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 |
| Motorized Passenger Units: | |||||
| 60 | Trolley | E+/OB | Yes | $160 | The 4-wheel, Birney-style, illuminated "RAPID TRANSIT" Trolley from 1956: yellow with blue lettering and a red roof. Harder-to-find version with solid bumpers.
Photo of the other side. A couple of light scratches and that's about it for flaws. Nothing is cracked or broken and overall, it is very clean with nice lettering. Has the original roof but the pole may be a repro. An "aerial" view. Photo of the box. Grade 9 original box (writing; minor stains; tape inside; missing the separate roof insert but has the "built-in" insert. Another view of the box. Has the original instruction sheet #60-103 dated 2/56 (tears; tape; insect nibbles). Photo of the instruction sheet. A sharp piece in a solid, brick-like box -- plus it was tested and it lights and runs great! |
| Individual Passenger Cars: | |||||
| 1875W | Western & Atlantic Coach |
E+/OB | Yes | $295 | A Civil War style, simulated wood-sided W. & A.R.R. Passenger Car with whistle from 1959-62: has a yellow body with brown roof & brown, heat-stamped lettering, simulated truss rods made of wire plus arch-bar trucks with operating couplers.
Photo of the other side. Very clean with nice lettering and minimal flaws! It lights and has a nice-sounding whistle! Photo of the roof. Photo of the box. Grade 7+ original box (panel partially separated; tears; creases; some stains & discoloration; "period" writing; a few "bump outs"). Another view of the box. A solid box: complete, square & sturdy plus there is no tape anywhere. Photo of the front panel. The car is rather uncommon but the box is really scarce because the 1875W most often came unboxed as a set component in one of Lionel's "Super O" General Sets. We have never had a boxed 1875W for sale separately before! This coach is sharp and it comes in a very strong box! |
| 2530 | REA Baggage Car |
E- | Yes | $135 | A Railway Express Agency extruded-aluminum, small-door Baggage Car from 1954-55.
Photo of the other side. Impressive and realistic-looking, fluted streamlined car measures 16 1/2 inches coupler to coupler. Photo of the roof. Roof & sides have some minor scratches & minor burrs; usual factory glue around the nameplates; the plastic vestibule ends have some discoloration and one has a hairline crack (no loss of plastic). Close-up of the nameplates on one side. The flaws are rather insignificant and do not detract from this car. It is all original and fairly clean with vibrant silver and very strong lettering. The 2530 came in five catalogued sets but was also sold separately as an "add-on" car to make an aluminum passenger set complete; this prototypical piece is very presentable. |
| Passenger Sets: | |||||
| Illuminated Passenger Car Set from 1950-51 (silver with black lettering & black striping plus gray roofs): | |||||
| 2421 | Maplewood Pullman | E+/OB | Yes | | | \ / |
Lighted Pullman with silhouetted window strips.
Photo of the other side. The silver paint, striping and lettering are all very, very nice! It's a clean car with minimal flaws. Photo of the roof. Photo of the box. Grade 7 original box (tears; lots of tape); a strong box: complete, square and sturdy. Another view of the box. A sharp, all-original car! |
| 2422 | Chatham Pullman | E++/OB | Yes | | | \ / |
Lighted Pullman with silhouetted window strips.
Photo of the other side. The silver paint, striping and lettering are all very, very nice! It's a very, very clean car! Photo of the roof. Photo of the box. Grade 7+ original box (tears; creases; minor dirt); a very strong box: fairly clean, complete, square and sturdy -- plus there is no tape anywhere. Another view of the box. A very sharp, all-original car! |
| 2423 | Hillside Observation Car | E+/OB | Yes | | | \ / |
Lighted Observation Car with silhouetted window strips.
Photo of the other side. The silver paint, striping and lettering are all very nice! It's a clean car with minimal flaws. Photo of the observation deck. The tail section is completely intact -- never rear-ended or involved in a crash. Photo of the roof. Photo of the box. Grade 7 original box (tears; creases; lots of tape); a strong box: complete, fairly square and sturdy. Another view of the box. A sharp, all-original car! |
| ==> | ==> | ==> | ==> | $495 SOLD |
Photo of all three cars.
Price for the three-car Passenger Set described above. Our Archives Page: more information on this passenger car series. |
| A very high-quality and very low-mileage, 60-year-old set with very presentable boxes. A fantastic set for the collector as well as a very useful operator's item -- great for a layout or under the Christmas tree as all lights and couplers work! It is also the nicest 2421-2-3 set we have ever had. | |||||
| An illuminated "Madison-car" Passenger Set from 1946: three Tuscan-painted Bakelite "heavyweight" Pullman cars with white, heat-stamped lettering & plain window inserts plus 6-wheel trucks with coil couplers: | |||||
| 2625 | IRVINGTON Pullman |
VG+ | Yes | | | \ / |
Some moisture discoloration on the roof; minimal flaws elsewhere.
Photo of the other side. Very clean overall with nice white lettering; (the lettering is a little whiter than the other two cars). An "aerial" view. |
| 2625 | IRVINGTON Pullman |
VG- | Yes | | | \ / |
Various paint chips on the lower roof of both side's plus some paint chips of the vestibule steps.
Photo of the other side. Despite the flaws, the car is still very presentable. An "aerial" view. |
| 2625 | IRVINGTON Pullman |
Ex. | Yes | | | \ / |
One paint chip by one of the doors plus some small paint chips along the roof edge on both sides.
Photo of the other side. Clean overall with very nice lettering. An "aerial" view. |
| ===> | ===> | ===> | ===> | $ 475 | Photo of all three cars.
Price for the three-car Passenger Set described above. |
| Note: the "Madison" cars incorporated a prewar carry-over design and these deluxe Pullmans represented the best that Lionel had to offer in the way of passenger cars for the early postwar years. Each car has functional doors, celluloid window strips and a decorative air brake plus six-wheel articulated light trucks with operating coil couplers. The old-fashioned (but prototypical) appearance from a by-gone era will add an element of charm to any display or layout. They are also useful items for an operator as all lights, doors and couplers work! These three cars came from outfit #2114WS, an unusual set from 1946 with three identical cars pulled up by a 726 Berkshire. Each car measures 15 inches long (coupler to coupler) and these very sturdy cars will look great behind any large locomotive -- especially a GG1 or a Hudson! | |||||
| 2625 | Irvington Pullman | E+/OB | Yes | $375 SOLD |
Illuminated, "Madison-style" pullman with six-wheel trucks and coil couplers from 1946-48: a premium passenger car with deluxe features including simulated-passenger style truck sides, 2-light illumination, window inserts and air tank plus vestibules with steps and swinging doors. It is an impressive-looking coach at 15 inches long!
Photo of the other side. Some paint loss on one door plus a few other paint chips. In addition, the window inserts were replaced at some point. Overall, the car is very clean with nice paint and strong lettering! It is one of the nicest Madison-style cars we have ever had. An "aerial" view. Photo of the box. Grade 7+ original box (tears; creases; tape inside; minor writing; some dirt). Another view of the box. Has the insert (liner) and this box is solid: complete, square and sturdy! Photo of the box insert. The box has an old store sticker on it thus providing us with a glimpse of this item's history: it was handled (sold or repaired) by "Les' Repair Service" -- a business that was once located at 1724 Central Avenue in Indianapolis, Indiana! It is not easy to find any of the Madison-style cars this nice and the boxes are extremely hard to find in decent shape! This car is sharp and it comes in a very, very strong box! This "heavyweight" Pullman is also great for an operator as the doors, lights and couplers all work perfectly! We have never had a boxed Madison-style car available for separate sale before! |
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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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