Pacemaker Options

[Deleted User]

From the Serial Number thread I was led to read some of the sales data posted by Alex Burr.

I have found that my Pacemaker Deluxe as about every option available where the owners where given a choice of Standard or Option. When there were multiple choices an upgrade was always taken (O/D for example). I even have on of the "extra $10 charge" paint colors - Oriental Green Code P)

I have a few questions now..........
What are the Front Fender Ornaments? (DL.50-1, page 3, Item F)
Were they an option for the Pacemakers?
Was leather interior an option for the Pacemakers or just Commodore/Super 8?

[Deleted User]

My '50 Pacemaker Deluxe has no front fender ornaments. So they probably were an option. By the way, the only options on my Pacemaker Deluxe are Supermatic Drive (which includes overdrive) and a heater.

[Deleted User]

Do you have the bullets on the side in front? Maybe these are the Ornaments.

I wonder of the Front Fender Ornaments were similar to the Commodore fins on top of the fenders.

Club Coupe

I think that you are referring to the chrome spears on the top of the fender. My understanding is that these were installed on the lower priced models as a dealer-installed option, as were the tissue dispensers, exhaust tip, outside mirrors, gas door, guard, spot light, etc. My '51 Pacemaker was optioned with a radio, heater and hydramatic. The hydramatic was a very rare option, only offered in the Pacemaker in the later part of 1951. As far as leather interiors go; the Pacemaker was the entry level, base model with cloth seats and rubber mats. I don't know of a leather and carpet option for the Pacemaker, but the individual dealers would "option" a car to the buyer's desires in order to get the sale. Many two tone models were "dealer optioned". If you like and want the fender spears on your Pacemaker, I would say to go ahead and put them on. The stainless "bullets" on the forward side of the fender were standard on the Pacemaker as far as I know, as never recall seeing a Pacemaker without them.

[Deleted User]

I am trying to make sure I understand the literature that is on Alex's site. The way I read it is that Leather Interior is a Pacemaker option. If this is really true, it helps me in future "restoration" and allows me to upgrade when I can afford it.

I did not see Tissue Dispenser on the 1950 list on Alex's site or gas door guard.

Aaron D. IL

I'm pretty sure the spears were the chrome ones on the top of the front fenders and not the stainless "bullets" on the side. I had a '51 P coupe that someone titled as a "deluxe" but as we know Deluxe was officially only offered in 1950 (50A). That car had fender top spears, a pair of round white "backup" lights. 2 spot lights and a heater. I suspect a lot of that was all added later on that car.
What was officially factory available on the option list for a '50 Deluxe? I'd go by the sheets Alex had. What a dealer was willing to do was probably another story. I'd believe it that you could get leather on a non-convertible. What would be different besides side-panels? Headliner would probably still be cloth. So many things were interchangeable between models. Jon B and I were talking about it once though that it would be nice just from the standpoint of historical accuracy to put together a book to know exactly what would've been factory correct options for a given year and model. Sort of a species identification book.

Here's the thing though, you have to figure if you were sitting in a show room in 1950 and you started adding on ALL the options on a Pacemaker that you could possibly get, at some point the price would have to cross the line where you might as well either A. Get a convertible. or B. upgrade to a Super 6, Commode 6 or more senior model. So if you had a fully optioned Pacemaker Deluxe you would probably have a rare car indeed because most customers probably would've just opted to upgrade to the next model up and get a 262.

Really if you think about it the whole point of a Pacemaker was so Hudson could offer a less expensive stripped-down model that they could sell a lot more of. Hudson was already priced in Buick sales territory. (upper middle price class). It's the same thing they tried to do with the Essex and the Terraplane. It worked during the depression but I think they should've moved up-market because they weren't going to give Ford or GM a run for their money in the cheap car department.

Club Coupe

I just checked the 1950 options and don't see a leather and carpet option, but rather the leather seating option that you are referring to. I personally think that leather seats with rubber mats would look rather bizarre, but to each his own. I must agree with Aaron that by the time that a Pacemaker was fully optioned that the price would be rather prohibitive and that a Super or Commodore would be the better buy for the money.

As to my examples of dealer installed "options", I should have put these in an "optional accessories" catagory to be clear. Sorry 'bout that.

When my car was restored the interior drove me crazy. At that time there were no rubber replacement mats or original fabric available; so I went with carpet and striped broadcloth seat fabric from a Ford. I couldn't find a decent Pacemaker replacement steering wheel to save my life so I ended up with a Hornet wheel. So with the carpet, the steering wheel and the broadcloth the grey dash trim pieces looked out of place, so I had them chromed 'a la Hornet. It looks good, but is no way original on the inside. From the outside it looks stock. So I suppose that I ended up with a "Pacenet" or a "Hornmaker"

[Deleted User]

I understand the Price point line. I have found that Dynamat matches closely to the rubber that is in my back floor. And this is what I am going with as I move forward.

