From the '55 Motorama to the junkyard and back! This is the story of the LaSalle II Roadster & Sedan

To gauge interest in the return of LaSalle, the lower-priced Cadillac companion brand, the 1955 Motorama featured a pair of LaSalle II concepts —this sedan and a roadster. Both cars featured a range of technological advancements including independent suspension, fuel injection, and turbine-style wheels with brake drums cast into their center sections. They also bucked the trend of cars growing wider and longer; the sedan’s overall length was just 180 inches, over a foot shorter than a 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air. The LaSalle II Sedan remains in unrestored condition, as found by owner Joe Bortz in the 1980s in a Michigan salvage yard.

One of the creative minds behind Harley J. Earl’s famed special design team was Carl Renner, a gentleman who was in part responsible for a number of important designs, many of which he remains uncredited for due to the secretive nature of the team.

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CHAPTERS:

00:00 - GM's Marvelous Motorama
01:35 - LaSalle II Roadster
01:53 - LaSalle, the Brand
02:28 - The roadster was intended to compete with cars from Europe.
04:00 - Jonee's favorite bit of design
04:30 - The engine
05:05 - The Sedan
06:20 - Designs quirks
07:40 - The Junkyard tale
09:35 - Enter Joe Bortz
10:17 - Special cars = special tires
11:06 - The Roadster's restoration

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