1982 Caddy Hearse - Door Glass Replacement?

I recently acquired an old 1982 Cadillac Hearse by Superior. It has seen better days and I got it real cheap. It is very low mileage, 60k, 6.0L motor. It had a cracked windshield, and a missing glass on the front passenger side.

It took a few tries, but I was able to get a windshield. The door glass is another story. I contacted the conversion company, Superior, who confirmed what I was told. They were custom glass, and standard Fleetwood glass is too large.

A local body shop is willing to try to help. They suggesting letting them take the drivers glass out. Then finding one at a salvage yard roughly the same size, with the same bend, and having a glass shop trim it to fit.

Before I put any more money into this car, does anyone have any thoughts or suggestions??

Even custom glass should have a NAGS number somewhere on it. ( using the other side’s numbers to order the replacement. )
But I’d let the glass/body shop do the footwork even if they have to remove the other side like they said.

Finding the correct glass for this would be like finding a needle in a haystack…except there is no needle. You could get a flat laminated glass cut for it but without the bend it wouldn’t fit right or roll up & down. Sounds like the body shop has the right idea.

One other place to check - buy a copy of Hemmings Motor News, they have listings for shops that should be able to handle this kind of work. You can also check on their web site.

p.s. - most old hearses are ‘low miles’, not like they got lots of day-to-day use!

Just a side note, unless the glass they find is a laminated one (most are tempered) it won’t be able to be “trimmed”.

I have a very good glass distributor in NE PA, Mesko Glass. Check your local area for a glass supplier, most do auto glass, but also mirrors, tub enclosures etc. They should be able to find a replacement.

p.s. - most old hearses are ‘low miles’, not like they got lots of day-to-day use!

“Low miles! A real cream puff! Only driven for Grandma once.”

-duck

You might check the forums at 500CID.com. That’s a high performance Cadillac site devoted to all things Cadillac. Hearses are popular with some of the members and maybe someone there has some glass floating around or possibly steer you to someone who can provide it.

There are also hearse and ambulance forums. It sounds like you will have to find a junked one with good glass. The guys on the forums may have leads on where these might be.

You can try replacing the side glass with clear Lexan or polycarbonate.

This is a strong clear plastic that can be cut into shape and then molded to the contour with heat. This only comes in clear. So if there’s any tinting to the side window required, a professional window tinter should be able to match it up.

Tester

“You can try replacing the side glass with clear Lexan or polycarbonate.”

That will work for a couple of years, but these plastics will yellow with exposure to light. It’ll get the hearse on the road quickly, though, and will allow time to find a permanent replacement.