Up for grabs are the remaining pieces of a dust-covered collection in the El Paso, Texas area that the seller claims have been parked for four decades. The lead car here is a 1941 Cadillac “60 Special” in what appears to be in largely original condition. Other classics include Model A Fords, a Chevy Corvair Monza project, Plymouth station wagons and more. Find the full listng here on craigslist and go here if the ad disappears.
Thanks to Barn Finds reader Marc N. for this excellent craigslist find. The seller notes that several Plymouth station wagons are included in the collection, and at the risk of extreme public humiliation, I’m going to label this one a Belvedere – but happy to be proven wrong. It’s got great lines regardless, and the gallery photos show an incredibly nice interior.
What else do you see here? I’m guessing the two Plymouth wagons are in the rear, and the Corvair is next to an excellent rat-rod pickup candidate. The seller notes that while the collection is listed on craigslist for now, they will entertain the thought of putting the whole lot up for auction in mid-May or early June; in other words, if you see something you like, your best bet is to get there now before the prices go up.
The dusty Corvair Monza looks like a great foundation for a project, and the listing photos show it has an excellent interior. Overall, it appears the Texas climate has been kind to these long-stored classics, but there’s also a very nicely preserved Pontiac Bonneville up for grabs if you’re seeking a more complete project. Let us know in the comments which car you’d beat a path towards El Paso for.
The Caddy reminds me of an old picture I have-my uncle who never smiled and his crazy looking wife besides his Caddy
If only Cadillac could recapture the elegance and presence of that ’41 Sixty Special, they might actually be able to sell a respectable number of sedans.
Very accurate! My first car in high school was a 1941 60S Cadillac Fleetwood. Your description is so accurate. That classic saw me through high school and all of my college years. All the rest of my friends had Ford and Chevy coupes. But Mr. Elegant here had to have that Cadillac. Everybody loved the Cad. The perfect car for loading six friends in and dragging the Main on Friday night, after collecting a buck from each one for gas money. At 39 cents a gallon, that bought a lot of gas! Sure wish I had another ’41 Fleetwood.
Cadillac is going where the money is. Crossover SUV and BMW-beater sports sedans. They are not looking backwards. Shame. The market for big Caddy sedans dried up some time in the late 1990s (now 20 years ago) except for areas in Florida where the snowbirds go. I work for the General, I know. We are gearing up to crank out ANOTHER Cadzilla crossover design in 2019.
That Bonneville is absolutely gorgeous. Pontiac just got it exactly right with their cruiser and hotrod offerings during that time period.
The Plymouth wagons might possibly be “Sport Suburbans”.
What a wonderful collection of dust, with cars attached !
The ’65 Pontiac is really nice. I once saw a Pontiac Parisienne of the same vintage, but a 2-door fastback to boot.
The one that caught my eye, is the 48 International KB1. I know from experience that most of these little trucks were worked to death.
Bob
One thing El Paso has is plenty of dust. I have a ’57 Bel Air Sport Coupe that spent thirty-five plus years there, likely parked since 1989. Plenty of time for El Paso dust to find its way everywhere in the car, including inside the chassis rails front to back, both sides. Early in the hard work part of restoration while blowing out the rear fender/back seat passenger window area (the open space behind the shiny sheet metal), settled dust billowed forth for as long as I ran the blower and sifted out from openings in the fender and rocker panel to the floor like the sands of time in an hour glass.
For my archaeological efforts I located a 1942 Mercury dime half buried in the dust within the rocker panel.
DTBMIO (Down To Bare Metal, Inside Out) old car restoration work – what great fun!
Nice nostalgia. I grew up in El Paso. Dust, oh yeah, many tales that I could tell.
Circa 1958 I bought a 41 Cadillac in lien sale. not a 60 special, but a convertible. A bit torn and raggedy. But, sound except as to the top and interior. My dear departed delighted in her pink Caddy!!!
More decades. A 63 Monza tudor, four on the floor. Bought to spite ralph Nader!!! A poor man’s Porsche A barrel of fun to drive. Too bad, it had to go. wifey wanted to drive. so, got a 65 Monza tudor. Black and slick. Powerglide two peed was just the ticket for her
Decades later, an IHC. A 79 Scout II. Bought in the gas crisis for a great price in 81! Served well.
