With the downsizing movement looming and just a few short years away on several of the GM offerings, you could still walk into your Cadillac dealer in 1974 and buy a fourth-generation Sedan De Ville that measured more than 19 feet in length and weighed over 5,000 pounds! The car had enough interior room and came with enough luxury commodities to keep everybody comfortable and happy for lots of miles at a time. This particular 1974 Cadillac Sedan De Ville just came out of a 37-year hibernation, and the owner is initially attempting to find it a new home here on Craigslist for a short time before he sends it to auction, so if you’ve been envisioning a seventies land yacht in your future it may be worth checking out. The car is located in Spokane Valley, Washington, and comes with an asking price of $17,300.
We’d like to thank reader Pat L. for spotting this one and bringing it to our attention! The seller says this De Ville was driven into a barn in Washington State in 1985, and it sat there for the next 37 years with several other Cadillacs and other vintage collectible cars until it was woken up earlier this year and shown some love before being offered for sale. The Persian Green is said to be a rare color to find on this model, and the paint is stated as being original. The finish was treated to a good cleaning and waxing, with the result showing just a very few minor flaws. The plastic body parts between the body and rear bumper were replaced and don’t fit quite as well as the originals, but they’re said to be far better than the brittle pieces that were removed.
The interior has also been refreshed, with a lot of attention given to refurbishing the leather, which the seller says is supple and looks fantastic. ’74 was also the first year the De Ville was available with optional airbags for the front passengers, which also got you a different steering wheel, but this particular example is not equipped with them. Most of the amenities it does have are said to be functioning properly, although the A/C is in need of some work.
Within just the last 3 months the car has received a thorough fuel line and gas tank cleaning, oil and coolant replaced, and some head work due to an intake valve sticking when the car was first started. This caused a push rod to bend, but the seller says it’s all been repaired and that the car now runs and drives flawlessly. Transmission shifting is said to be smooth, and there are apparently no rattles or squeaking sounds anywhere in the car. What are your thoughts on this 1974 Cadillac Sedan De Ville?
“The Persian Green is said to be a rare color to find on this model”
That’s for sure. In 48 years, I’ve never seen another.
I had owned a ’74 in that off yellow color and it drove nice! I do not think that I have seen this color before myself. This is a nice find!
Worked for a cadillac dealership in the 70 and even though this color was available in that year I have never seen one a unique color and should sell at that price barry
I believe it’s called Persian Lime Firemist
Great looking land yacht. I truly appreciate Cadillacs and Lincolns of the earliest seventies. Funny how back then, I was turned off by them.
Nice find! I had a 1974 Fleetwood. The first time that I tried to put it in the garage the door wouldn’t close. I removed a 1/2 inch sheet of plywood that I had against the wall and it just fit. It took up the whole 20 foot length. Wide too. I am 6 ft. 1 inch and could lie flat against the seats. Measure your storage carefully if you are going to buy one of these.
I hard to tell from the pics but in the 70s my Dad painted our hot rod 53 Chevy sedan delivery a Cadillac green looks alot like it way green with gold metallic.
What a beautiful Cadillac… Typical 70s colors! 😂 The interior looks beautiful. I would say it’s worth the money. But where do you park the Battlestar Galactica! 😂 Yes you do need to know where this fits at home before buying it. Good luck to the next owner. 🐻🇺🇸
To heck with the car! If this is a barn find I wanna see the BARN!
Never saw a Caddy in this shade , but I did see it in mid size Cutlass and Regals around the same time . Being a fan of green cars , I wouldn’t mind owning it !
Cad used Persian Lime in 74 only. GM used a similar color on many 76 models (except Cad).
Barn find means mouse house the black stains on the carpet means mouse dropping s and evidence of mold around the door pull ash tray shows no climate control if you want it inspect in person before bidding
Most cars listed here as “barn finds” aren’t … just because it says it was found in a barn means as much as saying only 15k original miles on a trashed 50 year old Pinto that you know has well over 100k on it.
I would agree mice love leather interiors I would want to inspect and smell the interior before purchase had a 79 rolls royce that sat in a barn for 20 years the mice almost totaled the interior of this once a one hundred and fifty thousand dollar car barry
What a beautiful car and what a great shade of green!
