Don´t get me wrong - you can be sure that I wish all of you a really long and satisfying life as well as best of luck. But as we all know: It won´t be eternal. (Insert religious discussions here, if required. )

Ingo gave me the idea for this thread, when he just told us, he desires this vehicle to accompany him on his final voyage.

Now, we´re a great bunch of car nuts with a wide variety of tastes and affectations. I´d like to know: How´d you imagine to ride "in style" that certain day? As I maintain one of world´s largest collection of hearse-related literature, there may be short odds on seeing a picture of your desired vehicle afterwards.

I know this could be a controversial subject for some of us and I hope you don´t consider my question inappropriate, but... Hey, we´re all grown-up. So, please don´t take it too seriously, OK?

(Furthermore you may use this thread for occasional "Has there ever been a hearse on _________-chassis?"-requests, if you like. )

By now, I can´t provide my favoured hearse, because there are so many out there - and I´m afraid that I can only get a single fare ticket.

I would like a traditional modest funeral myself. Nothing too fancy.
As for my last ride, I guess I would like to be transported in a Cadillac DTS
Something like these two below: (I prefer the white one) They look to be from the same conversion company, I guess.





Of course, me being a lover of the outdoors, I wouldn’t mind being transported in a Ford Expedition hearse But I doubt there is such a thing.

The Saab 9000 posted on that page:
http://www.imcdb.org/vehicle.php?id=11932

Hmmm... if there somehow was a Toyota Camry hearse that seems as though it would suit me. Though I suppose there hasn't ever been such a thing...

One of the first letters I wrote, when I got in 1990 my first K 70, was to the (the other? the older?) German hearse-club for asking, if there was ever any hearse an K 70- or RO 80-base. It wasn't.

I can't think of a car. More like a B-29.

It's in South Africa, but: http://www.customcitysa.com/camry.htm
I would have assumed they'd start with a wagon.

@Neptune: Yes, both hearses seen above came from the same company, namely Eagle Coach and you chose their Echelon model.

Regarding the Ford Expedition: By now, I´ve never seen anything like this before, but several companies offer conversions for the Cadillac Escalade or the Suburban. I´m sure they would also do an Expedition, if a customer requires such a vehicle. Anyway, maybe you would also accept a van?



Otherwise, I can offer a rather clumsy Ford F 250 (kind of "modular hearse"...), serving in Brazil.



I know that Imperial Coach of Pittsburgh once converted an Explorer back in the 90s, but I currently don´t have the pictures here in my office.

@Taxiguy: As you´ve already seen, there are Toyota Camry hearses out there, but not many - and seemingly all of them were built in South Africa. Not even in Japan they make Camry hearses, preferring the Toyota Crown and Century instead. Here are some more Camry hearses, done by Cammy´s Conversions of Johannesburg:







... but how about a Crown Victoria?



@Ingo: You´re right. No hearses on Ro 80 and K 70 ever built. That´s a shame, but to be honest, I wouldn´t have expected anything else. DKW and Audi rarely had been converted for funeral use either. The same goes for BMW.

Well, I think that´s it for the moment.

1 or 2 years ago there was a Mercedes hearse at eBay, a longer W115.

A bit sad, that it was sold, because so annother classic irretrievable license-plate was getting lost. It had LÜN before (Lünen close to Dortmund), which was issued until 1975.

Not a long time before I've seen this car still in use.


@Animatronixx: falls dir mal Altkreis-Schilder in die Hände fallen sollten und du evtl.kein Interesse haben solltest, findest du in mir einen dankbaren Abnehmer.

A Caddy would be my choice but i guess other cars are more common here as hearses so it would be difficult i suppose, anyway http://clasicosdodgeespanoles.iespana.es/images/dodge3700gtfunebredriversion1.jp- g

Sorry, but the pic is forbidden.

Oh, you mean Cadillac with "Caddy"? On the first view I thought, you're talking about a VW Caddy.

Hmm indeed, how odd, i tried the link when i posted it and it worked well, yes i mean Cadillac with Caddy

Oh dear... http://usuarios.lycos.es/clasicosperdidos/hpbimg/SIMCAFUNEBRE.jpg

@Ingo: If you can tell me more details of the former LÜN-hearse, I can try to find out if the plates still exist. It´s quite likely that I know the current owner.

Regarding other abandoned plates: I keep my eyes open. Here are very few cars out and about, still carrying the old "MT" plates. Once I get one of them, I´ll let you know.

Oh, and VW Caddy... Yes, there were in fact some of them, but they all were hideous.

@CarChasesFanatic: So I guess a Spanish, Bergadana-bodied Cadillac will be fine?

copy/paste link, it works

OOOOOH!!!

What about a Chrysler Valiant Regal Coupe. I tried to buy this one a few years ago, before I bought my ambulance. It was converted by Superior Industries in Brisbane (no relation to Superior Coach in USA). Car originally started life as a Regal two door hardtop. You may recognise the shape as late sixties Dodge Dart coupe, as Chrysler Australia imported the two door shells and added Australian Valiant front panels

Oh my gosh, who would have imagined, a Camry hearse? How silly But of course I would still like it. The Crown Victoria one just seems a bit wrong though, for cars like limos, hearses, and executive sedans the Linocln Town Car is much better. I don't see why anyone would want to use the cheap Ford version of a car for something like that, when the fancy Lincoln much better suits it.

@antp- Didn't you once mention that there was a Chevrolet Caprice hearse in your town?

I like the Crown Victoria Hearse, it would perhaps be appropriate to carry a police officer (if he/she requested in their funeral plans to be transported in one)

Some time ago there was someone in Brunswick (south of Wilmington) that requested to be transported in a regular Pickup truck. They put his coffin in the pickup box (bed) If I remember right, he was well-to-do, but never had a eye for expensive things, therefore he didn’t want to be in a Cadillac or Lincoln hearse.

Probably, yes, as here seeing Chevrolet Caprice as hearses is not uncommon (much more common than as normal civilian car ) and I saw one few times around where I work.
They often use US cars for hearses, so there are few Lincoln Town Car too.

@Max: in Germany there are US-car-hearses, too.

I remember the funeral of my school-friend's mother in 1982. The hearse was a 1978 Chevrolet Caprice.

@antp: yes, with copying it works.

A litle bit small, the Simca. How tall you have to be maximum, that you were allowed to be transported in it?
You're dead, when you are lying in it - so you won't fell, when your butt is getting hot by the engine underneath it.