1961 Cadillac Series 62, 63
The Series 62 Cadillac started in 1940, but its origins go back to 1939 and the Series 61, which itself was the 60 Series in 1938. These were the “entry-level” Cadillacs, usually the least expensive, but still a Cadillac for sure. The Series 62 usually took in the bulk of body styles you would normally associate a main line car manufacturer to produce, leaving the longer/larger sedans, limousines, and specialty commercial products to other, and more exclusive and luxurious series within Cadillac. By 1940 the Series 62 was built on the corporate GM C-body, the largest platform available within the GM hierarchy. This was the soap bar era with round, torpedo-like shapes from the streamline era. Powered by Cadillac’s L-head V8, output was in the 150hp range. In 1942 the C-body was revised with more square-shouldered design features and fastback “Sedanette” bodies. With 1942 production shortened for the war, once manufacturing resumed in 1945 as 1946 Cadillacs, the design and mechanicals were carried over with little change. By 1947 Series 62 accounted for 65-percent of all Cadillac sales. The new third gen 62s arrived in 1948 lower, wider and still fairly round, but a lot more modern looking than their predecessors. The Series 62 got the first industry game-changing overhead valve V8 and the hardtop “Coupe DeVille” in 1949, and Cadillac steamrolled through the luxury segment never looking back. The last year of this generation, 1953, saw the expensive and exclusive “Eldorado” convertible. Eldorados would be a unique model within the Series 62 for years. The flatter, longer, wider fourth gen Series 62 further refined the Cadillac look, and defined luxury in America. The 1957-58 Cads epitomized the finned, chromed, flashy American car design, before taking this to extremes with the 1959-1960 models. The series was also renamed Series 6200, though it was also referred to as Series 62 and also “Sixty Two.” These two years featured the most extreme fins of the era before things got toned down and cleaner with the 1961 models. Featuring sculptured styling but clean, the era of big V8s, air conditioning, and floating cloud handling was in full force. The last Series 62 was produced in 1964. In 1965 it was renamed “Calais” and received the new GM C-body design, which was more lean and shear than previous Cadillacs. Also stacked headlights, a Cadillac theme for the next few years appeared for the first time. Extensively restyled in 1967, engine size was up to almost 500ci. With a curb weight of 5000-pounds, Cadillacs were not lithe or lean. By 1969 Series 62 was restyled to pick up cues from the landmark 1967 Eldorado design. In 1971 the last new design in the series arrived. Wheelbase had extended to 130-inches. Low, wide grilles, 500ci engines, and massive hoods, interiors and trunks created one of the largest Cadillacs ever built. In a move to simplify identities and models within Cadillac and to shore up marketing budgets the Calais was discontinued in 1976. Cadillac would simplify series with DeVille as the entry level Cad, then Fleetwood, Brougham, and the sporting Eldorado coupe.
1961 Series 62
An all-new body distinguishes the 1961 Cadillac. Body sculpturing was crisp, with massive grilles and heavy bumpers emphasizing length and width respectively. Wrapping windshields were gone, with a rear-slanting A-pillar curved at the top. Some hardtops featured slim pillars while more formal models incorporated heavy C-pillars to emphasize privacy with large expanses of glass for both. While the fins were reduced, a second set of fins emerged low on the rear quarter panels. Overall these were much more cleanly styled than the 1959-60 Cads, and they came off as lighter and longer visually. The Series 64 identification was dropped, with all DeVille models now Series 63. A short-deck four-door sedan was introduced mid-year, referred to as “Town Sedan.”
AVAILABLE MODELS:
1961
- Body Style
- 62/63-Hardtop Coupe
- 62-Coupe de Ville
- 62/63-4-Door Six-Window Sedan
- 62/63-4-Door Four-Window Sedan
- 62-Convertible Coupe
- 63-Two-Door Biarritz Convertible
- 63-Four-Door Town Sedan
1961 Cadillac VIN Decoder:
First Two Characters: Year
Third Character: Model
- E ~ Eldorado Biarritz
- H ~ Eldorado Seville
- F ~ Convertible
- G ~ 62 Coupe
- K ~ 62 Sedan, 6-Window
- A ~ 62 Sedan, 4-Window
- J ~ Coupe DeVille
- L ~ Sedan DeVille, 6-Window
- B ~ Sedan DeVille, 4-Window
Fourth-Ninth Characters: Production Numbers
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