LaSalle

Historical overview

LaSalle was an American General Motors marque built under Cadillac from 1927 to 1940. It offered a less expensive route into Cadillac-associated luxury while retaining its own name and identity. The expression Cadillac LaSalle reflects that manufacturing and sales relationship: LaSalle was a companion make, with its own series and body styles, rather than a Cadillac trim or a single model generation.

Its importance extends beyond its relatively short life. The original LaSalle brought Harley Earl’s approach to styling into GM’s production-car programme. Later cars demonstrate how the division adapted its companion range through changes in engines, bodies and market position. The final 1940 cars were followed in their price position by the Cadillac Series 61 for 1941. The Henry Ford documents the original car’s development; Mac’s Motor City Garage describes the marque’s discontinuation.

Selected milestones

These milestones highlight principal changes rather than provide a complete annual history. Model years are distinguished from calendar introduction dates where documented.

• 1927 launch: LaSalle entered the market as Cadillac’s companion marque with V8 power. The Henry Ford’s surviving roadster records the original 303-cubic-inch engine. Museum vehicle record.
• 1934 range: Series 350 introduced a straight-eight—an engine with eight cylinders in a single row—in place of the original V8 layout. 1934 specifications and body catalogue.
• 1937 model year: Series 37-50 returned to V8 power. The cars appeared in late calendar 1936, with surviving price-list information dated October 1936. 1937 specifications and contemporary price-list notes.
• 1940 model year: The final range comprised Series 50 and Series 52 Special. Introduced in October 1939, these models preceded the end of the production marque in 1940. 1940 specifications and body catalogue; final-year history.

Origins and the Cadillac relationship

In 1926, GM president Alfred P. Sloan sought a lower-priced companion for Cadillac. Harley Earl, whose background was in custom-car design, shaped the resulting 1927 LaSalle. The Henry Ford identifies Cadillac’s Motor Car Division as the manufacturer and Detroit, Michigan, as the place of manufacture of its surviving 1927 roadster. That car has a 303-cubic-inch V8 and a three-speed manual transmission; these identify the early car rather than the entire LaSalle range. Museum vehicle record.

Cadillac’s advertising explicitly introduced LaSalle to its existing audience. A 1927 advertisement preserved by The Henry Ford presents it as a new car for Cadillac households. The museum connects the car’s success with GM’s creation of the Art and Colour Section under Earl, establishing styling as an organised corporate activity. LaSalle’s historical significance is therefore more precise than a sweeping claim that it was the first attractive or deliberately designed automobile. Period advertisement and museum interpretation.

The original cars and coachwork

The 1927–1928 range was identified as Series 303. It encompassed several bodies, including sedans, coupés and open cars. Fisher and Fleetwood coachwork—the bodywork fitted to the chassis—appeared in the catalogue, and body availability and wheelbase depended on the particular version. A roadster photograph should consequently not be read as representative of every LaSalle’s seating, roof or chassis length.

The early catalogue also illustrates a recurring identification problem: the same broad body description can occur with different style numbers in successive years. The Cadillac Database distinguishes the 1927 Victoria coupé from its 1928 counterpart and records separate Fisher and Fleetwood offerings. Body-builder and style-number evidence are more useful for identifying an individual car than the general phrase “Cadillac LaSalle”. 1927–1928 catalogue history.

The straight-eight years, 1934–1936

For 1934 LaSalle adopted an L-head straight-eight, replacing the V8 layout of the original range. L-head denotes a side-valve engine, with the valves beside the cylinders in the engine block; straight-eight describes eight cylinders arranged in a single row. The Cadillac Database identifies the 1934 car as Series 350, with a 240.3-cubic-inch engine, and lists Fleetwood sedan, coupé and convertible coachwork. Its narrow radiator treatment and more streamlined front ensemble gave this phase a recognisable appearance. 1934 specifications and body catalogue.

The 1935 and 1936 Series 50 cars continued the straight-eight phase. By 1936, the catalogue designation was Series 36-50, and the Oldsmobile-derived engine displaced 248 cubic inches. Fisher bodies included a fixed-roof coupé, two- and four-door sedans and a convertible coupé. The specification included independent “Knee-Action” front suspension, hydraulic brakes and Fisher’s steel “Turret Top” roof construction on closed bodies. These were developments within LaSalle’s history, not equipment that can be assigned retrospectively to a 1927 car. 1935 record; 1936 record.

V8 power returns for 1937

The 1937 model-year Series 37-50 returned to Cadillac V8 power with a 322-cubic-inch L-head engine. Its Fisher-bodied range included coupés, sedans and convertibles, while a separate longer commercial chassis was also offered. The chassis specification included an X-member frame, independent front suspension, hydraulic brakes and a hypoid rear axle. None of those details makes a commercial chassis equivalent to a regular passenger sedan.

The 1937 cars appeared during late calendar 1936; the surviving price-list information is dated October 1936. “1937” therefore identifies their model year, not a guarantee that every example was manufactured during calendar 1937. The upright grille, altered hood detailing and lower headlamp position also help distinguish this revision from earlier straight-eight cars. 1937 specifications and contemporary price-list notes.

