Just signed up, need some help with lowering our 49 Cadillac

My name is William Kennedy From Turlock, Ca. Working on this 1949 Cadillac has been a chore and a half but I have to get the suspension down as low as I can without dumping thousand into it, rear is leaf springs so to do air ride I’ve been told its expensive, I need help figuring out if I just cut the front springs and de-arch and pull the rear leafs and use blocks? Which also leads to the question of what tires to run since I’m running 8.20.15 3.5in white wall tires. I want a wide whitewall but smaller tire and I haven’t came across anyone lowering 49 and using wide whites or doing any suspension mods either. Thank you all for any help I can get!

 

Hi & welcome. Likely cutting 1 - 1.5" coils on the front will get it down but the more you cut out of the coil springs the bumbier it will ride going down the street. Those front coils along with the large tires are what gives it a good ride. When you cut out coils you cannot put them back & would have to find new springs. On the rear start with lowering blocks and see how far you can get it that way. Three to four inche blocks are not hard to find. With just blocks on the rear you will not effect the ride back there but when you begin removing leafs it will get a bumpy ride back there real quick. Also consider having to come out of driveways and such and tail dragging.
On going to smaller tires that will effect the gearing and you will for any given speed have higher RPM's to maintain that speed along with lower gas economy. The 8:20 - 15 is the correct original tire size for that car. They were that large because that is one heavy car and that size was needed to safely support that weight and give a good ride. It will not take much lowering of the stance for it to stop having that Cadillac smooth ride.
Everything you do to lower the car will can have a counter effect on RPM's, fuel economy and ride.
I am not trying to talk you out of lowering, just pointing out there will be some negative effects when you do it.
Jimmie

 

If you go for a H78x15 you'll have the same width, but a slightly smaller diameter, then I'd use a G78x15 on the front, A G78 is 27.7" in diameter, whereas your 820x15 is 29.6" diameter, so that's an inch drop at the front without touching the springs. I agree with above, 1 or 1 1/2 coils out of the front, blocks at the back, simple, cheap, tried and tested. Lovely car by the way, I have a '47.

 

Did you ever lower your car ? I just picked up a 49 coupe deville and was trying to figure out how much to drop it !

 

Welcome to the HAMB from Illinois.

I'd drive it, and enjoy it as it is!

 

..............and just for the record, @elnutty, the OP hasn't been back on here since his only post in May 2020.