.
.
Although there was little change from '46, the quickest way to distinguish a '47
was the Cadillac name written in script on the front fenders. And while spartan
rubber stone guards had been used on the leading edge of the rear fenders for
'46, they were made of stainless steel in 1947. A full wheelcover, which came to
be called the "sombrero" because of its size and shape, replaced the diminutive
standard '46 hubcap. The housings for the fog lamps and parking lights were
combined for '47 and one of the horizontal bars of the grille was eliminated.
The trunk emblem, meanwhile, sprouted LaSalle-like wings (except on the Sixty
Special).
Overall, the effect of the '47 styling was a bit more "Cadillac" than in 1946.
Mechanically, the '47 engine was toughened with hardened ball seats as a component
of the hydraulic valve lifters. Cadillac considered this improvement important enough
to phase it in on the late '46s. Sixty-Two convertibles and the Seventy-Fives were now
equipped with Hydro-Lectric window lifts as standard equipment. This was a complicated
hydraulic system that requires careful attention to long-term maintenance for the collector
who owns a Cadillac so fitted.
By the end of the 1947 model year, Cadillac was back on its peacetime track. The number
of cars produced reached 61,926 units, more than twice that of '46.
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