Nestled under the warmth of a pile of moving blankets is this 1964 Cadillac Coupe DeVille. It was been slumbering as such for ten years after coming in out of the cold. The seller suggests that it needs complete restoration so let’s see what we can determine. This Caddy is located in Parowan, Utah and is available, here on Facebook Marketplace for $3,000.
Cadillac’s model hierarchy in 1964 consisted of the “Youthful” Series 62, the “Brilliant” DeVilles, and the “Impeccable” Fleetwood series. DeVilles were offered in a convertible, two-door hardtop, and two different four-door hardtop variations. In 1964, the DeVille proved to be popular with Cadillac buyers, accounting for about two-thirds of total sales with a total volume of 110K units.
There’s not much said about this car in the listing and just a few accompanying images. It has a 340 gross HP, 429 CI V8, that hasn’t run in a long time, and it’s connected to either a Hydramatic or a new for ’64, Turbo-Hydramatic 400, three-speed automatic transmission – which is not disclosed.
There are only two images of the exterior and the bodywork looks sound. There is surface rust in places but nothing that looks like rot-through – nevertheless, all of those years of “outdoor” storage should be cause for concern, certainly regarding the underside. There’s no telling what happened to the passenger side headlights, the wheel covers, or the fender skirts but at least all of the trim is in place and the glass looks pretty good.
Inside, there is a bit of a discovery inside in the form of bucket seats and a center console, not exactly what one usually expects to find in a Cadillac of this era but they were an option that the original owner thought was a worthy choice. Unfortunately, the black leather upholstery looks to have run afoul of a weasel, or some other kind of rodent, as it’s in rough shape. The dash and instrument panel image is too dark to make out any details but the gauge cluster appears to be complete.
This was an interesting time for Cadillac, there’s no getting around their size but they had managed to lose the worst of their caricature features by ’64 while still maintaining a modicum of a tailfin. Yes, understated is how I’d describe it. The question that remains is how much of an attraction will there be for a 57-year-old, titleless, Deville that, as the seller states, “needs complete restoration” especially when there are so many unknowns with this example?
The only time I’ve ever seen a Cadillac of this era with bucket seats, was on the Johan 1/25th scale model kit of the Coupe deVille and convertible. I think even the promotional models in these years had bench seats.
I’ve seen quite a few Cadillacs of this era with bucket seats. All the way up to 1970.
Some had consoles, most didn’t. One of my favorites was a ’68 convertible, white with white bucket seats.
The Diva is correct ladies and gentlemen, the were especially popular in the convertibles.
Those seats are very business like with the center console on the same level. Wow! I wish they were in better condition…
I would love to see what Count’s Kustom’s would do with this car as project.
I’d have to wonder why anyone would ever be interested in what some fake reality tv show would end up doing to such a. At as this. If you ha e never been to his “shop” then you should go see the quality?
Can we say “spell Check”, boys and girls?
In ’66 I traded a 55 TBird for 64 Fleetwood Brougham, which followed a 61 Fleetwood, which followed a 54 Coupe de Ville. That 64 was the best I have ever had for long-distance. It was like driving a 23mpg tomb-any noise was generated by the stereo. Bench seats, though.
FACEBOOK link does not work
It fell out for whatever reason but it’s back in and working now.
Thx,
JO
Give ME Give this car. WHat happens next no clue but I would really like this car.
Jim ODonnell is owed a debt of gratitude for stating the SAE Gross HP ratings for his pre 1972 American cars posts.
In the 2013 article “Muscle Car Horsepower – How Exaggerated Was It?” a short paragraph about an LS6 Chevelle stands out:
Some Super Chevy readers must have been stunned to see that an LS6 Chevelle SS, with 450-hp rating, put down 288 rear wheel hp in the dyno test. That would have put a net hp rating at around 350 hp for that legendary big block.
In 1960 Road and Track’s Technical Correspondence section offered this explanation to a German reader:
“For power rating tests, the SAE specifications allow a stripped engine, with the generator, water pump, and/or cooling fan removed. The test engineers are also allowed to adjust the mixture strength and ignition timing at any time, to insure the best possible performance. Thus, the engine may be adjusted for peak power — during that part of the test — even at the expense of torque. Conversely, the torque rating is obtained with engine timing and mixture strength that would adversely affect the total power.”
The performance data for the new 1964 Coupe DeVille with the new Hydamatic three speed per The Autocar road test attains the same top speed as the Car and Driver test of the lighter Sedan DeVille, however the Car Life testers held and slammed the gear changes to extract the best possible acceleration results. The Autocar has the greater detail and data.
The Autocar flicker scan 7 Aug 1964 test:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/triggerscarstuff/albums/72157644226707618
I’ll post the Car Life Sedan DeVille test in next comment.
Car Life’s road test is of the lighter 1964 Sedan DeVille driven aggressively to obtain the best performance numbers. Not exactly the results the average Caddy driver of the day would have seen:
http://wildaboutcarsonline.com/members/AardvarkPublisherAttachments/9990457297932/1964-07_CL_1964_Cadillac_Sedan_DeVille_Test_1-4.pdf
Calculating Net HP based on the lighter Sedan DeVille’s 1/4 mile ET and MPH with the slightly heavier weight of the Coupe DeVille results in a 260 HP Net rating. Net HP ratings can be compared with 1972 and later American brands. Of course General Motors and Chrysler provided both Gross and Net ratings for their engines in their 1971 specs.
You lost me at “title-less”.
Been there, done that.
Not worth the time and aggravation…and eventual disappointment.
sigh!
Very similar to my first car. So many memories. I loved that beast,
About 6,000 Cadillac’s in 1964 had bucket seats. The total production for that year was around 165,000 cars give or take. So not a large percentage but they are out there.