1948 Daimler
DE36
by Hooper

Gladys is a real Daimler, built in the days before the Jaguar takeover. She is a Hooper bodied limousine, complete with electric division, built upon a Daimler DE36 platform.

This amazing automobile was Daimler and Hooper's entry into the coachbuilding competition of the 1948 Earls Court motor show. UK was effectively bankrupt after World War II, and hence the 1948 show was he first post WWII event. This actual car is the first ever to display what became known as the Razor Edge styling. She emerged victorious as the section 1 winner.

She employs a 5.4 litre straight 8 OHV engine, mated to a 4 speed pre-select gearbox via a fluid flywheel.

The Cadillac Connection

The following text is a passage from the book GREAT MARQUES - CADILLAC by Andrew Whyte. Pages 72-74 discuss the bustleback 1980 - 85 Cadillac Seville:

...In a sense, however, the brand-new Seville for 1980 season was a styling reprise.

At the 1948 London motor show, the first one there after World War 2, self-expression abounded as the British industry struggled toward distant prosperity. The great makers, like Rolls-Royce and Daimler, were still relying on traditional bodywork - often commissioned by the individual customer, or created speculatively for display (a ploy that America had taught the world). Several examples were exhibited by one of the most celebrated of all the long-established (by now Daimler-owned) specialists, Hooper & Co. of London, at that 1948 show. Most eye-catching was a 'three-pus-two' of enormous size, fitted with power-operated convertible top; its body line was accentuated by the completely filled-in rear wheel arch (not such an uncommon thing) and a unique front fender [wing] line that swept through to the tail. This 'Green Goddess' had no rear fender at all: a Hooper hallmark in subsequent years.

More artistically conceived was Hooper's Touring Limousine, which won the top coachwork award. Like the 'Green Goddess', which inspired the famous 'Docker' Daimler show cars, the Touring Limousine was built on the Daimler DE36 straight-8 chassis. It also had sculptured razor-edge lines that blended subtly, to merge to the tail. (This type was exhibited at the 1949 New York show, listed at $22,000!)

The car, of course, that the above paragraph refers to, and the inspiration behind the many thousands of 1980-85 Cadillac Sevilles (themselves now collectible), was KAR 989, our old DE36.

Restoration photos:

Here are the car's data plates...

This is the 4 speed pre-select transmission. It's the largest automobile gearbox I have ever encountered and almost the size of a bus unit. It took 3 men and 2 trolley jacks to reinstall it into the car.

In fact this transmission is virtually identical to the one used in the, Daimler engineered, Ferret 4.5 ton armoured car!

With the transmission removed, I stripped and repainted most of the frame and weatherproofed the wooden boards. The car does have running boards but they are only visible when the doors are open.

Battery Tray

Part of left side of Frame

2 images of part of right side of Frame...

Before reinstallation of the transmission, the tail seal was replaced.

The fluid flywheel was disassembled and rebuilt with a new seal and new circlip.
Here's the front of the driving wheel...

Here's the rear of the driving wheel...

Here's the front of the driven wheel...

Here's the rear of the driven wheel...

Given that the transmssion was removed, I also rebuilt the main cross member and pedal assembly.
The new transmssion mounts are from David Beales Engineering.

Here's the main cross member being painted with Hammerite. You can see the undercoat of etch primer in yellow.
I did not always use Hammerite. Sometimes I used the American product POR-15, depending upon the surface type. POR-15 is tougher but it will NOT stick to metal unless there is a rough surface. Hammerite is not so durable but will adhere to relatively smooth surfaces.

There's a bunch of bolts, nuts, rods and washers that I had stripped and zinc plated for durability and neat appearance.

In these photos you can also see that I had much of the mechanical linkages stripped and bright zinc plated.

Here's the main cross member actually on the car...


You can just see the new stainless steel exhaust to the right.

Here's a close up of a mount once installed...

Here's the freshly rebuilt rear transmission support, known as the banana...

Here's the transmssion reinstalled...

Rear cross member is mainly a stiffener, and protects the transmission from shock via the vulcanised banana support.

Some images of the pedal assembly prior to refit of pedals and boards...

There was nothing wrong with the brake master cylinder or servo unit, so they were only cleaned and the master cylinder repainted in POR-15.

The 2 massive mounting plates, for master cylinder and servo, were sand blasted and painted in POR-15. Here's one...

Same goes for the array of brake levers that operate the rear rod brakes and facilitate the parking brake...

Here they are greased and in-situ...

Here's 3 images of the repainted brake vacuum tank...

The old exhaust was getting ropey. A new fully stainless steel exhaust has been custom fabricated. Everything backward of the exhaust manifold is stainless steel, even the twin downpipes. This image shows the 2 silencers/mufflers. Notice that one of them has been turned vertical to clear the relatively narrow space between the frame and the inner brake servo mounting bracket. The original No.1 silencer was just a wider pipe. The original exhaust shield is back in place to protect the brake servo and master cylinder.

The original rocker/valve cover was cracked. We arranged for a new one to be custom made. Here's how it turned out...

The air filter cases that sit on the rocker cover have been rubbed down, etch primed, and top coated in POR-15. Here's an image of work-in-progress...

The running boards appear to have been replaced by a previous owner.
I have only had to coat them in wood preservative...

The Hooper Body Number Plate is hidden under the rear seat.
One nail has caused some corrosion but I have now treated the plate with Supertrol.

Here's the repainted cover maintenace cover plate that sits above the rear axle.
It's sitting on a bucket in the photo.

Here are some images of the rear structure, and the new battery prior to installation of new leather seats.

Here's the newly installed rear seat with new leather from Germany.
The seat stitching and leather sections exactly duplicate the original leather.

Two of the front floor boards had suffered from delamination of the plyboard, so I have cut new boards.

This board is where the driver would rest his left foot.

This board is for the pedals and throttle assembly.

Here are the same boards painted and with metal furniture fitted...

The channel that you can see duplicates the design of the original floor board, just like
everything else about these boards, and provides for clearance of the kick pedal of the
semi-automatic Wilson Pre-Select transmission.

Here's a test fit of the new floor boards with a mini G-clamp and some tippex fluid outlining where the throttle pedal will sit.
The fit is OK, although I would have liked it better. I am not a carpenter!

Newly installed leather front seats to correct original pattern...

The car has just had an engine oil and filter change, and so the opportunity was taken to repaint the filter cylinder at the same time.

The oil used was a combination of straight weight 30 (manufacturers recommendation), and multigrade 20w/50 (thicker, and suitable for an older engine). The sump capacity is approximately 2.5 gallons!

Here are images of the engine...

I was asked for dashboard images. Sorry for the poor quality of these images...

Now some additional interior images.
First the division...

Now the folding side facing seat for personal assisant or servant...

Finally the glass topped writing table...

Work the car would benefit from: