraulic brakes sourced from Bendix and various components were sourced from within different GM Divisions in order to cut production costs. The Oldsmobile engine was not assembled by Oldsmobile then supplied to the LaSalle factory, instead the parts were sent to the LaSalle factory and assembled by Cadillac-trained LaSalle assembly teams to authentically declare it was manufactured by Cadillac engineers. The LaSalle sales department further invited clients to witness the cars being manufactured and listed the different companies that sourced various items that were used to manufacture the 1934 LaSalle.
This LaSalle Series 50 Model 350 listed at US$1,550 ($35,303 in 2023 dollars) for a choice of coupes, sedans or convertibles and was now priced US$1,000 ($22,776 in 2023 dollars) below the least expensive Cadillac. Its mission was not to fill a price gap, but to keep the luxury-car division out of the red. But as the economy began to recover, the LaSalle did not, at least not commensurate with the economy. Sales were 7,195 in 1934, 8,651 in 1935 and 13,004 in 1936 while Buick appeared to be more attractive yet frugal.
Coachwork by Fleetwood
134" wheelbase
340 cubic-inch, 90-degree, L-head V-8 engine
90 horsepower
3-speed synchromesh transmission
Safety-mechanical brakes on all four wheels
Rick DeBruhl Commentary - "What Happened to LaSalle?"
Pre-War Classics / 1916–1941
