A few great affordable projects appear every now and again, like this Coupe De Ville. Stunning, and appearing like a great start, this Caddy has a new engine, and a seemingly solid body. This Caddy could easily be a driving restoration project for someone that doesn’t have deep pockets to drop on paint and body work all at once. Although potentially a great driving project, this coupe needs work to be driver. This great project is offered for $4,500! Take a look at it here on craigslist out of York, Pennsylvania.
A “new engine” has been fitted to this Cadillac, but “new” can take on a few different meanings. It could be a used engine that is “new” to the car, or it could be a rebuilt engine. Either way, it would seem that the engine is a runner, or very close to running. Also I would assume that this is not the original engine to this Caddy. One thing that I like in particular about this engine bay is that the factory wiring is still in factory like sheathing, and looks to be in very nice shape. There are a few areas where surface rust can be spotted, but overall there is a great deal of paint present in the bay. The seller mentions that the brake system needs to be done, but I would be willing to bet that the fuel system could use some attention as well.
There are multiple snap shots of the interior revealing it to be in reasonable original condition. The seats have cracking in the leather, and the fabric upholstery is worn and picked, but still in place. Another great feature of this De Ville is that the door panels are in nice shape, as is the dash albeit a bit faded. Some auxiliary gauges have been added to the lower portion of the dash, and there is a curious wire nest that I assume to be related to those modern gauges. Much like the exterior, the interior could slowly be improved upon while enjoying a relaxing cruise to the local hamburger joint.
I won’t say that this Cadillac is a saint, but it is hard to find a Coupe De Ville this nice for this kind of money. I am certain this car has been painted before, and some body work has been performed as well, as there are no holes for factory body trim. There may be some not so nice hidden surprises mixed into the body work, but this car does appear like a great starter project that you could drive. There is a dent in the trunk, as well as in the driver lower rear quarter. Some surface rust can be seen in the driver rocker, quarter and fin. The chrome is starting to roll off of the front bumper, but the very important face of this classic is still in nice shape with no significant damage to see. It would take a dedicated person to return this awesome classic to its show room looks, but as a fun to drive and enjoy project, this Cadillac seems a very reasonable deal that could certainly be improved upon. Would you jump on this cheap Coupe De Ville? I know I would if I could!
Looks like someone has done some serious mods on the tail fins. That’s not the way it came from the factory, in fact the whole rear quarter looks changed.
That trunk lid looks like my trunk lid when i sold my 57 back in 2015 to pay for medical bills to keep my feet & unsure thoughts on fins as mine were stock.
You can see the bondo coming off, and the rust streaks underneath. Be afraid…
Those rust streaks alone tell a huge story. No way is there good metal under that coating of bondo. I’d buy it to part out the interior and perhaps front end body panels/grille and perhaps the “new” engine if it’s in good shape. But not at that price.
Well well well there it is again. I have seen this car on our local CL for the better part of a year. If you look closely (and you don’t have to look THAT closely) you can see that every body panel suffers from rust, dents, and the like. It’s an east coast car, so multiply any rust you see by 3 and that’s the amount that’s lurking under the cheap, old, garage paint job on this one.
The fins are scary ugly.
I’d consider taking off the trunk lid and making it into a pickup!
Not even really a parts car. I don’t think that their is one straight panel on this car. Not to mention the face lift someone gave those fins. Make it a road worthy rat rod. Too much rust and way too much bondo.
Would be interested in knowing how well the access has been done since the door handles have been shaved. Showing my custom roots here.
58belair 39500 or best
@Mike – Please consider listing it here on the site: https://barnfinds.com/sell/ Thanks!
Love classic cars even though needs works it needs some LOVE
Junk/
York craigslist, but actually in Princeton, NJ. That always worries me.
Not really a big deal over here, NJ is so small usually people in NJ will post in NY and Philly CL and vice versa.
You’ll need an exorcist to correct the “Exner-izing”
It is a parts car and a bad one at that. If they gave it to you, you’d be up side down.
Can’t see one of these without thinking about John Waters’s “Pink Flamingos”.
$1,500.00 dollars parts car. Car is full of bondo and rust. Motor looks like it was painted in place.