Vehicle Description
1930 LaSalle 340 Convertible Coupe
Seeking to build "A car for every purse and purpose", General
Motors Chairman Alfred P. Sloan would launch the 'General Motors
Companion Make Program' in the late 1920s which sought to fill the
price gaps which had developed between their existing models. Under
this forward-thinking program, four new GM marques would pair with
established brands and LaSalle, the most prestigious of the new
marques, was slotted in between Buick and Cadillac. With famed GM
designer Harley Earl at the helm of creating the new LaSalle, it
was decided to not just produce a 'junior Cadillac' but rather a
stylish and more agile counterpart that still invokes the elegance
of the larger Cadillac models. Marketed as "The New Pleasure in
Motor Car Driving", LaSalle models were built by Cadillac with
bodies from in-house coachbuilder Fisher. Offered with a selection
of seven Fisher bodies and six 'Special Custom' options from
Fleetwood, 1930 saw an upgraded V-8 equipped to the new Series
340.
For consignment, a 1930 LaSalle Series 340 silver and black
accented 2 door convertible coupe with a rumble seat and a trunk on
the back bumper. This car is in excellent condition and in fact is
an AACA documented award winner claiming its National Senior 1st in
2007. It has a beautiful and like new red leather upholstered
cockpit, plenty of wonderful wood accents for the interior, and
drives like a dream. There is also a rumble seat to accommodate
additional passengers on your tour of the countryside.
Note: This car is indeed a LaSalle, but carries Cadillac as the
make on the title. Please check your local, county, state,
provincial, or country DMV for proper titling procedures.
Exterior
With straight as arrow bodywork, no rust, well minded gaps and an
excellent deep end of the pool silver paint job for the cowled hood
and the remainder of the body as it is led by a woven chromed
radiator cover and shiny radiator cowl. 4 headlights grace the
front of the car and a slightly curved dual bar bumper with large
Trippe fog lamps framing the bottom with some extra shine. On her
sides are curved and shapely black painted fender which roll up and
down and form a running board between the front fenders and the
rear fenders. This black paint and running board surfaces are all
also excellent. On top of the front fenders are turn signal lights,
and tucked into each of them aft of front wheels is a full red
painted wire spoked wide whitewall spare tires with rearview
mirrors perched atop. A square front hinged door with a chrome
handle is nice and straight, and leads the way for the elongated
curved down portion which is the back of the car and the rumble
seat. On the back is a black fuel tank and just above a full metal
trunk is mounted on. Another dual bar bumper in chrome is framing
the bottom and on the passengers side, just aft of the door, is the
feature unique to the Lasalle with a square small door which allows
access to that is commonly referred to as the golf bag storage
area. It can also be used for extra space but it was marketed as a
golf club storage area. The passenger compartment is covered with a
sporty gray Haartz convertible top accented by landau bars on
either side. 18-inch perfectly painted red wire wheels are wrapped
by ultra wide whitewall tires in 7.00-18 form.
Interior
A swing of the doors gives us a near perfect red leather stitched
door panel with highly polished cranks and actuators. A pull strap
is in the center and some red carpeting is on the bottom of their
door. For the front passengers, a long red leather bench thathas
aged very gracefully, sports padded tufted and buttoned seating for
3. The bench is mounted in a red leather tub. Up front is a
beautifully curved, highly polished, and lacquered walnut dash.
This is peppered with several chrome bezeled circular gauges, and a
few chrome discs pull knobs. A long shift lever reaches for the
driver and also has a chrome knob topping it. The original steering
wheel is growing from this dash and is large, in charge, and also
excellent. Red carpeting floods the floors, and the rumble seat is
in the same pattern as the front bench and also nice and tight, red
leather covered.
Drivetrain
Under the loving cowled hood is the fully restored and looking
showroom 340ci L-head V8 engine. It has shiny valve coverings,
supple hoses and wiring and is fed by a single 2-barrel carburetor.
On the back is a correct 3-speed manual transmission, and way back
is a 3/4 floating axle. All surfaces under this hood are just
perfectly restored.
Undercarriage
As with any show car we see no rust and nary even road dirt for
this black painted undercarriage. Within its confines are leaf
spring suspension for front and rear, and mechanical drum braking
for all 4 corners. Lovely.
Drive-Ability
This car is quite the machine just to sit in and of course driving
it was a real privilege. It fired right up and ran a bit rough,
most likely due to needing a tune up. It still accelerated nicely
despite this weight, and braking was very strong. All functions are
working save for the clock, but that is mainly due to my crack
decoder failing to wind it. We also noted that the convertible top
will not fully lower as some of the frame mounting screws to the
wood subframe have pulled out.
From its flying lady hood ornament, to the long hood and straight
silver steel with black accenting, Haartz convertible top, and long
sloping rear this car is a great example of a bygone era where
money did not matter. The golf bag storage is a unique plus and
overall the car is very close to concours condition and certainly a
top notch restoration. Titled as a Cadillac, Made in Canada and
even spent time in Puerto Rico it is well heeled.
Classic Auto Mall is a 336,000-square foot classic and special
interest automobile showroom, featuring over 850 vehicles for sale
with showroom space for up to 1,000 vehicles. Also, a 400 vehicle
barn find collection is on display. This vehicle is located in our
showroom in Morgantown, Pennsylvania, conveniently located just
1-hour west of Philadelphia on the I-76 Pennsylvania Turnpike. The
website is www.classicautomall.com and our phone number is (888)
227-0914. Please contact us anytime for more information or to come
see the vehicle in person.
