- Seller: Rodney D (Contact)
- Location: Santa Rosa, California
- Mileage: 103,150 Shown
- Chassis #: 6D47S9C376741
- Title Status: Clean
- Engine: 425 cui V8
- Transmission: Automatic
The “downsized” full-size Cadillacs that were introduced in 1977 were a huge success; for example, take this 1979 Coupe DeVille, now being offered as a Barn Finds Auction located in Santa Rosa, California. In that model year alone, 121,890 Coupe DeVilles were sold, in addition to 93,211 Sedan DeVilles. There’s no doubt, Cadillac had a huge hit on their hands, and there are plenty of good reasons to find one of your own in this 1977-79 bodystyle today. Maybe this is the one for you.
The main reason to buy this 1979 model is the engine; it’s Cadillac’s seven-liter, 425-cubic-inch V8 with 180 horsepower and 320 lb.-ft. of torque, which was fed by a Rochester Quadrajet four-barrel. Cadillac fans know that the next few model years were catastrophic when it came to losing buyer trust, with the V8-6-4 being introduced in 1981 and the HT-4100 V8 in 1982. Even the 1980 models had a downsized 368-cubic-inch Cadillac V8, which wasn’t bad, but it was down 30 horsepower and 55 lb.-ft. of torque to this ’79.
The seller of this Coupe DeVille is the car’s second owner; it was originally purchased in Denver, Colorado, before being sold to a California buyer sometime in the 1990s. By the early 2000s, it was stored in a garage and forgotten until the seller bought it in 2019. Since then, it has been spectacularly reliable with very little work necessary, a testament to how well these pre-engine-debacle Cadillacs were built. Basic maintenance has been performed on the DeVille, including a new battery, alternator, and starter, in addition to regular fluid changes and a tune-up. According to the seller, “it runs perfect and can be driven anywhere you live.”
Also, per the seller: “The interior is immaculate,” aside from a cracked dashboard, which has been covered with a carpeted dash pad for now. The transmission on all rear-drive Cadillacs was General Motors’ strong Turbo-Hydramatic 400, which was one of the best automatic transmissions ever built. No overdrives were available, but the axle ratio on ’79 DeVilles was an almost ludicrously tall 2.28:1, so highway cruising will be quiet and relaxed.
Of course, the Cadillac is not perfect; there are some paint chips and a little surface rust speckling the paint, which appears to be either “Colonial Yellow” or “Laramie Beige.”
The vinyl top is also flaking a little.
Those are small prices to pay for a solid Cadillac from a period where they still had a deservedly good reputation. If you love Cadillacs from this era, this might be an excellent buy, so bid now!
Bid On This Auction
Bill Hall bid $1,255.00 2025-12-06 21:52:26
How much $$!!!! bid $500.00 2025-12-02 21:38:14
Cool find. I remember some of these had plaid fabric/vinyl interiors….an uncle on my dad’s side of the family had a 78 Coupe deville demo being a salesman at Mancuso Cadillac in Barrington, IL.
I had one of these back in the day, same color, but mine was deluxe, coupe de elegance, had double cushion seats, nice riding car with plenty of power.
Angel 🎤… current bid only $500
This is Angel’s car. In the words/lyrics of Mr. Meat Loaf “There ain’t no Coupe DeVille at the the bottom of a CrackerJack box! So you better BUY this one!
Great tune 👌 👍 great album Wayne 🎶 🎸 🎹
I can’t message the seller. Could someone (even seller) indicate if all systems work (a/c, pwr windows, etc.) and that there are no leaks? Thanks!
I worked for an independent aftermarket auto warranty company in the early 80s, which was a cool job because I saw the actual repair records for the vehicles we covered, across multiple manufacturers. This provided a more honest reflection of manufacturer reliability than the owner-confirmation-bias surveys that Consumer Reports and the like rely on.
The Japanese onslaught was coming, but I can say those big 1970s GM V8s with the Turbo-hydromatics were bulletproof.
You would think that there would be many prospective buyers from the east coast, where any Cadillac like this is a rust bucket.