Anyone born after 1960 may notice this hard to believe , but there was a clip when hardtops like the 1950 - 1952PontiacCatalina were quite alien . That metre , of course , harks back to 1949 , when General Motors pioneer the pillarless idea with a triple of low-down - volume " hardtop convertible . "
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To heighten their allure , product planner look to faraway places with strange - sounding names . Thus did Buick put up a Riviera , name after the famed French and Italian coastline , and Cadillac the Gallic - fathom Coupe de Ville . Oldsmobile , though a bit more prosaic with Holiday , managed to capture the spirit of the matter .
The 1949 model yr also saw GM complete its first postwar restyle , issuing redesign A- and atomic number 5 - bodies in the image of the new - for-1948 carbon - trunk Cadillacs and Oldsmobile 98 . This in the main involved Chevrolet and Pontiac , both of which fared quite well stylistically . They fared well commercially , too , with record production that went up again for 1950 , bolstered by their first hardtop .
But where Chevrolet fielded a exclusive pillarless coupe , the natty Styleline DeLuxe Bel Air , Pontiac offer no fewer than four Catalinas , key out for the romantic island 26 nautical mile off the Southern California shoring . ( Bel Air touch to that same domain , though a little further inland : the exclusive residential district near Beverly Hills . )
DeLuxe and Super trim and six- and eight - cylinder engines accounted for the variations , all in the chief lines compose of stringently notchback styles . Pontiac also offered Streamliner Six and Eight series , each with standard- and DeLuxe - trimming fastback sedans and , oddly enough , a wagon .
Interestingly , at least one 1949 Catalina was built . Though rigorously for show , it previewed the rakish production roofline with its modestly wrapped , three - constituent rear windowpane .
LikeChevrolet ’s , Pontiac ’s successful 1949 package require chiefly a styling line of work , its canonical engineering science being of prewar origin , but it was good enough to last through 1952 with only evolutionary change .
discover about those changes on the next page .
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Styling and technological cash advance for the 1950 , 1951 , 1952 Pontiac Catalina were gradual . The fifties wear out a toothier grille , while the 1950 - 1951 sported a horizontal partition bar with a deep central vee cradling a large Pontiac crest . " Silver Streak " hood and rear deck stripes , a Pontiac fix since the 1930s , remained much in evidence .
So did the stern visage of Chief Pontiac as a mascot . Like all proper hood ornaments in those days , it glowed with the headlamps on .
Gimmicky feature names were de rigueur at the time , and Pontiac had its fair share . Interiors featured " Vision - Aire , " at least partially because of a big , slightly curved ( but still part ) " Safe - T - View " windscreen . Also touted were a " Carry - More " trunk , wider " gentle - Access " doors , sprint - mount up " Finger - Tip " starter , and " Tru - Arc Safety Steering " ( which was in reality slower than before ) .
Pontiac ’s main mechanically skillful developments for 1949 included adoption of a 120 - inch wheelbase for all models ( replacing the 119/122 - inch rent used since 1941 ) , slimmer canal - section side rails for the X - penis chassis , and telescopic shock absorbers all - round ( which yield a " Travelux Ride " ) .
Pontiac ’s old L - head six and eight soldier on , smooth running as ever and reliable as the tides . Respectivehorsepowerfor 1950 was 90 and 108 . For 1951 , the six was stepped up to 96 horsepower , the eight to 116 . An optional high - compression head ( necessitating exchange premium fuel ) impart four horses to each . Respective 1952 military rating came in at 100/102 and 118/122 .
Optional Hydra - Matic Drive gave Pontiac popularity a grown boost during this geological period . First offered for 1948 at $ 185 , it was reduced to $ 159 the following year and live on into 78 percent of full production . Fastbacks were pass from favor , and Pontiac was even quick to abandon those , dumping the Streamliner serial for 1952 and putting Wagon into the Chieftain lines .
The Catalinas were another story . Like hardtop everywhere , they sell powerfully from the start , and went nowhere but up despite being less than $ 100 cheaper than Pontiac ’s trueconvertibles .
The division did n’t record individual organic structure - elan product , but it ’s known that two out of every three Catalinas sold in this stop were Eights . This evoke that purchaser want hardtop with maximal power as well as maximum luxury .
Luxury they got . Like other early GM hardtops , Pontiacs make out handsomely upholstered in vinyl and leather . Bright horizontal strip over the headliner seams add to the " transformable feel , " an idea lend by GM ’s fabled headman couturier , Harley Earl .
In all , the first Catalinas stand as refined symbolisation of Pontiac ’s postwar turn of events from " ace Chevy " to a more grand cable car with its own identity . In time , that trend would prove as profitable as hardtops and automatics .
To ensure out specifications for the 1950 - 1952 Pontiac Catalina , continue to the next page .
1950, 1951, 1952 Pontiac Catalina Specifications
The 1950 , 1951 , 1952 Pontiac Catalina was establish for luxury , as instance by its exotic name , and as such it assume existing Pontiac locomotive engine .
Specifications
railway locomotive : litre - head I-6 , 239.2 cid ( 3.56 × 4.00 ) 90 bhp ( 1950 ) 96/100 bhp ( 1951 ) 100/102 bhp ( 1952 ) ; L - head I-8 , 268.4 Criminal Investigation Command ( 3.38 × 3.75 ) 108 bhp ( 1950 ) 116/120 bhp ( 1951 ) 118/122 bhp ( 1952 )
Transmission:3 - speed manual of arms ; 4 - speed Hydra - Matic optional
Suspension front : upper and scurvy A - arms , whorl springs
Suspension rear : springy axle , semi - elliptic leafage springs
Brakes : front / rear tympan
Wheelbase ( in.):120.0
Weight ( lbs.):3,469 - 3,573
Top upper ( mph):80 - 95
0 - 60 mph ( sec):13 - 15.5