Now, 83 Jaguar. Cadillac LT1 power. Great combination…
And the trusty 94 Jeep grand Cherokee…. Many miles and going strong…
Carl
What did you pay for the Caddy in ’58?
I want most of what is here, but unable to do any as to current projects. ’58 Plymouth wagons and the Binder (International) interest me the most. With the Caddys next on the list.
Very cool find! And I doubt any serious rust issues. (even the Corvair)
The Dust there is like the Black Rock Desert (Where Burning Man is Held) is here. Even hermetically sealed items end up with loads of dust inside. (It seems like the dust is so fine that expansion and contraction due to temperature changes sucks in the dust. I have not tried it, but it is so fine that it might be used for polishing paint or soft metals.
It would be fun to participate in the restoration in all of these vehicles. I enjoyed seeing the exhaust system on the Caddy. There would be no carburetor icing on the set set up in the Northern areas of our country or Canada. What do you think Rube?? Am I right?
I’m glad to see cars still waiting in storage, it give me hope to one day find …..it.
From what I understand, all Plymouth station wagons were referred to as Suburbans. The white one is either a ’57 or ’58 (impossible to tell without seeing the grille or tail lights) Sport Suburban. The red one is a Savoy Suburban (not a limo as labeled, just a long car. It has a flathead straight 6 cylinder based on the grille emblem.
I believe both Plymouth wagons to be 1958s.
My father bought a new 1957 and then followed with 6 more. So I do know 1957s when I see them. I have even caught a few at car shows where they are presented as 1957s an I purposely tracked down the owner to correct him. Which each one corrected admitted to combining 1957 parts onto a 1958 car.
Along with the ’41 Lincoln Continental, in my opinion, the ’41 Caddy 60 Special was one of the best designs of the ’40’s, even though the bodies were both carryover’s from the late 30’s. Both are experiencing market declines, and can be bought reasonably – maybe because those of us who remember them are dying out. Unlike the finicky Lincoln V 12, the Caddy was, and is, reliable. It had, and still has, class.
Well, since I live here in El Paso. I need to go check these out……
The white Plymouth wagon appears to be a ’58 Sport Suburban has 4 headlites (’58 first year for 4 headlites and one year only styling very similar to the two headlite ’57 model) and it has Sport Suburban side trim (two parallel moldings starting on the front fender that run the length of the car and kick up at the end of the rear quarter). ’58 Custom Suburban trim is two moldings that begin on the driver’s door with the upper molding going horizintal all the way to the end of the rear fender and the lower molding turns down on the rear door and ends in front of the rear wheel opening. The red Pylmouth wagon is a ’57 Custom Suburban according to the side trim.
I have driven a 41 Cadilac many years back and I still remember it fondly. Wonderful driving vehicle for what it was. And thats the problem with Cadillac today. My dad and stepdad both had Cads. A new 70 Coupe de Ville and later a 72 Sedan de ville. Both of these cars did what they were supposed to do and didnt pretend to be what they were not. They were luxurious. Fast enough to pass most cars getting in their way and did not pretend to be a sports car. Why does Cadillac have to make a notchy rebodied Corvette? Just build off your history and sell to your base. Same problem Lincoln is facing today.
The only way I used to differentiate between the 57 and 58 Plymouth, is that the 57 had the single headlights, and the 58 had the dual headlights. i drove a 57 2dr hdtp, and liked the styling of the car. I had the impression that the design made the car look larger than it really was.
I am a Chevy guy, but the car design that won my heart in 57 was the Ford.
Bob
That very early Buick would be the price of admission for moi. Late teens, early 1920s? Looks like it’s ready to be polished and enjoyed.
Steve:
$35.00 !!! Put gas in the tank, installed a borrowed battery., Fired it up and drove it home abut 30 miles. A colleague bought a similar one, a tad better as to top and interior and a stick, as mine was hydramatic. Price about the same. Just old cars at that time…
Alexander :
Could it be ? Circa 1946, I attended Houston Elementry in El Paso. A pair of ladies, the Harris sisters were teachers at Crockett.
They drove their 1918 Buick to school each day. It just might be that car….
Carl