In the 1960s, if you wanted to buy a car that said you “made it,” the Cadillac Coupe de Ville had to be at the top of your shopping list. It was a big, luxurious automobile with two doors that was nearly as long as a city block. Its second generation would debut in 1961 and be a bit more sedate in appearance than its predecessors, with much small tailfins (but they would be there for three more years). This ’61 edition has been living in a storage shed, but we don’t know for how long. It has survived quite well and is said to run. Located in Vestal, New York, this de Ville is available here on eBay where the bidding has reached $7,500.
This was a lot of car back in 1961 and should be for its sticker price: $5,250. That amount might buy you a barn find these days, but back then it would buy a lot of stuff. But to put things into perspective, the average car cost $2,850 then, the average household income was $5,315, the average home cost $12,500 and a gallon of gasoline would set you back a whopping 27 cents. Those were the days! The ’61 Cadillac was powered by a 390 cubic inch V8 that output 325 hp and 430 ft./lbs. of torque with a 4-barrel carburetor.
We don’t get much information about this Cadillac, but you have to believe it there’s a great story in it somewhere. What if the seller went on that TV show Storage Wars and bought the contents of this storage unit sight unseen for a paltry sum of money? Then cut off the lock, opened the door and found this beauty stuffed inside! Well, IT could happen. However this Caddy found its way there, it’s said to have less than 63,000 miles on the odometer and runs, although we don’t know how well. Perhaps that’s with a bottle of gas hooked up. The seller doesn’t offer any under the hood or trunk photos, so this is pure speculation.
The Coupe de Ville looks fairly good overall. There are a few little dings here and there and the silver paint is quite decent in many places, except for the trunk lid which has some surface rust and maybe a stain. The glass and chrome also look quite presentable, so perhaps just a good detailing would suffice for now. The rear fender skirts may be missing, or possibly they’re inside that trunk we don’t see.
From what we can peek at of the matching interior, there may not be any issues that some cleaning products wouldn’t take care of. However, this is a 60-year-old machine, so if the interior is no better or no worse than the exterior, maybe you’ve got a winner here. If you pegged the overall condition of this car at Good, Hagerty says it’s worth at least $20,000. But you could be pessimistic, and Fair would be around $13,000. Is this a car you would buy to restore?
The ’61s and ’62s are my favorites but based on the poor photos and lazy ebay description, I wouldn’t entertain it unless I lived blocks away. That’s a mystery meat.
I thought I might be being a little too jaded here so I revisited the photos… the last one shown here shows full length if you click on it… the dings are not too bad but there is a lot of rust on all panels.
Too rich for my blood, but this doesn’t look abused. Even if it doesn’t get a concourse restoration, this could still be a great weekend cruiser.
Don Draper, we have your car….
Will they let you change oil, etc. in a storage unit? Not sure if there is an electric outlet to plug in an electric heater or fan, & lights.
My 7th grade English teacher had a 61 Cadillac 4 door. (71-72 school year)
Black. She called it the Batmobile.
She happily drove it till it had a major mechanical breakdown in 1984
Her husband bought her a new 1984 Oldsmobile 98
She’s still alive and sharp as a tack. May need to call and check on her
These are the women that made this country great. They are long gone.
I beg to differ. I’m married to one and our daughter is one. Both are very much alive and making this world a better place.
The military sticker on the bumper shows it was registered on base in 2011
Not necessarily much of a Cad fan, but IMO the ’61-’62 are very underrated designs. Last Cads to carry the trademark tailfins with grace, ’63 onwards they just look hilariously out of place on the otherwise square designs…
Dad bought Mom a ’62 and boy was it a
great car! That was in ’66 or ’67. It sure
looked and rode well for a 5 year old
used car. Other than the 4 speed Hydra
Matic trans being a pain in the ass, it was a great car. Would like to have
another one, but $90 to fill the tank,
oh my achin’ wallet!
“IF” this were a Coupe DeVille, it would have power windows/seats standard. But this one doesn’t have those, making it a base model Series 62 coupe. Value-wise it does make a difference.
Love this Cadie, 2dr or 4dr, especially in red, that is Cadillac red
My Dad called these ‘Coupe D’Barn Door’
Unusual to see manual windows on a Cadillac in 1961, but that’s what I prefer–fewer things to go wrong.
From experience, PW on GM cars of this period are pretty trouble-free, but other manufacturer’s PW motors were less reliable.
I am in, especially after that description. Mind boggling. NY rust bucket, WOW. I would rather pay the 22K for the mint one on ebay.
Not a DeVille, it is a series 62. Can not tell if it has factory air, but no power windows and prob no power seats. Will Fox is correct
Non air; just fan, heat, defrost on slider.
Trying to figure out why someone would call this the third generation.
1949, 1951, 1954, 1957, and 1959 began previous series of Coupes DeVille
I’m much fonder of the 1962 with slightly less sharp fins and the formal roof that the popularity of Fords, Thunderbird, and Lincolns forced GM to put on quickly
Someone will buy it and Ghetto It Out with Bags, Hydraulics and 22’s
Aircraft Carrier
My dad had a white one. On a warm summer night, I was cruising down Main St., with my HS best girl sitting next to me, when a drunken old guy in a ’54 Chevy sedan, brush painted bright RED, hit the left front and scraped that RED paint all the way down the side. The Caddy was less than a year old…and it was my first accident. Dad wasn’t happy. The poor elegant Caddy was instantly very ugly and surely embarrassed. It was a very nice car for the day.
(Is this one missing the rear fender skirts? The car would look much better with them.)