After 50 years in storage this ’47 Cadillac Fleetwood has a lot going for it. The seller claims that this Cadillac has 23,000 original miles, has never been restored, and only ever had one owner. Checking out the listing, this post war auto looks like a very nice survivor that would clean up rather well. With a few days remaining, bidding has reached $4,150.00 or the buy it now option is still available for $8,500.00. Check out this sweet find here on eBay out of Independence, Oregon. Thanks to Adam Clarke for this wonderful submission!
The engine is untouched, although the seller is confident that it will run once again. The coolant hoses are missing on the engine, as is the air cleaner and serpentine belts. Although the condition is unknown, the seller does confirm that the engine turns over. With seeing the coolant hoses and belts removed, it makes me wonder if someone was planning to do a water pump in this Caddy’s past? If the 23,000 miles is indeed accurate, imagine how nice it will be to work on an engine of this age that isn’t worn out!
Inside you will be pleasantly surprised by how lovely this Cadillac has remained. While there are a few blemished from time, the interior is overall very reasonable, and I would dare to say very nice. There is some paint wear on the faux painted dash, and there are some water stains on the door panels as well. The steering wheel is quite impressive as there are no cracks to be found on the rim, or on the horn button. Also the gauges are quite clear and clean with no discoloration from aging.
Although shown in its as found appearance, the exterior of this Cadillac is quite promising with its straight body and minimal paint blemishes. Granted, the paint is not going to be perfect, and there are a few areas of surface rust to be found, but there appears to be no major areas of concern with the body work. A gentle cleaning and perhaps even a polish would likely leave you with a very reasonable condition 71 year old survivor. It is not all that often that a survivor of this age and quality appears, and certainly this Fleetwood could be an enjoyable preservation that would draw interest at car events. How many of you would like to have this original condition survivor in your garage?
If you could get a shine on that paint without buffing it all off the car then I’d definitely buff it out with a high lustre polish. The drivers door I’d make a nice carved wood covering for the wear on the door panel then I’d make three more carved covers to make the other door match. It would keep the original fabric in place while hiding the damage. I’d get the wheel covers rechromed, and repair what ever was needed mechanically speaking. This car is not a rust bucket and with attention payed to it now it could be preserved for years to come.
This wouldn’t be a Fleetwood 60-Special sedan. Those were trunkback models whereas this one is the torpedo back. It’s most likely a Series 61 or 62, but without my reference material handy at the moment I’m unsure. Fleetwoods had the graceful B-pillar details that weren’t shared with any other model. From what little I can see though, this appears quite solid and complete. For those in search of early post-WWII Cadillacs, you could do alot worse for the money. The flathead V8 was like a bank vault, and pulled these Caddies just fine.
series 62. I have one