Your favorite body builder? Why

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well for a coach mine is eureka. i just always liked em. favorite would be a 58. 59 and 60 not far behind. ambulance would be s & s. drove lots of ambulances from diffrent builders and i personaly liked most of them. c-b's were a great car and in thinking about it i really liked olds and buicks. pontiacs were my dads favorite short wheelbase car and he always had one and it was his car. no others were allowed to drive it as he kept it just for him. when he got a new one then it was used as a ambulance. he had no emergency equipment on his driver just a first call or as ahearse. i drove a 68 pont. cb to high school after it finished its amb. dutys and was really worn out but to me it was the finest thing in the world as it was mine. i got my brothers 66 chevelle later after he came home from vietnam and it was pulled out of the garage and he drove it for a while but it was a 4 speed and he wanted a automatic as he got shot and it was hard for him to shift. theres a 75 superior that belongs to a member that i really like but i guess a s&s amb. would be my ultimate favorite. whats your favorite?
 
well my favorite is my 51 cadillac eureka,i have also a 78 cadillac hearse ,s+s.
the 51 has lots more class and style then the 78 in my opion . when we were kids my friend had a 51 ,enstead of the school bus ride to school we rode in a hearse
 
Superior. Why? They were the cars I grew up with. The Superior dealership had the corner on the market here in southern Alberta (the M M dealer was way over in Vancouver BC almost 700 miles away) other than the rare C B. If I had to choose a model...definitely 65 Pontiac Rescuer.
 
I like them all! But I must say that I love the Superiors of the Fifties and Sixties for their unique and beautiful styling.
 
For me .... My Favorite Coach builder is Eureka ( both Rock Falls and Toronto )
My favorite Eureka is the 1954 Electric three-way Landau coach. But In Toronto in the 1980's, Eureka and Tom McPherson changed the way Professional Cars would be built in the future.

Early 1986 models had stamped steel rear quarter panels, these were replaced later with a one piece fibreglass roof cap that ran from the A-pillars to below the rear loading door and included the rear quarter panels.

They also offered four-wheel disc brakes on their Cadillacs Professional Cars
even before Cadillac offered them on their passenger cars

they also had a exclusive rear suspension consisting of trailing arms and a beam rear axle therefore they were able to emliminate the rear Struts and the bottleneck between the rear wheelhouses in the casket area.

I know a lot of people were never fans of the "new Generation" Cadillacs they had stubby hoods, and were just "odd" looking compaired to the older professional Cars of years gone by. but what Tom and Eureka did in the 1980's was ground breaking at the time. And thats why I give my vote to Eureka...( plus I own a 1987 Erueka Concours Cadillac)

My favorite Ambulance builder..........Superior
 
Body Builder

When I saw the thread, my first thought was Bill Pearl. After reading some of the replies, I'll change my answer to Miller-Meteor--Probably because of those groovy grimes lights.
 
There are models in each of the big 4 - Superior, S/S, M-M, Eureka - that have lines and styles that I like for different reasons.

I have a few really great cars. Most of what I have owned have been M-M.

I love my '60 S/S Victoria 3way Landau hearse big time !


I guess the car I saw that I loved most would have been Jeff Perrin's

1960 Eureka Cadillac 3way Landau Hearse


For that reason, I would have to say Eureka !


Why ? That car had some super sweet lines and a few features that stuck out in my mind ever since.

The little fin over the no-draft window on each side. The sloping rear roof line into the back door. So cool !

My goal is to own a Eureka just like that one or as close as possible !!!


Darren
 
M-M and im not sure why. I guess because the first one I got was an M-M and I got used to the trim lines and interior styling. Ive been hooked ever since.
 
Favorite US builder: Superior - although Eureka remains a close second. From a purely aesthetic standpoint, their flowing designs remained on a plateau high above any competition.

Favorite foreign builder: Smit-Joure. Simply gorgeous.
 
The ambulances,superiors are most favorite,but really for all the love and care you guys/gals put into your vehicles, not to mention the sweat,money and upkeep, they are all great,enjoy all of them and thanks for showing them to us,it is appreciated:applause:
 
Mike Boyer said:
For me .... My Favorite Coach builder is Eureka ( both Rock Falls and Toronto )
My favorite Eureka is the 1954 Electric three-way Landau coach. But In Toronto in the 1980's, Eureka and Tom McPherson changed the way Professional Cars would be built in the future.

Early 1986 models had stamped steel rear quarter panels, these were replaced later with a one piece fibreglass roof cap that ran from the A-pillars to below the rear loading door and included the rear quarter panels.

They also offered four-wheel disc brakes on their Cadillacs Professional Cars
even before Cadillac offered them on their passenger cars

they also had a exclusive rear suspension consisting of trailing arms and a beam rear axle therefore they were able to emliminate the rear Struts and the bottleneck between the rear wheelhouses in the casket area.

I know a lot of people were never fans of the "new Generation" Cadillacs they had stubby hoods, and were just "odd" looking compaired to the older professional Cars of years gone by. but what Tom and Eureka did in the 1980's was ground breaking at the time. And thats why I give my vote to Eureka...( plus I own a 1987 Erueka Concours Cadillac)

My favorite Ambulance builder..........Superior
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Eureka used fiberglass roof caps well before 1986. My 85 Eureka Pontiac has a full fiberglass top, rear quarters and back door. My 1982 Eureka Cadillac had fiberglass top shell,, back door, and I think the quarters were also but cant remember for sure. As for the trailing axle on the FWDs, they were not that great, Ive heard of alot of them cracking and needing welded or replaced. They did not use the 6CZ90 commercial body that Superior and S&S used. Dont get me wrong, I love Toms Eurekas.
 
I do not really have a favorite, as ED said, the one Im driving that day.
It all depends on the years, not for build quality, but the body design. For instance I have owned a 49 Eureka, and a 49 S&S, but I love the lines much better on the Eureka. Just like I prefer different models from the same company. Ive owned many builders and have not found one to be any better than the other. Right now I one one from all 4 of the big ones, and I like and disslike something on each.
 
Tim Prieur said:
Superior. Why? They were the cars I grew up with. The Superior dealership had the corner on the market here in southern Alberta (the M M dealer was way over in Vancouver BC almost 700 miles away) other than the rare C B. If I had to choose a model...definitely 65 Pontiac Rescuer.
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Tim. I remember Starr's having Superiors at the time I lived in Calgary + MICU Motorhome

Russ
 
Bill Marcy said:
Who is Bill Pearl? Please forgive my ignorance.
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My first thought at seeing the title of this thread was to post a wiseguy answer of Arnold Schwarzeneggar or Lou Ferrigno, so I trust that will answer your question, Bill, of who Bill Pearl is.

Personally, because of the possible confusion the term bodybuilder can cause, I use the term coachbuilder in relation to companies like S&S, Superior, etc.

Now my personal answer to this question...Bayliff. I've always been drawn to the unique and different, and I also like the historical stories behind each of the Bayliff professional cars. And I happen to think that the two Packard combos and the one Cadillac DeVille hearse that he built are amoung the most attactive coaches from anyone during the 1980s. I also enjoy the fact that I am a member of a very, very select group of people, those being able to call themselves Bayliff owners! :)
 
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