UPDATE – This is a strange one. This 1996 (?) Cadillac Eldorado is listed for sale again after it was featured last April here on Barn Finds. The weird part is that it was listed then as a 1994 Eldorado, not a 1996! It’s posted here on craigslist and is still supposedly located in Warren, New Jersey. The seller, whether it’s the same one or not is a mystery, has dropped the price from $5,500 down to $4,000! It’s two years newer and $1,500 cheaper, will it sell this time? Here is the original listing, and thanks to Mitchell G. for the tip, again!
FROM 04/21/2025 – I’m starting to see gold investing commercials again, so the economy must be working its way back to that again. This gold 1994 Cadillac Eldorado looks like a nice investment, and you can find it posted here on craigslist in the Warren, New Jersey area, and the seller is asking $5,500. Here is the original listing, and thanks to Mitchell G. for the tip!
Gold is one thing, but I’ll just have to remember not to try to single-handedly corner the silver dollar market like I tried to do in the mid-80s; ouch. Can you say crash and burn? By the time 1992 was here, Cadillac was up to the twelfth-generation Eldorado, and they were offered until the end of the 2002 model year. Cadillac wouldn’t offer a two-door car again until the summer of 2010 for the 2011 model year with the CTS Coupe.
I don’t see any flaws on the exterior of this gold nugget, do you? The paint appears to match from panel to panel, there aren’t any visible dents, dings, or chips, and it looks fantastic to me. The seller says this is a one-owner, garage-kept car, and it has just 36,000 miles on it. As always, I wish there were more photos and a few that didn’t have the glaring sun streaming through them, but it really looks like a nice example.
A 1994 vehicle seems pretty new for Barn Finds. We’ve only seen three 1994 Cadillacs here, but those were DeVille-based cars, not E-body cars. The Eldorado shared this front-drive platform with the Buick Riviera. This example has leather, and other than some visible wear on the driver’s side bolster, it looks good from what is visible. We don’t see the back seat or the trunk, and there are no underside photos, unfortunately. There’s a touch-screen in place of the original stereo system, and the original system comes with the sale.
The engine is GM’s Northstar 4.6-liter DOHC V8 with 270 horsepower and 300 lb-ft of torque when new. It’s backed by a four-speed automatic sending power to the front wheels, and the seller says it’s smooth, powerful, and runs like new. Have any of you owned an Eldorado from this generation? How about the asking price, you can’t get much for $5,500 these days.
Never driven any Northstar Caddy of this era. They must be pretty swift cruisers 😌
The Northstar had plenty of power to cruise the highways however, they also had a issue with head bolts that pulled out which caused expensive problems.
Those a really nice rides if you are lucky enough not to have the head bolt problem.
Oh and they also had water leak problems in the trunk.
These early Northstars up to about ’96/97 were pretty reliable. It was the following middle years of Northstar production that had the bulk of head bolt/gasket problems, up until the early 2000s.
Had two, 99&02 both powerful automobiles, beautiful looks and ride. Cross country trip with 3 adults and luggage the A/C running 27 mpg. Shame the Northstar engine and parts started failing around 100,000 miles
For the price of a back line pot lot purchase, this seems too good to be still for sale. I bought one in another life and she named it Grover. I believe it caused my early coronary problems as I kept expecting the axe to fall, but the marriage failed before the car. Which to my knowledge may have been the only Northstar to make 200k without any need to remove the cylinder heads. She deserved the good luck. Nobody deserved me in the late 1990’s. I found out later that a simple gas test was needed to diagnose impending doom. Once you had the kit it was easy and allowed two of my friends that would have purchased beater Japanese cars to have less mileage but much comfort.
My grandmother’s neighbors from two streets over had a teal one of these and a circa ’86 silver and black Chrysler Fifth Avenue. I don’t recall ever seeing one of them move in my 26 years on this Earth. I’d still drive by to check on them when home from college. Right after moving home after graduation, I drove by to check on them and both were gone without a trace. The house then sat empty for two years and is back on the market after a Californian ripped everything out and whitewashed it to sanitarium specs. I still wonder what happened to those cars and how many miles they had.
These are really handsome cars but the elephant in the room is the Deathstar under the hood. Oil leaks from the upper oil pan is a major event and then just when you have the oil leaks sorted the head bolts pull out of the block and require service that exceeds the value of the car. Unless the owner produces a thick service folder that outlines those repairs run!
Problem was with the 95-99 models primarily. This would be a good one to snag.
I agree with JMG. And not all 95-99 models had problems. I did have a buddy who rebuilt his 12 years ago and it is still going strong. These are good rides, and you can do something else with the 40K you didn’t spend on the Camry.
I can’t help but think there’s something going on here. This car is worth more than $5,500. I would really want to see all the service records and try to find out if something is lurking in the dark.
These are cheap problematic cars. Once they go over 100,000 mile the rear head gasket will start to leak. I had a 1996 Eldorado, they look good and perform ok. My 2009 DTS is a better car in ever category.
It scares me that I’ve reached the age where these are actually starting to look good to me…
Yep, not sure what to make of that myself!
Ha,Ha. All I hear on this site is,pull it out of the barn,into the light so you get some good pictures.That works real good, don’t it ?
I had a 1996. Good car until you reach 100k miles. About 105k my head gasket started seeping. It’s always the head next to the firewall. Very expensive to repair. I put Blue Devil head gasket sealer in it and traded it off. These are fair performance wise but my 2009 DTS was a much better car at everything. The DTS definitely isn’t as good looking.
I can’t believe this time capsule is still available.
The engine is the issue here. If you can get to 100k with no issues you will be lucky.
Mystery year? Check the tag in the door. Sounds sketchy. Should not be a mystery.
94′ has the older V8 and not the N* engine issues. Lower power, but less fear.
’96 has the N* engine, nice engine, and right in the middle of the head bolt issues.
(Issues were mostly resolved by ’99)
The ad may say 1996, but the bumpers, trim, and Northstar emblem on the trunk say 1994.
Thanks, folks! Craigslist sellers rarely give a VIN because of all the scams, but I should have looked more heavily at the details to see that this is a ’94 after all. It’s weird that what appears to be the same seller would list it as a different year.
Could it be this is not moving because it doesn’t know its age, somewhat like a certain person didn’t know where he was born?
This is the kind of car that you buy as your winter beater while the Corvette is parked.
Absolutely! Drive it until the head bolts fail or the case-halves start puking oil like crazy.
Man you can find some good deals on BF. If the seller dropped the ask down another 15 hundred I think it’s a good deal for what you’re getting but that’s the case for many cars found on BF. Thanks Good Job
Someone must have grabbed it, the seller has deleted the listing.