In the ever-confusing world in which we inhabit, classic car market trends are an interesting dilemma. The gorgeous full classics that rotate through the plethora of concours and high-end events are still trading for five and six figures amongst the elite. Lower-end cars that were popular when they were new, such as Model A Fords, have seen a resurgence. Everything else, including more common luxury cars, has experienced a shocking drop in value. Take for example this 1934 Cadillac Series 355D touring car. While Cadillac offered V-12 and V-16 lines above it, the 355D was a V-8-powered luxury car that was quite the status symbol of its time. Prices for such desirable vehicles have fallen, with this non-running example being offered for $20,000 while good Model A Fords are trading hands for near that figure. What is the reason for such madness?
To be frank, there are many factors at play here. First off is value. Barn Finds readers let us know in the comments that restoring a car is not about the money and remind us that no sane person walks into this hobby expecting to make a return on their investment. The problem is that restoring a car, especially a luxury car, has become prohibitively expensive no matter what kind of car it is. A luxury car runs that bill up even further due to its being built with higher quality materials, a scarcity of parts for these rare cars, and the extended amount of time it takes to restore a more complex automobile. The second is that the buyer has to have a personal connection with the car. Be it remembering a similar example in the movies, a relative who had a car like this, or the simple case of falling in love at first sight, that connection pushes owners to finish any work that is needed and lays the groundwork for long-term ownership. The new generation of automobile lovers is simply not making these deep connections with prewar cars in general and prewar luxury cars as a whole.
So where does that leave a car like this 1934 Cadillac? You could argue that its chances for a full restoration are precariously low for the reasons stated above. There are also other issues holding back the car’s prospects. Even though this one family-owned car has been stored indoors for decades, the engine does not rotate, and it is missing its radiator. The odometer currently sits at a relatively low 52,300 miles. Other than the radiator, the car appears to be all there. From the unique art deco bumpers to the delicate chrome trim, this car is certainly restorable.
It is just a question of cost and how far into a restoration you want to go. From the limited pictures we see in the ad, this car may clean up well if properly detailed. One bit of good news is that you can see another car in the reflection in the still glossy paint. The seller tells us that there is no rust or rot to contend with. One would assume that means major problems, as we can see that surface rust has made a mess of the front bumper. Once again, nothing terrible, but to re-chrome the bumpers would be an expensive proposition.
Inside, we see that the interior is in pretty good condition going by the one picture we are given. There may be issues with the headliner, as the shadowy top of the picture looks a little off. The dash, instruments, and steering wheel look to be very presentable, but the doors appear to have experienced some moisture damage in the past. Sadly, we are not given a picture of the engine.
The seller tells us that more pictures are on the way. Hopefully, they will reveal a car that needs to be detailed with minor repairs to be performed here and there and not a car that will require a full restoration. The engine is another matter. Perhaps a good strategy would be to soak it with a penetrant and see if that performs a miracle. If the engine can be freed, then the price may attract a buyer who wants a well-respected luxury car at a decent price. If it can’t be easily freed, then the rebuild costs will likely make finding a buyer difficult. Hopefully, someone will step up and give this car a good home.
If you are looking for a luxurious Depression-era sedan, this 1934 Cadillac Series 355B Touring for sale on eBay in Broadalbin, New York may be your ride. This diamond in the rough Cadillac is being offered with an asking price of $20,000.
TWO years younger than me and that spare Tire what a dream , I hope the lord helps me keep my wallet in my pocket. That dream was in America two years before I was brought to Ellis Island. Nice and shiny just like the Caddy.
Wow, someone had money during the depths of the Great Depression. Certainly an interesting car and it would be great to see it restored but it would cost way more than I have.
I’d love to own that car but not at the asking price. Maybe I’m just cheap but I don’t see a totally inoperative car as any kind of good investment especially as restoration costs go today. A V-8? Really? That’s interesting. The fact that everything is there but the radiator is a good sign that the car hasn’t been cannibalized but given the cost of rechroming and such, what will you have when it’s all restored? Just another Cadillac from 1934. Look for one and you’ll find many.
