1940 LaSalle Series 52 4 Door Sedan
From a time when the world was different and maybe even better, we give you a 1940 LaSalle Series 52 4 door sedan. Originally owned by a business professor at Harvard University and came to our consignor's possession through an estate sale, this end of an era Art Deco skate is showing an astounding 14,313 title verified miles clocked on the odometer. A good driver that presents about as factory fresh as you can get with only a few small flaws, but otherwise she's very nicely done and preserved.
Exterior
This design leader in the form of a Series 52 Special bears Harley Earl's latest "torpedo" look. Sealed beams are now down into the fenders. Body lines are gently rounded and clean, and the trademark LaSalle grille arguably reached its pinnacle: still slimmer than Cadillac's but artfully shaped. Like the '39s, this 1940 model wears vertical brightwork in the "catwalk" areas between grille and headlamps, (another Earl idea), but the catwalks are now wider and fully integrated with the fenders. This 4 door sedan is bathed in what may be the factory application of Harbor Mist Gray Metallic that is nice and shiny and very well preserved. Extra accessory bumpers are now in addition to the standard fare both front and rear, and it is all nice and mirror like. From its gently sloping roofline, to the trunk lid and bulbous teardrop rear quarters that look like they are going 100MPH while standing still...the lines of this car are just magnificent. Darker gray steel wheels with some dish trimmings and moon caps in chrome with red centered badges adorn the corners, I'm the boogie woogie bugle boy of company B!
Interior
A swing the door, and gray herringbone pattern cloth covers the door panels and greets one with a smile. Some stitching creates faux panels, and nicely polished knobs and handles are on as well as a strip of polished oak at the upper sill. Slipping inside I can place my torso on to the wide split bench in more gray herringbone broadcloth coverings for the front and rear seats, and bolsters that match the door panels are carrying on throughout. A simple but effective dash with a gray steel topper and wood trimmed front houses art deco styled instruments, and plenty of vertical chromed ribs for the center speaker grille even though this car was born a radio delete. A nice banjo style steering wheel in good condition with a bakelite surround in light cream has a badged center, and a horn ring rounding it 3/4 of the way around. A heater box hangs above pristine gray carpet flooding the floor and the upper interior pillar surfaces and the headliner are covered in more gray broadcloth which is nice and tight these 83 years later.
Drivetrain
Under the hood is a dusty but rust-free engine showing in 322ci and V8 setup. There is a single 2-barrel carburetor by Carter now on top tucked underneath the oil bath air cleaning system. On back is the original Selective Synchromesh 3-speed manual transmission, and this pushes power back to a 3.92 rear axle.
Undercarriage
Under this car is a structurally sound X frame with clean floor pans and rockers. The black frame supports the factory flooring, all rust free and appearing as nearly new. As a matter of fact, the only rust to note is slight surface peppering on some of the untreated suspension components. Independent coil springs for the front suspension, and leaf springs for the rear, and drum brakes all around leave us with a structurally sound frame and undercarriage.
Drive-Ability
Our crash test dummy decoder, (although he's a genius and far from a dummy, I just said that because he proofs these descriptions!), took this one for a ride and described great acceleration, nice handling, and a great ride, with very smooth shifting. He also reported a slight bit of smoke on start up but all else was working as designed. Plenty of power for this LaSalle
Wonderful would describe this 1940 example, where Harley Earl was at his finest. Great flowing lines, giving this car a moving while standing still pontoon styled look. The interior is just beautiful, and looking original but all buttoned up, and the wide whites with that sexy grille is worth the price of admission.
TRIM TAG
STYLE NO 40 5219-1940 LaSalle 52 Series 4 Door Sedan
BODY NO 4333-Body #
TRIM NO 54-Gray Herringbone Cloth
PAINT NO 14-Harbor Mist Metallic Gray
Classic Auto Mall is a 336,000-square foot classic and special interest automobile showroom, featuring over 850 vehicles for sale with showroom space for up to 1,000 vehicles. Also, a 400 vehicle barn find collection is on display. This vehicle is located in our showroom in Morgantown, Pennsylvania, conveniently located just 1-hour west of Philadelphia on the I-76 Pennsylvania Turnpike. The website is and our phone number is 855-201-7026. Please contact us anytime for more information or to come see the vehicle in person.
