So here’s another photo set gratefully stolen from my friend Jayson Coombes. He’s been eyeballing old Cadillacs for around a year now, looking for something that isn’t perfect perhaps, but a good solid driver.
This was such a car. It was at the Pate Swap Meet held at Texas Motor Speedway back in April. He shares my love of aqua-colored Cadillacs with matching interiors, and this one looked pretty good.
Technically this is a Hardtop Sedan de Ville, one of 83,274 built. Base price was $6,118. same as the pillared Sedan de Ville. But the SDV absent the fixed B-pillar was far more popular, the pillared version sold only 7,230 units.
It’s hard to tell from the pictures, but this is either Adriatic Turquoise or Lucerne Aqua Firemist, same as Laurie Kraynick’s gorgeous 1970 Fleetwood Brougham.
The seller was asking $9,950, and per Jayson, the car looked pretty nice. But it had nonfunctional A/C, and in Texas during car show season, that’s a big old nope! So he passed. But what a sharp Caddy. An actual sedan, with an actual V8. The way Cadillacs used to be.
The way I wish they still were.
You see the safety plastic creeping in, but I am liking that brocade upholstery with the leather armrest. That woodgrain even seems evocative of Pontiac’s upcoming African crossfire mahogany. Nice blend of the futue and the past circa 1970.
The base price equates at least today for $43,570, so higher than a CT5.
Highly optioned car (Twilight Sental, tilt wheel, A/C, Cruse, but no Power Door Locks) and a slick top which is a plus considering the cancer that is usually found under top. The fact that the steering wheel is in excellant shape and the interior door panels are still solid and there does not appear to be any fading of the upholstery at the top of the back of the back seat shout that this car was garage keep out of the Texas sun… Tom is correct the price is a little high for a four door but savings in body and interior work would off set getting the climate control up to speed. Anyway, it is alway better to hear from a sell that the Climate Contol does not work then the old stand by “it just needs a charge”…..
PS: Tom you should tell Laurie that she needs another project before she moves to FLA, matching four doors for the 2 car garage…. 🙂
My uncle had a 1973 Sedan DeVille with the same brocade upholstery. Just the slightest bit of dampness would stain it so when we were kids, we had to sit on a stack of towels when my aunt picked us up from swimming in the lake.
That dial control a/c system is diabolical, which is probably why the a/c is broken.
You’d think having working AC would be a must for a quick sale.
I wonder if the owner said “The AC is an simple fix.”
If the AC was simple and cheap to fix it would have been.
I’m sure if the AC worked the price would be a a lot higher than $9,950.
A/C is usually simple to fix.
Just not cheap.
(It’s usually just a dead compressor, and replace that and the dryer. If you’re VERY unlucky you also need to replace one or both of the heat exchangers, but … normally just a dead compressor.
Replace, refill, good to go.)
Leonard, true the dial can be an issue if the contacts are corroded but most likly the Programmer has malfunctioned or the VIR is clogged or leaking on this car’s Climate Contol. Both of these components are only available as re-manufactured or re-built and the quality of the re-built is poor at best, We went though 2 rebuilt Programmers and 6 re-built VIR’s to finely get my system working. Not to mention a clogged or leaking evaporator can be a issue, which is most likly also an issue on a fifty year old system. However, still easier to deal with then rust or finding interior material…
The inventory management must have been a real challenge in those days with the wide variety of interior colors available in multiple fabrics/leathers and totally coordinated with the dash, door cards, carpets and exterior paint and vinyl roof, but of course the rest of the car was virtually identical across the Cadillac line to help offset that complication. Now you get two interior color choices that are only on the seat material to go with the silver/black/white exterior paint, but can choose 4 cylinder, V-6, V-6 turbo and increasingly some sort of hybrid/electric option with the choice of 2WD/AWD on a variety of bodies.
‘Adriatic Turquoise or Lucerne Aqua Firemist’
Crest Toothpaste. Did it once belong to a dentist?
Wow what a beauty ! .
Too darn BIG for me but I’d pay to fill the tank if I could get a good ride in it….
When fooling with old AC there’s lots of labor that always needs doing that few know about and fewer yet are willing to do .
#1 is : blow out the evaporator ~ it’s always fluffy with dust bunnies and leaves and cannot possibly work properly until it’s external fins are squeaky clean .
#2 is : flush the entire system, the evaporator is usually full of thick gooey crap that prevents it from working properly .
Ditto the condenser .
One those are done you can move on to the weepy old DELCOAIRE R4 or R6 compressor, those were decent units when new, I prefer the Japanese made SANDEN compressors now but you can re seal the old R4’s and they’ll usually work just fine .
I miss these Caddies ~ once upon a time they were everywhere in America .
-Nate