Broadalbin is less than ten miles away; in fact, I was in Vail Mills (one mile from Broadalbin) less than an hour ago. Broadalbin is a pleasant town along the south rim of Sacandaga Lake. Lovely car — but too high a price for a non-runner with a missing radiator. If it were still running, I could see restoring it mechanically, and driving it just the way it is, otherwise. But too much needed, here. Too bad. Broadalbin is north of Amsterdam and east of Gloversville, less than 30 miles west of Saratoga Springs.
We own property near Saratoga, so about 20+ years ago I bought a “shopper paper” and found a V-8 car that was right near that Cadillac, but it was a money pit and after spending time and money, I lost. I was glad to sell the 1969 MB 300SEL 6.3 car with a trade for the much easier 1983 diesel MB 300SD. The earlier one had rust issues and air bags which I replaced, but the big issue was a leaking mechanical fuel injection pump, very expensive, but still nothing like the other MB with the same 6.3 engine, that has hydraulics for windows and doors, the 600 series. It was a lesson.
To Dave: Hello, Neighbour! We folks from this area need to stick together! (smiles)
Wow…..how cool is that…..should have a new owner soon…..
Great car! But let’s face it folks, either
this car’s gonna get restomodded or
crushed. At least if you went the restomod route, the car would be on
the road and not in a scrapyard. And
yes, I’ve seen some really delightful
restorods over my 50+ years in the hobby. Of all the cars I’ve seen over the years, two stand out the most with another for honorable mention.
They are: Larry Woods 1932 Nash
Ambassador Eight touring sedan and
Mel Taormino’s 1934 Ford phaeton.
with Orville Elgie’s 1937 Ford Sedan
Delivery gets the honorable mention.
Mr. Wood’s car was featured in the
September 1973 issue of Rod & custom Magazine. And let me tell you, that car was drop dead gorgeous! It was restored to bone
stick condition outside and in. Under
the stock skin, it ran a 72 AMC 390 V-8 mated to a Shift Command auto tranny. Mr. Wood even went so far as
to restore the Bjur lubrication system
that the car came with a long with many other parts and accessories his
Nash came with when he found it.
Mel Taormino’s ’34 Ford Phaeton was
featured in the December ’69 issue of
Rod & Custom as well. And like Larry
Wood’s Nash, it was truly a sight to
behold! That Ice Blue metallic paint,
the white top, along with the custom made wire rims and all that NOS Ford
Stuff he used to build the car really made it stand out. Like the Nash, it too looked stock outside til you opened the hood and saw the spanking new 327 Chevy and T350
tranny poking out. I saw and rode in
this car at the first Street Rod Nationals in Peoria Illinois in 1970 and I can still recall it after all these
years. While there, I saw Orville Elgie’s ’37 Ford Sedan Delivery too.
And like Mr. Taormino’s phaeton, Mr.
Elgie’s truck had a lot of NOS Ford stuff on it also. And under all that stock stuff, there sat a ’68 350/T400
combo with A/C to make the trip from
California a pleasant one. For this car, I’d use a 472 Caddy V-8 and T400
tranny for go and disc brakes on all 4
wheels for whoa. Other than a decent
Radio and A/C, the rest of this beautiful car would remain all stock.
Ladies and gentlemen, I rest my case.
Nice write up. For all the reasons given, the asking price is too high.I’m not sure it would see 20K running and driving, but unrestored…
Good luck to the seller. Way over-priced for an incomplete, non-running car. Take away one of the zeros in the price and then it will sell.
I agree. Nice car for SOME purpose. But, as for the asking price: DREAM ON. The problem with creating a restomod out of this one is, while it can be done, with undoubtedly glorious results… what would you invest, to have a like-new 1934 Cabillac of lower pedigree, that gives you a reliable modern driving-experience, with a definitely eye-catching appearance? Since this is NOT one of the six-figure pre-war cars, spending $20K on something this far gone, then creating glory out of it; you’d better prepare to enjoy it for the rest of your life, because you’ll never get anything like your money back out of it.