Now that I have it running and road safe, I am starting to focus on learning more about the car, what could have come with it, what did come with it, etc.........

I would be interested in seeing photos of the dash without a clock or radio since these are both options. I have yet to really look at my clock to know which version I have. I know the radio did power on, but I do not have output to the speaker. Don't know if the radio is "broken" or the speaker is bad.

Club Coupe

Your radio speaker is likely a 6x9", 8 ohm and was at one time available ar Radio Shack. You'll probably want a fresh speaker to eliminate that as a problem. I've seen AM radios not pick up a station if they are inside of a concrete, steel reinforced garage. As AM stations tend to have a larger broadcast range at night, you might want to try to pick up WLS in Chicago or WSM (650) in Nashville. You probably already know about Steve Engel being the man to send your radio to for repair. I'd imagine that you have a wind-up type clock. That's what my car came with, but I replaced it with an electric.

The hole for the radio had a plain plate over it, as I recall. Don't know about the clock hole covering.

hudsontech

There is a large list of "Accessories" in the 1948-1954 Master Parts Catalog, Didn't really see much for 500 and 50A - but I just skimmed it. I didn't see anything about leather upholstery, but that could have been under some other name. As someone mentioned a lot of accessory stuff for Pacemakers was probably installed by the dealer to customers request - so it wouldn't show up in the parts books. Individual year parts books would probably have a better listing if what was available - and the other thing you have to realize is parts books and accessory listings were put together, probably before production began. More stuff was added later as accessory sales would be influenced by what was wanted by the customer and this material would not make the parts books either. As above it was generally a dealer option. And some of it was after market too. For example, and outside mirror that "doesn't look quite right" was probably bought by the customer at his local parts store of J. C. Whitney (they sold tons of after market material for just about any car on the road - from Model T's to Chrysler Motors to GM - you name it. Yes, and Hudson, Studebaker and the remaining independents. I fitted out more than a few of my cars from the 1950's and 1960's from J. C. Whitney. At one time you could get a 308 engine from them - they sucked up a bunch of the 1956 - and maybe a few earlier ones - 308 engines when AMC sold what they had left on the general market after the 1956 model year..

Hudsonly,
Alex Burr
Memphis, TN

[Deleted User]

Alex, Thank you for sharing. I found the leather interior listed in the DL.50-1 posted on your website.

hudsontech

Great. I've got so much stuff on that site I can't remember everything. Incidentally if anyone is looking at that DL.50-1 and happens to notice, at the start it says something about Model 1150011 - that should read "500". It's a typo that I shall correct one of these days.

I'm glad that you found what you were looking for - I should have a counter on that site to see how many use it.

Hudsonly,
Alex Burr
Memphis, TN

[Deleted User]

This is all very interesting to me because I've never before read anything about Pacemaker options. My 50 was sold new to a man who used it as his retirement car. I was told in the past that the heater is the only option on the car but as it has the chrome ornaments on the tops of the front fenders and has a wind-up clock, either he ordered more or those were added by the dealer.
He added a turn signal devise that an old friend of mine, who used to own a Western Auto store, said were carried by those stores. The upholstery is grey with thin green stripes which was probably intended to go with the Peacock Green paint.

middletom

cpr3333

Middletom,

My car is sort of the same story - it was bought new by my father's uncle who my father describes as extremely frugal and not a car guy.

The car, however has a heater, radio, wind up clock, cigarette lighter and the hose that lets you check the tire pressure without opening the trunk. It used to have the rear window blinds but my father chucked those years ago - he said they were tearing up the headliner.

On the outside, it has window shades and wheel trim rings and bumper bars that I have never seen on another Hudson. Since my father's uncle would never have spent money dressing up a car, my best guess is that they were added by the dealer, not necessarily from the Hudson parts catalog, before he bought it.

One other oddity is that the cigarette lighter has an ivory knob but the light switch is that blue green color. I always wondered if that was normal or if I somehow have a lighter from a Super or Commodore for some reason.

As to the upholstery, my understanding is that all Pacemakers shared the same color/pattern regardless of exterior color. I'm right now in the initial stages of finding out about getting some made to match the original.

Pacemaker500,

Dynamat? I'd like some details on that if you don't mind. I want to redo mine as close to original as possible so don't want carpet.

[Deleted User]

CPR3333, Dynamat can be easily found with Google. The actual product I will be using is the DynaDeck in combination with a self-adhesive heat reflective layer (another manufacturer) that I have already installed.

dynamat.com

faustmb

My pacemaker was bought new by my grandfather, I was told with no options. It has a wind up clock ( I thought electric clock was an option), no radio, no cigarette lighter, does have a heater. He added rear opening wings from a commodore, aftermarket turn signals, and beauty rings.

[Deleted User]

I have never seen one without a clock, I believe the electric clock was the option,
Roger