From a time when the world was different and maybe even better, we give you a 1940 LaSalle Series 52 4 door sedan. Originally owned by a business professor at Harvard University and came to our consignor's possession through an estate sale, this end of an era Art Deco skate is showing an astounding 14,313 title verified miles clocked on the odometer. A good driver that presents about as factory fresh as you can get with only a few small flaws, but otherwise she's very nicely done and preserved.
Exterior
This design leader in the form of a Series 52 Special bears Harley Earl's latest "torpedo" look. Sealed beams are now down into the fenders. Body lines are gently rounded and clean, and the trademark LaSalle grille arguably reached its pinnacle: still slimmer than Cadillac's but artfully shaped. Like the '39s, this 1940 model wears vertical brightwork in the "catwalk" areas between grille and headlamps, (another Earl idea), but the catwalks are now wider and fully integrated with the fenders. This 4 door sedan is bathed in what may be the factory application of Harbor Mist Gray Metallic that is nice and shiny and very well preserved. Extra accessory bumpers are now in addition to the standard fare both front and rear, and it is all nice and mirror like. From its gently sloping roofline, to the trunk lid and bulbous teardrop rear quarters that look like they are going 100MPH while standing still...the lines of this car are just magnificent. Darker gray steel wheels with some dish trimmings and moon caps in chrome with red centered badges adorn the corners, I'm the boogie woogie bugle boy of company B!
Interior
A swing the door, and gray herringbone pattern cloth covers the door panels and greets one with a smile. Some stitching creates faux panels, and nicely polished knobs and handles are on as well as a strip of polished oak at the upper sill. Slipping inside I can place my torso on to the wide split bench in more gray herringbone broadcloth coverings for the front and rear seats, and bolsters that match the door panels are carrying on throughout. A simple but effective dash with a gray steel topper and wood trimmed front houses art deco styled instruments, and plenty of vertical chromed ribs for the center speaker grille even though this car was born a radio delete. A nice banjo style steering wheel in good condition with a bakelite surround in light cream has a badged center, and a horn ring rounding it 3/4 of the way around. A heater box hangs above pristine gray carpet flooding the floor and the upper interior pillar surfaces and the headliner are covered in more gray broadcloth which is nice and tight these 83 years later.
Drivetrain
Under the hood is a dusty but rust-free engine showing in 322ci and V8 setup. There is a single 2-barrel carburetor by Carter now on top tucked underneath the oil bath air cleaning system. On back is the original Selective Synchromesh 3-speed manual transmission, and this pushes power back to a 3.92 rear axle.
Undercarriage
Under this car is a structurally sound X frame with clean floor pans and rockers. The black frame supports the factory flooring, all rust free and appearing as nearly new. As a matter of fact, the only rust to note is slight surface peppering on some of the untreated suspension components. Independent coil springs for the front suspension, and leaf springs for the rear, and drum brakes all around leave us with a structurally sound frame and undercarriage.
Drive-Ability
Our crash test dummy decoder, (although he's a genius and far from a dummy, I just said that because he proofs these descriptions!), took this one for a ride and described great acceleration, nice handling, and a great ride, with very smooth shifting. He also reported a slight bit of smoke on start up but all else was working as designed. Plenty of power for this LaSalle
Wonderful would describe this 1940 example, where Harley Earl was at his finest. Great flowing lines, giving this car a moving while standing still pontoon styled look. The interior is just beautiful, and looking original but all buttoned up, and the wide whites with that sexy grille is worth the price of admission.
TRIM TAG
STYLE NO 40 5219-1940 LaSalle 52 Series 4 Door Sedan
BODY NO 4333-Body #
TRIM NO 54-Gray Herringbone Cloth
PAINT NO 14-Harbor Mist Metallic Gray
Classic Auto Mall is a 336,000-square foot classic and special interest automobile showroom, featuring over 850 vehicles for sale with showroom space for up to 1,000 vehicles. Also, a 400 vehicle barn find collection is on display. This vehicle is located in our showroom in Morgantown, Pennsylvania, conveniently located just 1-hour west of Philadelphia on the I-76 Pennsylvania Turnpike. The website is and our phone number is 855-201-7026. Please contact us anytime for more information or to come see the vehicle in person.