The market for 227.4 inch (5.8m) two-door cars tapered off some decades ago, but you can relive those glory days and thumb your nose at modern luxury with this 1972 Cadillac Coupe deVille. The Enumclaw, Washington classic runs and drives and looks presentable inside and out. Best of all this rolling affront to all things economical will only set you back $3500. Some folks spend that much on golf balls every year and still grit their teeth when crossing railroad tracks in their 40-series tire-wearing “luxury” cars. No such problems with this CDV, though. Many buyers don’t realize or have forgotten how measurable rubber in the 75-series range soaks up bumps and road imperfections. Check out more pictures and details on this double-brown deVille here on Craigslist. Thanks to reader Pat L. for spotting this driver-quality land yacht.
Credit the seller for showing the driver’s seat on this claimed 120,000 mile Caddy. With decent care, those seats will look just as good after another 120,000 miles. Though not mentioned, I believe that’s automatic climate control and Twilight Sentinel, optional features that maintain a constant temperature and leave the headlights on for a short while after you exit the vehicle, respectively. Thanks to lov2xlr8 for some details.
A missing trunk lock medallion and paint imperfections mark the major complaints at the stern. Multiple taillight bulbs grab the attention of today’s distracted drivers and increase safety though redundancy. Even if one bulb fails, the other still indicates your intentions.
Count on some rust under that vinyl top, but this one’s probably not destined for a museum-quality restoration. Hopefully the car’s next set of tires will sport appropriate white walls. If you don’t mind how it looks, you could drive this car for years before making a large investment. Speaking of large investments, the 472 cid (7.7L) V8 will put you on the board of trustees at Exxon if you daily drive this dinosaur. The $35,000 or more you’ll save buying this car compared to any new Cadillac will buy fuel for a while, though. It may guzzle non-renewable dino-fuel at an absurd rate, but the impact of this giant people-mover’s production on the Earth’s resources is fully amortized. Personally I’d favor the Sedan deVille, and the ’71 or ’72 are among my favorites. The Fleetwood may be top of the line, but the deVille maintains a pillarless hardtop in the four-door for glorious windows-down cruising. This platform ran through model year 1976, but larger safety-required bumpers began impacting the styling in 1973 and later. Few people know this, but some states require that Cadillac buyers celebrate their acquisition with a fine cigar, regardless of gender. Would you take up cigar-smoking after buying this monster two-door Caddy?
“… but larger safety-required bumpers began impacting the styling in 1973 and later.” A little play on words, Todd-that’s funny stuff right there😆
There was a very elderly lady with one of these, drove it the mile and a half to the ail box in a rural part of our county and rarely to the grocery store. One afternoon while on her daily mail run the local snot-nosed rich kid in his new jacked up Toyota pickup came blasting out of the sagebrush and she caught him square on the right side under the passenger door, flipping the truck three times. He was unhurt fortunately but as he got out she stopped along side of him pointed her finger at him then said “that’s what you get for driving like an @$$hole!” and drove away.
Before anyone asks, yes she drove to the Sheriffs Office to report it.
Big sturdy cars, these, and as you said loved by every gas station owner in the county.
Thanks Nevadahalfrack. Glad you got a chuckle out of that. :) Thanks for your comments as always. Don’t cross a Caddy-driving Grandma. I remember elderly women piloting these barges when you literally only saw a tuft of blue hair above the steering wheel.
We called them Q-tips
As mentioned, my old man, like most, loved BIG cars. From the DeSoto to the Oldsmobiles, that big T-bird once, the Lincoln I took my road test on, to FINALLY, a Caddy. It was this car, only blue, that was my dads last big car. He was mighty proud, and upon pulling out of the drive for the 1st time, he put down the windows and yelled for all the neighbors to hear, “Look you bunch of ( expletives) Jerry A. is driving a Cadillac!!!”,as me and my brother sunk down in the seats. He eventually sold it because the doors were too heavy for my mom, but a fantastic car to drive. As much as I rip on the old man, I’ll admit, he knew a good car. He then went with an Aerostar van, but never got to have a big car again.
You know, at one time, it was generally accepted, this car signified, “you made it”, and was the best car you could get in the good ol’ USA. What ever happened to that? Another SUPER great find.
Your dad sounds like quite a character… not like you at all? lol Going from a Caddy to an Aerostar must have been quite the transition. My Step-Dad always talked about getting a “Fat Cadillac” in retirement but he never pulled the trigger on one, also piloting a minivan as his last ride. I got my kids to adulthood without owning a minivan so maybe I’m safe. The older I get the less I want to buy a newer car. Thanks for your comments as always!