I agree. Nice car for SOME purpose. But, as for the asking price: DREAM ON. The problem with creating a restomod out of this one is, while it can be done, with undoubtedly glorious results… what would you invest, to have a like-new 1934 Cabillac of lower pedigree, that gives you a reliable modern driving-experience, with a definitely eye-catching appearance? Since this is NOT one of the six-figure pre-war cars, spending $20K on something this far gone, then creating glory out of it; you’d better prepare to enjoy it for the rest of your life, because you’ll never get anything like your money back out of it.
Anyone who grew up watching Robert Stack as Elliot Ness would recognize this vintage Cadillac as a Frank Nitti Special. I would require a well used fedora and a Thompson with a full drum as needed accessories. I am so far outside the economics of this class of cars that I will guess he gets his money – with the proviso that all doubters are correct in their evaluation.
I have been to Broadalbin, New York many times to deliver Amish built furniture to a store for re-sale. Very nice little town. The store was located in a former supermarket type building and if I remember correctly it was along side a river. If I was much younger I would pursue this car, but for much less $$$. Only because my wife’s Grandparents had a very similar Cadillac that we have only a photo of.
Broadalbin does not border on a river (in the strictest sense). That body of water you remember, C5 Corvette, is the south part of the Sacandaga Reservoir, commonly called Sacandaga Lake, which goes north and northeast about all the way up to Glens Falls (if memory serves, 32 miles). Northville is surrounded on three sides by the Sacandaga, maybe 15 miles or so north of Broadalbin. This USED to be a valley, with a creek or small river running through it to join the Hudson River at Glens Falls: in 1929, they dammed and flooded its valley to create the reservoir. Hundreds of homes, small towns, roads, even 1920s and earlier automobiles, as well as furniture and dishes and other common items, lie silently entombed under that water. Broadalbin and Northville remain, because they sat above the level which was flooded.
thanks for this information. I delivered to so many small stores in towns all over NY, CT, NJ, and PA, I did this after I retired from my real job to keep busy and earn a little extra $$. it’s hard to keep them all straight in my memory.
I bought a stroked 390 (out to about 445 ci) from a reputable outfit up in Georgia to put into a Galaxie restomod I did, and paid about $12K for the engine. 4 years later, I was looking at a little six banger Le Mans in need of a rebuild, so asked the shop that did the restomod for me (but not that engine) and asked them how much to do a rebuild. “Between ten and twenty thousand dollars”!!! To rebuild a stock Pontiac straight six!! That was the end of THAT liittle “thought experiment.” Entry to the hobby is being killed DEAD by greed. And remember when body and paint was the MOST reasonable cost in a re do? Now it’s the MOST expensive part. Nuts.
The people that own a business that is involved in engine rebuilding or body restoration and painting , especially the classic car aspect have incredibly high overhead. Like myself, we still stay at it because we enjoy what we do, and bend over backwards to help our customers. This is not the business to be in for a greedy quick buck, all of my costs have increased 30% + in the last 3 years. Quality and availability of parts has dropped remarkably, knowledgeable, experienced, suppliers have retired or sold their business with no one to replace them. If you find someone to do the work, it’s gonna cost.
So what would be a reasonable price for this car? $10K, $5K? Less?
I saw one on a hotrod website that had been left sitting in a field somewhere and was rebuilt/hotrodded, converted from 4-doors to two doors, chopped, channeled etc and was a gorgeous car when finished that still looked like a Cadillac. I’m pretty sure that car was nowhere near $20K but it had horrible rust and structural issues. Anyway, I have two projects underway, both making very slow progress and no room or money for another, just curious what y’all think would be a reasonable price.
Maybe 5k with the locked up motor that won’t budge. Needs a radiator,all wheels rebuilt, gas lines and tank rebuilt and maybe wiring replaced to start with. That’s close to 20k right there and that’s just to get it going. Plus the fact that although the car is rare it doesn’t really say “Cadillac” when you look at it. It’s old but not very distinctive.