- Seller: Christine T (Contact)
- Location: Santa Clarita, California
- Mileage: 58,109 Shown
- Chassis #: 6L67S6Q177261
- Title Status: Clean
- Engine: 500cui V8
- Transmission: Automatic
OK, so Cadillac lied. The 1976 Cadillac Eldorado wasn’t the last American convertible; it wasn’t even the last Cadillac to be offered as a convertible. Honestly, though, in the climate of 1976, how was Cadillac to know that America’s raciest bodystyle would enjoy a resurgence? Regardless of Cadillac’s pure intentions, the owners of the 14,000 1976 Eldorado Convertibles were displeased that their investments had lost much of their value. (There was even a class-action lawsuit that apparently went nowhere.) Back in the mid-’90s, my high school friend showed me his grandpa’s ’76 that had something like 4,000 miles on the odometer, so yes, people took the claim of “last convertible” seriously. However, even with a little less star power than owners would have liked, the ’76 Eldorado is a wonderful collector car for those who have the 224.1 inches of garage space necessary to house it. This one was a barn find purchased from the estate of the previous owner; it has undergone extensive work, but will require additional attention, and is now being offered in the Barn Finds Auction in Santa Clarita, California.
The Eldorado came standard with Cadillac’s huge 500-cubic-inch V8 and Turbo Hydra-Matic “425” transaxle, with a standard 2.73:1 final drive ratio. Although fuel injection was optional, this one (thankfully) has the standard Rochester Quadrajet. By 1976, the 500 had been downgraded to 190 horsepower (a fact not advertised in the catalog), but it still had a useful 360 lb-ft. of torque. With only 58,109 miles, the powertrain should be ready to go until Cadillac brings back the Eldorado again, and the seller has done a lot of work in getting the car up and running smoothly, including the following:
- New fuel tank and electric fuel pump
- Rebuilt carburetor and aftermarket fuel pressure regulator
- New valve cover gaskets
- New spark plugs
- New starter
- Oil and filter change
The front brakes still need to be gone through, as the seller has been sidetracked by a 1963 Cadillac (I think we can all understand how that goes).
The interior is complete, and everything works, including the power antenna, radio, power seat, and all lights. The convertible top is still in good condition, and the seller has both a plastic and a glass rear window that will go with the car. It also has a new top motor and regulator, and all that needs to be done (aside from the rear window) is to clean the actuators. The seller also just recently replaced the trunk lock, so it now opens and closes as it should.
Here is a picture of the car as it was found in the previous owner’s barn. “Cotillion White” was a popular color for Eldorado Convertibles, and although the paint on this one isn’t perfect (and it needs rear bumper fillers), it’s nice enough to be a fun driver with a little extra elbow grease. The seller says that the car has been on a “non-operation” permit for many years, so it doesn’t have a smog certificate and will only require a fee for the transfer of the title. If you’re in California and you understand what that means, why not make a bid? Maybe this will be a fun Cadillac convertible for you, even if Cadillac told a little white lie when they said it was the last.
Bid On This Auction
Dobyhighway bid $1,600.00 2025-07-04 13:02:19
Escargot42 bid $1,500.00 2025-07-02 08:39:04
CADY77 bid $500.00 2025-06-27 19:20:00
Seller, have you attempted to smog test the Eldorado?
Yep. Very painful and the reason I sold it after 8 years. It was Firethorn with white top. Every test time I took it to one oldtimer who spent 1/2 a day getting it to pass emissions then he reset it so it could be driven without shaking doors off. Did finally have it getting 11 mpg of wonderful driving, especially on Pacific Coast Highway at night. My oldest grandson called it “Opa’s Cool Car.
Hi Andrew,
Good evening from LA!
The car was sat for a long time,before we got it up and running.
Trying to smog a car that is ten years old in California is bad enough!
So trying to smog a car 50 year’s old is not something that I wanted to get into, and so it is better for the car to go out of State where a collector does not have to deal with that drama.
But with a complete rebuild of the carburator, new fuel pump and a fuel regulator, it may just pass smog !!
Have a great weekend.
The fuel injection cars are the ones to get. I found mine in a bit worse shape then this one and I got the fuel injection to work properly all the parts are still available and it is a very simple system to understand. There is only one guy that rebuilds the ECMs and he is very affordable. The fuel injected models also get high teens in mpg. Also if the back window is out you will need a new top.
Hi Chris,
Good afternoon from LA !
Thanks for your comments.
You, do not need a new top to add a rear window.
There is a new plastic window in the trunk and I bought a glass rear window from another collector here in LA.
I did the same with my other 75 Convertible.
I put a brand new white top on that car with a plastic rear window and hated the look.
So, I bought a glass rear window and my upholstery guy removed the plastic window and added the glass one to the new top, without having to buy a new top.
Have a great week👍
Hi Chris,
Good afternoon from LA !
Thanks for your comments.
You, do not need to buy a new top to add a rear window.
There is a new plastic window in the trunk and I bought a glass rear window from another collector here in LA.
I did the same with my other 75 Eldorado Convertible.
I put a brand new white top on that car with a plastic rear window and hated the look.
So, I bought a glass rear window and my upholstery guy removed the plastic window and added the glass one to the new top, without having to buy a new top.
Have a great week👍
New top with plastic back window before.
with glass back window after.
Boy, just wait til Angel sees this one! And fellas, it would be a
great gift for her birthday. Now guys, if we all pool our funds
maybe, just maybe, we could pull it off. Me, I’d love to see her tooling around in this one. Wouldn’t take much to make our Queen happy now would it?
Does the trunk close? It doesn’t seem to in the photos.
Jose
Hi, Jose,
Good morning from Los Angeles!
” HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY”
Yes, of course it is closed, look at the photos of the rear of the car, not the video.
The video was taken before we changed the lock.
We changed the trunk lock to a new one.
Here are the photos taken afterwards of the new trunk lock.
Have a great weekend!
You can see the photos with the new lock in the auction photos.