This page contains our current inventory of Postwar Passenger Cars including RDC Budd Commuter Cars (both motorized and "dummy" units) and Trolleys.
* * * Click on "Yes" in the Photo column to see a picture.
* * * Click on "Grade" in the 3rd column heading for an explanation of grading.
| Postwar Lionel Passenger Cars | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Catalog # | Item | Grade | Photo | Price | Details |
| 2559 | =============== Baltimore and Ohio Budd "Dummy" Passenger Car =============== |
E++/OB | Yes | $375 | A sharp B & O RDC Budd Commuter non-powered passenger unit from 1957-58:
Photo of the other side. Has ornamental horns, silhouetted window strips and operating couplers. A close-up of the center of one side showing the clean silver & crisp lettering. Has three interior lights which provide nice, even illumination. Photo of one end. Scuffs on the roof of both vestibules and that's about it for flaws! Photo of the other end. The car is very, very clean with very nice silver and crisp lettering -- and of course, the lights work! Two "aerial" views. Photo of the box. Grade 5 original box (missing one interior coupler flap; tears; creases; punctures; scrapes; stains; glue residue; tape; amateur repairs; discolored). Another view of the box. Various imperfections but the box has both end flaps and it is square and sturdy. Photo of the large, long side that has the small scrapes. Great-looking, prototypical car with minimal run time! |
| Passenger Sets: | |||||
| Illuminated Santa Fe Passenger Cars from 1961: three silver-painted cars with blue lettering and wide blue stripes. | |||||
| 2412 | Santa Fe Vista Dome |
Ex./OB | Yes | | | \ / |
The "Viewing" car: a lighted Vista Dome with original silhouetted window strips, original roof and original finials:
Photo of the other side. Has some long scratches on both sides. The car is very clean overall with crisp lettering & gorgeous striping plus nice bright silver! An "aerial" view. Photo of the box. Grade 6+ original "Perforated Panel" box (tears; creases; scrapes; tape inside; glue residue; "period" price stamping). Another view of the box. Even with the flaws, this box is decent as it is: clean, complete, square and sturdy! Photo of the front of the box. A good-looking car! |
| 2414 | Santa Fe Pullman |
E-/OB | Yes | | | \ / |
The very-elusive "Coach" -- a lighted Pullman with original silhouetted window strips, original roof and original finials:
Photo of the other side. Has some long scratches on the right side plus a few scuffs on the roof. The car is very clean overall with crisp lettering & gorgeous striping plus nice bright silver! An "aerial" view. Photo of the box. Grade 6 original "Perforated Panel" box (missing one interior coupler flap; tears; creases; lots of tape inside; glue residue; panel partially separated; missing the "PUSH" tab). Another view of the box. Even with the flaws, this box is decent as it is: clean, square and sturdy! Photo of the front of the box. A good-looking car! The 2414 is the hardest car of this series to find and the prize in this set! |
| 2416 | Santa Fe Observation Car |
Ex./OB | Yes | | | \ / |
The "Lounge" car -- a lighted Observation Car with original silhouetted window strips, original roof and original finials:
Photo of the other side. Has a couple of small scratches on the left side plus some long scratches on the right side. The car is very clean overall with crisp lettering & gorgeous striping plus nice bright silver! Photo of the observation area. The tail section is completely intact -- never rear-ended or involved in a crash. An "aerial" view. Photo of the box. Grade 7 original "Picture" box (tears; creases; tape inside). Another view of the box. A solid box: clean, complete, square and sturdy! Photo of the front of the box. A good-looking car! |
| ===> | ===> | ===> | Yes | $360 | Price for the three-car Passenger Set described above. |
| This is a very presentable 61-year-old set. The mixed box styles indicate that these cars were sold in 1961 as the 2412-14-16 cars were carry-over items. The cars will look great on a shelf or on a layout -- the set is ready to enjoy as the window inserts are nice and all lights and couplers work! | |||||
| Price without the boxes: $300 plus shipping. | |||||
| Tinplate, teal blue, non-illuminated Passenger Car Set from 1946: | |||||
| 2430 | Pullman | E++ | Yes | | | \ / |
The first Coach:
Photo of the other side. Has a few minor rust spots on one side and some box rub on the roof. Two views of the roof. The car is very, very clean with nice vibrant paint and gorgeous lettering! |
| 2430 | Pullman | Ex. | Yes | | | \ / |
The second Coach:
Photo of the other side. Has some rust spots and scratches and light minor scuffs. Two views of the roof. The car is very clean with nice vibrant paint and crisp lettering! |
| 2431 | Observation Car | E+ | Yes | | | \ / |
The Lounge car (the end car with a viewing platform):
Photo of the other side. A few minor nicks and scratches on the roof and some discoloration around the windows on one side plus some minor rust spots on the observation deck. Photo of the observation deck. The observation deck is completely intact with original marker lights. Two views of the roof. The car is very clean with nice vibrant paint and crisp lettering. |
| ===> | ===> | ===> | Set Photo | $495 SOLD |
Price for the three-car Passenger Set described above. |
| Note: this is a very hard-to-find, one-year only set. The cars have silver, rubber-stamped
lettering not white, heat-stamped lettering as used on the cars with the same numbers in a 1947 set. In addition, the trucks on this set are the
open "FLYING SHOE" variety -- not the later, closed-base type that was used on the 1947 set.)
