A fellow sent me an email with the following question:
"Were the 1950-54 Pontiac 2 door hardtops sold in Canada based on Chevrolet chassis or U.S chassis?"
I checked my books and find there was a Catalina 2 door hardtop built in Oshawa in 1951 and 52 (model 2737D). In '53 they show a Pathfinder Deluxe 2 door hardtop (model 2037) and Laurentian (2037D). In '54 the Laurentian was the 2 door hardtop model offered and the Catalina was imported from the U.S.
Can anyone tell me if all the Oshawa built 2 door hardtops (including Catalina) were built on Chevy chassis?
Todd According to my 1949-54 Maintenance manual all Canadian Pontiacs from 1949-52 were built on a 120 inch wheelbase and 1953-54 were on a 122 inch wheelbase! I have a 1950 Chevrolet Sales Brochure which states the wheelbase to be 115 inches and I would think the other 3 years would be the same! I once owned a 1952 Pontiac built in Oshawa (with the American body and round tail lights) and when put side by side to my Dad's 49 Chevrolet it was about 5 inches longer! A friend of mine had a 51 small body Pontiac and it was still longer than the Chev by about 3 inches! So my answer to your question would be NO 1949-54 Pontiacs did not use Chevrolet Chassis. Bob.
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1965 Thunderbird Special Landau 10th Anniversary Limited Edition only 4500 built 34,800 miles
first thing to look at is the series/body number. If it begin by 25 or 27 it is a US model made in or out of Canada.
If the number is 20 or22 it is a Canadian one built here with the Chevrolet chassis.
The Canadian one was a bit cheaper than the US model offer here.
Most of the body part are Chevy and most of the trim. The steer axle is the same, the diff. the transmission. But Canadian series20 or 22 use the Pontiac engine.
Some parts on Canadian Pontiac are made for Canadian Pontiac only, like que horn button, hood, some front fender trim, (53-54) the heater display button etc.
It depend on the series number of the car you are talking about.
Fitz.
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www.FitzbackGarage.com Look for Easy Steering in your vintage Poncho, Look for the EasyDrive Power Steering System in the web site