The final 1940 range

LaSalle’s last model year offered the Series 50 and Series 52 Special. The Special’s lower, more flowing body treatment differentiated it from the regular series. Closed coupés and sedans were accompanied by convertible offerings. Headlamps integrated into the front fenders, a narrow central grille and a column-mounted gear lever characterised the final cars. The 322-cubic-inch L-head V8 remained, with a quoted 130 brake horsepower (bhp) for 1940; the 1937 record’s 125 bhp should not be substituted for it. 1940 specifications and body catalogue.

The 1940 models were introduced in October 1939. Although proposals existed for a subsequent LaSalle, GM ended the production marque in 1940 and used the Cadillac Series 61 to occupy its former market position for 1941. This was a change in GM’s product strategy, rather than a wartime production pause followed by a post-war LaSalle revival. Final-year history.

Production, exports and identification

LaSalle’s manufacturing origins lie in Cadillac’s Detroit operation. Its model-year catalogues describe a changing range of passenger bodies and, in later years, commercial chassis. Export activity also needs to be distinguished from domestic finished-car production: the 1940 Cadillac Database record separately identifies exported chassis and Series 52 sedans shipped in completely knocked-down form—as sets of components for assembly at their destination. That evidence establishes export supply, but does not by itself identify every destination, overseas assembly plant or local equipment specification. 1940 production and body entries.

For an individual LaSalle, establish the series, model year, body style and engine before assigning specifications. A series number is a catalogue designation; a coupé or sedan is a body style; a straight-eight or V8 describes engine architecture. Annual styling revisions do not automatically define separate generations. First-registration dates likewise should not replace model-year or build-date evidence.

Production totals and some dimensions differ between the compiled references, including conflicting figures within the early and final-year records. No reconciled marque-wide total or universal wheelbase is asserted here. The GM Heritage Archive maintains separate LaSalle information kits by year under Cadillac, providing a route to the period documentation needed for more detailed vehicle identification.

Legacy

LaSalle joined Cadillac manufacture to a distinct companion identity and helped establish styling’s institutional role within General Motors. Its engine changes show why the name cannot be reduced to one mechanical specification, while its replacement in the price hierarchy by a Cadillac-badged car marks the end of the companion-marque experiment. The cars remain a separate historical lineage within Cadillac’s wider story. The Henry Ford’s design history; LaSalle’s final year.

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Using the sources

The bibliography distinguishes evidence for a surviving car from broader historical interpretation and compiled specifications. The Henry Ford’s vehicle record concerns its 1927 roadster; its separate advertisement record combines a period advertisement with museum interpretation of LaSalle’s styling significance. Neither should be treated as a specification for every LaSalle.

The Cadillac Database’s individual year catalogues help compare series, engines, body styles and identification details. Select the appropriate model year and body entry before applying a figure to a particular car. These compiled references retain unresolved production-total and dimension discrepancies, including conflicts within the early and final-year records; listing them together does not reconcile those figures.

GM Heritage’s information-kit index provides a route to period documentation, with LaSalle kits filed by year under Cadillac. Mac’s Motor City Garage supplies historical context for the final range and discontinuation. Use that context alongside the relevant year documentation when investigating an individual vehicle.

Annotated source guide

• The Henry Ford — museum vehicle record for the surviving 1927 LaSalle roadster, its manufacture and early mechanical specification.
• The Henry Ford — 1927 period advertisement and museum interpretation of Harley Earl’s styling and GM’s Art and Colour Section.
• Cadillac Database — compiled 1927–1928 catalogue history, including Series 303, Fisher and Fleetwood bodies, and style-number distinctions.
• Cadillac Database — compiled 1934 specifications and body catalogue for Series 350 and the introduction of straight-eight power.
• Cadillac Database — compiled 1935 record for Series 50 during the straight-eight phase.
• Cadillac Database — compiled 1936 record for Series 36-50, its 248-cubic-inch engine, bodies and chassis equipment.
• Cadillac Database — compiled 1937 specifications and contemporary price-list notes documenting the V8 return and October 1936 price-list dating.
• Cadillac Database — compiled 1940 specifications, body catalogue and production entries, including export chassis and completely knocked-down sedans; conflicting figures remain unresolved.
• GM Heritage Archive — vehicle information-kit index, with LaSalle kits by year under Cadillac as a route to period documentation.
• Mac’s Motor City Garage — historical account of the final 1940 range, its October 1939 introduction and LaSalle’s discontinuation.

Browse related records

Search Record type All typesmodel (3)

3 records

• LaSalle Series 303

  LaSalle's original 1927–1928 model series, combining Cadillac manufacture, a 303-cubic-inch V8 and Harley Earl styling in a lower-priced luxury range.

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• LaSalle Series 50

  LaSalle's 1935–1940 model series, evolving from Oldsmobile-derived straight-eight power to a Cadillac V8 before the companion marque's final model year.

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• LaSalle Series 52

  LaSalle's 1940 Series 52 Special paired torpedo-style Fisher bodies with Cadillac V8 engineering in the companion marque's final model year.

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