If I owned this land yacht, I’d get one of those stickers that shows a stick figure guy peeing on a Tesla or a Prius.
I wonder how many miles per gallon this car can achieve… or should I say gallons per mile? :)
Back in the late eighties a coworker GAVE me a loaded 74 Chevrolet Caprice Classic that I drove and loved….so I would definitely enjoy tooling around in this beauty! My coworkers teen kids didn’t want to be seen pulling up to high school in the Chevy land yacht LOL
David that was quite a score on the ’74 Caprice. Lucky duck!
I don’t know what was with your coworker’s kids… When I was a kid, I’d have considered myself lucky to drive to or get a ride to school in any car or truck because it was always better than riding the bus, which took forever because of the route.
Same here! We weren’t spoiled like her kids must have been.
There were 83,274 Hardtop Sedan DeVilles built, with prices starting at $6,118 (about $40,427 now). Cadillac decommissioned the third-generation DeVille at the end of 1970, which had been in production since 1965.Dec 30, 2021
Had a 74 Monte Carlo and and and a 75 Olds Felta 88 coupe.It was the latter part of the great period of American astectic design exemplifying vehicles of personality.The downsizing could have been handled nicer and we still could of had modern sedans that were efficient and handled good and looked nice.But GM in particular rushed things by taking autonomy away from the divisions and making ALL frntbwheel drive cars without their former identities and character,while Japan did the opposite by going from cars that looked like a toaster to nice sedans like the Camry and Accord and Civic and a SUVs that are easy to drive and use.But GM?they are canceling all cars except the Camaro….just Trucks andvSUVs…and Ford basically did the same thing,claiming the Americans only want trucks and SUVs…..if that’s true why are there so many Camrys,Accords,Civics,Sonatas,Jettas ,BMWs and Benzes on the road?
I have mixed feelings about this DeVille. It is collectible in that it’s behemoth size and weight will probably never be seen again in a passenger car thanks to CAFE rules and a few oil embargoes. Of course, gas guzzling consumers simply bought deluxe super heavyweight pickup trucks as grocery getters for personal use not out of farm or contractor necessity. My dad owned a new 1974 Coupe Deville and liked the ride, luxury options and the image of success it created. I prefer a medium sized vehicle that is easy to park, easy to drive and more maneuverable than the luxury barges of my youth. So I understand the appeal but it’s not my desire. Another thing my dad told me when I was interested in buying his downsized 1977 Coupe when he was going to trade it in 1980 is that I could afford the price but not the cost of Cadillac replacement parts and service. Guess that is why he replaced them after the warranty expired before expensive items wore out. Dad was wise with money. An old friend has bought recent generation used Cadillacs and was shocked by what dealers charge now for any repairs. The moral is inspect the car thoroughly for defects.
With all the plastic cars out there this cad in the case of a accident forget the gas mileage I would rather be in this heavy well made car than spend months in the hospital barry
A great looking car, and I remember those older Cads as a kid.
When I was in high school, a neighbor had a 1957 Coupe de Ville and I loved that car. I was 15 when he got it, and after I got my driver’s license the following year, he let me drive it on occasion. My senior year, he often had me drive him to the airport and then bring it back to his garage. He would phone the house to let me know when his return flight was. I thought I was king of the neighborhood driving that one. So this one follows right along, beautiful car, loved the gas though.
Beautiful car. My house was built in 1974 and has a 26 foot long 2 car garage. This would good in there. :)
I looked up the 1974 Cadillac color chart. There is a color called Terra Cotta Firemist Metallic, looks like the Furious Fuscia Chrysler put on 400 Challengers in 2010 ONLY. In 1974, I was 18 and pumping gas at a very busy Exxon in my hometown, where I still live. A local woman, Sandy, good looking, came in about 3 times a week for gas as her 74 Cad Coupe deVille ate it like candy. She had a charge account, just signed her name on those old paper credit cards slips and drove away. The car had white leather and a half white vinyl top. I never saw that color ever again on any car. This green one is a beauty, but if you’re gonna drive it, you better own a gas station. They got 10 mpg at best.