Having been silently and smoothly gliding across the roadways of the Arlington Heights, Illinois area to the tune of only around 1,700 miles a year over the last 36 years, this 1989 Cadillac Eldorado, which the seller says has the “Gold Package”, appears to be almost like new. The seller has it posted here on craigslist and they’re asking $11,900. Here is the original listing, and thanks to T.J. for the tip!
They refer to the Gold Package as the Custom Gold Edition, but I’m assuming it’s the one with gold badges and a faux convertible top. I assumed it would also include wire wheel covers and Vouge tires, but maybe those have been changed out by now. I wonder if the aluminum wheels were an option as well, I believe wire wheel covers would have been standard, but I could be wrong. I can’t find much information on the elusive “Gold Package” or edition, but I’m hoping one of you will know more about it.
In any case, this car looks like it just rolled out of the factory, for the most part. I don’t see a flaw anywhere inside or out. The eleventh-generation Eldorado was quite a departure from Eldorados of yore, as nobody says anymore, or since 1892. This generation of Eldorado was made from 1986 through 1991 and they were a bit over a foot shorter than the previous Eldorado, which was over a foot shorter than the previous version.
As expected, the interior is gorgeous, which is almost always the case for me when a vehicle’s interior has red leather. I don’t know if a big, gold pinky ring would have been required of buyers back in 1989, but it may have been. The interior room was still spacious despite the car being much shorter than previous generations of the Eldorado, and back seat passengers should have enough room for a ride.
The engine is Cadillac’s 4.5-liter transverse OHV V8, basically a bigger and better version of the infamous HT4100. It would have had 155 horsepower and 240 lb-ft of torque when new. Sending power through a four-speed automatic to the front wheels, the seller says this is a one-owner car and runs like new, and it has new tires, and a new battery. It does look amazing, have any of you owned an eleventh-generation Eldorado?
Scotty is this gold trim included as part of a Biarritz pkg ✨️ ?
That’s a good question, Stan. As Dave Brown and Archie mention below, there seemed to be a few different bling packages and some were dealer-installed, or maybe most of them were. I remember the 80s, and having a big gold watch was the thing – a Cadillac with gold bits and pieces would be even better. Now, maybe not so much…
That being said, the latest trend for faucets and fixtures in kitchens and bathrooms is gold or brass-colored fixtures, so these things go away and then come back, and go away and come back again. There is no doubt all of those expensive faucets and other gold-colored kitchen and bath fixtures and hardware will look incredibly dated in a very short time. Whoever thought it was a good idea to bring gold back again is a mystery.
At the time, DEALERS would do this ‘gold’ trim on many different car models, for a price. Fords, Chevys, or any other brand could be had with gold letters. After a while, it was nothing special. And yes, even Detroit featured it on select trims on a few models. As cars shrank, I think that they were trying to make them special. Did it work? Maybe for a while.
Well if that’s real gold on those emblems take it off and sell it for gold value its probably worth more than the rest of the car
I believe this is what Cadillac called a “Spring Edition.” The fake convertible top, gold trim, and body-color alloy wheels were part of the package.
I agree with you Scotty. The interior in red is beautiful. My Great Aunt Gerri had a Caddy with a red leather interior. She was a store manager for Buster Brown Shoes and that automobile was her baby
Gold package was a dealer BS addition. Just a way to make extra money off the suckers.
I was one of those “suckers”. Unapologetically still am. GIVE ME WHITEWALLS! LOL
I see someone helped themselves to the gold hood ornament.
When done with a light touch, it was/is quite attractive. Think back to the Kaiser Golden Dragon. Just a touch of gold. Nice.
Anybody know the whereabouts of the “consultant” that convinced GM brass that gasoline would rise sharply by 1986? 😂
11th gen Eldo sales dropped by 72% over the last year of 10th gen sales.
It wasn’t about gas prices especially with luxury brands, it was government imposed CAFE standards on fleet mileage
At least that 4.5 engine is 100 times better than it’s 4.1 predecessor. A total POS. My neighbor was a Cadillac tech from 79 to 86. He made a ton of money replacing the 4.1 boat anchors. He did it all day long and at flat rate could beat the time for the job by hours. He is now 73 and restoring Corvettes with me. Before Cadillac he was the go to guy where we worked to fix all Corvettes at a Chevy dealer from 1973 to 1979. Nice Eldo here.
Gold exterior or interior trim was never offered by Cadillac from the factory. However, for some years, in the 80s and into the 90s, all buyers of new Cadillacs received their key set with a gold plated finish as part of the exclusive Cadillac Gold-Key Delivery process.
I had an 86 that the air conditioner would suddenly shut down. Dealer finally, after multiple trips there, determined that the three computers in the car would stop communicating. I discovered that I could reset it myself using the buttons just above the transmission hump.
My sister had the Buick, built on that chassis, and, it would do the same thing. The Buick service installed a switch under the dash that allowed her to turn it on or off, whenever she desired.