Very hard to find in collector-quality condition and this set is very presentable! All of the "Flying Shoe" fiberboards are intact and every coupler works! The blue cars are far less common than the brown sets or the green sets. Only the second time we have ever had the 2430-30-31 set from 1946! | |||||
| Tinplate, brown, illuminated Passenger Car Set from 1949 ONLY: | |||||
| The cars have white, heat-stamped lettering plus gray doors & gray window frames; each car has interior lighting & staple-end trucks with magnetic couplers. | |||||
| 6442 | Pullman | E++/OB | Yes | | | \ / |
The first Coach:
Photo of the other side. A few small paint chips and that's it for flaws! The car is sharp: rust-free and very, very clean with nice bright paint and crisp lettering! No interior window strips. Photo of the roof. Photo of the box. Grade 7 original box (tears; creases; writing; tape inside). The box is clean, square and sturdy! Another view of the box. |
| 6442 | Pullman | E+/OB | Yes | | | \ / |
The second Coach:
Photo of the other side. The roof has one scratch and a few paint chips and that's it for flaws! The car is sharp: rust-free and very, very clean with nice bright paint and crisp lettering! No interior window strips. Photo of the roof. Photo of the box. Grade 7 original box (missing one inside coupler flap; tears; creases; writing; tape inside). The box is clean, square and sturdy! Another view of the box. |
| 6443 | Observation Car | E+++/OB | Yes | | | \ / |
The Lounge car (the end car with a viewing platform):
Photo of the other side. A few minor paint chips and that's it for flaws! The car is sharp: rust-free and very, very clean with nice bright paint and crisp lettering! No interior window strips. Photo of the observation deck. The observation deck is equally as nice: rust free and very, very clean with original, intact marker lights. Photo of the roof. Photo of the box. Grade 6+ original box (missing both inside coupler flaps; tears; creases; writing; scrapes; tape inside; glue residue). Some flaws but the box is clean, square and sturdy! Another view of the box. |
| ===> | ===> | ===> | ===> | $460 | <=== Price for the three-car Passenger Set described above.
Photo of all three cars & the boxes. |
| This is a very-high quality, 73-year-old set that was certainly taken care of by its former owner! It will look great on a shelf plus it is a very useful operator's item as all lights and couplers work! This is only the second boxed 6442-42-43 set we have ever offered for sale as it is much harder to find than the earlier 2442-42-43 brown sets; it is also one of the nicest tinplate sets we have ever had! The cars will represent an upgrade for many collectors and the boxes will be a major upgrade for the vast majority of collectors! | |||||
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A wagonmaker by the name of Webster Wagner is credited with developing successful early Passenger Cars in the 1850's. However, a native New Yorker -- George Pullman - designed and built far superior sleeping cars and dining cars and made travel by rail in America comfortable. From 1890 until 1941, when the impact of World War II was felt, Americans enjoyed luxury in rail travel equal to the finest hotels in the world.
Lionel manufactured six distinct styles of Passenger Cars in the Postwar era, including one that was a carryover design from the Prewar era -- the somewhat primitive 2000 series sheet-metal cars, which came in three different colors. The others were the elegant "Madison" cars, eight different color schemes of the "027" 2400-series molded plastic cars, the 1800 General-type cars, the sturdy 2500 extruded aluminum series and the more modern Budd Rail Diesel Cars (RDC). The Budd Cars came powered (and with a horn) and non-powered. Most of the postwar passenger cars were illuminated and one (the 1875W General-type simulated-wood coach) even had a whistle.
Savor the golden era of rail travel and add Passenger Car service to your layout.
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