Hi Todd, thanks, just a “spoke in the wheel” here. Yeah, the old man, I can thank my mom for any civility at all. I think, just from what he went through, depression, then war, he felt like he deserved to say the things he said. He felt he earned the right for his views, you can drive a Caddy freely thanks to me. ( and many like him, he was quick to add) He wasn’t so far off, but knew nothing of political correctness. My kids grew up in minivans, even took their driving tests on one, they were the ubiquitous family vehicle. The only reason he went with the Aerostar, even though he hated Fords, it was still the rear drive, and didn’t trust FWD.
He made your mom wait almost two decades before buying that Aerostar? That’s a lot of door slamming!
“You know, at one time, it was generally accepted, this car signified, “you made it”, and was the best car you could get in the good ol’ USA. What ever happened to that?”
This is still the case, only now it is the Cadillac Escalade, and it is assembled in Arlington, God Bless Texas.
I maintain that this class of American vehicle did not die, just today it is trucks and huge SUVs. Escalade, GMC Denali, Lincoln Navigator, Jeep brought back the Grand Wagoneer, these are all huge, full of luxury, and are status symbols. Some trucks make a statement too, particularly Ford’s King Ranch and Platinum trims and Ram’s Limited (especially if a heavy duty Cummins truck). All tell the world that you’ve got cash and class, and everyone else can kiss your @ss.
SirRaoulDuke, you are spot-on with this analysis. These are the spiritual successors to the big Cadillac and Lincoln cars of the past.
Recently I read an article about Tom Brady, now (finally) retired, trying to be ‘normal.’ It highlighted him taking his kids to school “in his truck.” I bet it was a high-trim Ford/Ram/GMC, perhaps further tricked out, but nevertheless an American-made luxury truck.
Bring out the chains for a remeasure. I bet this would measure 19 feet if you add some bumperettes to the rear bumper.
Nice big land yacht scary part is I knew it was in Washington State just from the first picture
I had a 65 four door sedan that got 22 mpg on the road and 15 around Atlanta.I thought that was darned good for a big car. Didn’t have all the electrical junk you find on today’s bucket of bolts and I actually found my way all around the Eastern USA with no GPS. Imagine that. It really was a great car.
277.4 inches is 577.5 cm, so that’s not 5.8 metres.
But…. this model year 1972 DeVille (series 683) was 229 inches long, that’s 581 cm and that’s 5.81 metres ;-)
Almost 6” longer than my ‘64 Caddy convertible!
Love it ! My first car (7 yrs old in 1981) was a 1974 Cadillac Eldorado with the 500 V-8 and lots of power. And lots of gas. 10-12 mpg tops. It even had a sunroof, and since nobody wanted them in 1981 I bought it for $1,600.00. Fun times for me at 17yrs old. I’ve since owned (4) 1978 Eldorados and they still give me a thrill. This one is a cruiser for sure! Hope it gets a good home and always remember – parallel parking is a B#@$%. Good luck and keep up the great job on these articles!
“A rolling affront to all things economical”???! I have one and it’s my daily driver. I bought it, a 34K original mile and gorgeous specimen, for $14k. I could spend $20 per gallon at that price and still be ahead. I put an aluminum radiator in it (in FL) and it runs great and is cold as ice. And jaws drop at the sight of it. It’s proven a very reliable, comfortable car and one to be proud of. And the last atoms of carbon spent in any way related to its production were spent 50 years ago. All in all, a great deal.
Drove my Dad’s ’73 Coupe de Ville from Illinois to California and back, one summer. Gas so cheap, that I didn’t even blink at driving it that far. Going across the plains at midnight, is what these cars were built for.
Gone. Posting deleted by author. Someone drove home happy.
Is there a spare tire or just an Opel Kadett stashed in the trunk?
Nope, just a couple of dead mobsters.
Loved “affront to all things economical” haha Of course that was the point! Got it? Flaunt it. I owned a fully loaded 74 Caprice Classic in the late 80s…same color as this CDV. Loved that car.
Hey Todd, just an addendum on the Twilight Sentinel feature. Not only could you set the timer on it to keep the headlights lit for your walk from the car to your house, but its other function was to sense a change in outdoor light when driving and would turn on your headlights automatically, when lighting conditions got darker for 10 seconds or more. I had a 78 Sedan deVille, and the Twilight Sentinel had another option, if you flipped the turn signal right or left when you turned the car off, the white lighted side marker on the front fender would light to illuminate your path if that was the direction you were going… I miss that car!!
Great story on the 1972 Cadillac. I owned a 1972 Sedan DeVille as well as a 1950, 54, 61, 66, 69, 76, and two 1977s. Just a minor correction re: the “Twilight Sentinel”. This mechanism – feature, sensed ambient darkness and/or light and automatic turned the headlights off or on.
The younger the next owner is, the bigger the wheels will be that are swapped onto this Caddy with “complimetary” ridiculous modern tires, destroying the smooth ride.