1962 Cadillac - any driving experiences out there?

ghulet · July 2006

I'd imagine there were quite a few 'special order' cars off the books, especially on cars like Cadillacs, for dealers, execs, etc. It could also have been restored with Eldo parts, which wouldn't shock me, though on this vintage, I don't know why they'd bother. I'm pretty sure, with the exception of the trim and the 'this or that model only' paint colors (which weren't enforced all that stringently), the rest of the supposedly Eldo-specific stuff (the power buckets, certainly the power locks and vents) could be ordered on Coupe de Villes. May be some exec walked into the factory, slipped some workers a C-note and had them slap this thing together? Seems we'll never know. I guess I'm saying the car is pretty and unusual, but given my usual level of cynicism, I wouldn't pay a huge premium it. Nice car, and I like the color, which is half the battle among '50s and early '60s cars for me (hold the pinks and aquas, please, in most cases).

reallandyacht · July 2006

..... back in the day - Special Order was normal!

You went in and looked at the models and ordered your car with the features you wanted!

Now A Days - you get what they have or what is in another dealers inventory that your dealer can locate in the manufacturers network of active inventory (I used to be in New Car Sales)

It used to take a few months to get your car!

That is why it used to be such a BIG DEAL when that years new cars were unveiled!

People would flock to the dealer just to see what was new.

ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! The Good Ol' Times Of Yesteryear .......

Gosh!

When did I get old ! ? ?

andre1969 · July 2006

When did I get old ! ? ?

I ask myself that sometimes. I remember when I was a little kid, a 20 year old car had a wraparound windshield, tailfins, and two-toning. A whole different era. Nowadays a 20 year old car is a Taurus or Audi 5000, something that really doesn't look that out of style compared to today's cars.

badgerpaul · July 2006

My parents could keep in line for a month just by threatening not to take me out to see the "new" cars when they came out. One time I was given the choice of no TV for a week or not going to see the new cars, that was a no brainer and the new 64's were beautiful.

displacedtexan · November 2006

I'm new to the Cadillac forums, spending my time on the Lincoln side of things, but I thought I'd come over here and see what's being talked about. To whomever started this thread on the '62 Cadillacs, there's a bloke in Norway who runs a great website, and his ride is a '62.

Hot Cars by Hans Tangerud

He has a great website, and I'm sure he'd love to talk '62 Cadillacs.

62caddy · July 2007

Hey all of you cadillac lovers, i will be posting a 1962 caddy on ebay on july 14th, please look at it, super super condition, original everthing, low low miles

parm · October 2009

Since I'm the one who started this thread, I've resurrected this discussion - and here's why . . . .

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1962-Cadillac-Eldorado-Convertible_W0QQitemZ23038- 2833903QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUS_Cars_Trucks?hash=item35a3e310ef&_trksid=p4506.c0.m2- 45

When I started this thread several years ago, I was trying to buy this car. I don't mean one like it, I mean THIS specific car. I came close, but no cigar. That was one wife ago and when both of my kids were, well . . . . kids. Now, both are in college - which with "stereo tuition payments" partially explains why I'm no longer "gah-gah" over this car.

Here's my question. What's it worth today? Here's a little history. The previous owner, when I was trying to buy it, purchased it for $16K at the Kruse 1996 Labor Day auction in Auburn, IN. At that time, it had undergone a restoration around 1990 - though certainly not a thorough, frame-off effort. More of a sympathetic one in all likelihood. The owner back then readily admitted to me that he probably paid too much but the car just "spoke to him" while it was on the auction block. When I came across it in 2001, it was in a museum in Kokomo, Indiana and I offered around $13-14K. It did eventually sell later that year for around $16K. So now, its back on the market and is located about an hour from me. It's condition is pretty much the way I last saw it in 2001. It's not deteriorated, but hasn't been seriously touched either. The car does NOT have A/C.

Like I said, I'm no longer in the market as this car is out of my system.
It was on ebay last week and ended with a high bid of $15,110 which didn't meet its reserve. It has been relisted and can be purchased with the "buy it now" option for $35K which is ridiculous, I know.

Personally, I think it's probably still worth around $16K (maybe 20K if the moon and stars align just right), but what does everyone else think?

Mr_Shiftright · October 2009

Yes, $16K to $20K seems about ballpark for this car. Actually given the 2009 economic situation, the eBay bids were right on the mark.

andre1969 · October 2009

Like I said, I'm no longer in the market as this car is out of my system.

Funny you'd say that, because I've found that the '62 Cadillac has starting to get back into my system! Well '61-62, actually, as I'm not that picky and like both years.

fintail · October 2009

There was a '61 Caddy in the recent '24 Hours of Lemons' Looks like it is sturdier than a 59 Chevy anyway.

andre1969 · October 2009

this past Saturday, I saw a '61 Caddy 6-window hardtop. I passed it, in my '79 5th Ave, on I-581 going over the Susquehanna River. Nice looking car, but strangely, it seemed kinda tiny to me...not an adjective normally associated with a '61 Caddy!

Well, when we got to the Hershey fairgrounds, eventually we found that car there, and it turns out it was one of those stubbier "Town Sedan" models. I think they were renamed "Park Avenue" for 1962? Funny how it's still kinda long, at 215" versus 222" for the normal models, yet losing that 7" just throws the whole proportioning off.

Still, a very nice car!

euphonium · October 2009

I associate "Park Avenue" with top of the line Buick.

ghulet · December 2009

those are a little rare (no breakdown of production of Town Sedans of 6W v. 4W versions) for MY '61:

Town sedan (DeVille-Series 6300-trim, only): 3756 produced
6200 4-window: 4700
6200 6-window: 26216
6300 4-window: 4847
6300 6-window: 26415

Sorry, I'm a geek with my car-geek book handy.

'62s production total for Cadillac's handy-sized sedan was 2600 (pretty sure they were all 4w), available in both Series 6200 (referred to as 'Town Sedan') and 6300/Deville (referred to as 'Park Avenue').

1963 had only production of 1575, all of which were model 6389D (DeVilles, four-window), 'Park Avenue'.

The loss of seven inches in length netted a loss of a whopping 20-45 pounds. Nothing like seven inches would weigh on my own body.

andre1969 · December 2009

1963 had only production of 1575, all of which were model 6389D (DeVilles, four-window), 'Park Avenue'.

I didn't realize they carried that stubby body style over to 1963. And yeah, I remember looking in my old car book too, and noticing that the loss of 7 inches only yielded that 20-45 lb loss. When you figure that's 7" less frame, 7" taken out of the rear quarters, trunk floor, and trunk lid, it just seems to me that it would be more than that!

And if it weighed that much on your own body, you'd pass out from low blood pressure every time you got excited! :shades:

1962 Cadillac - any driving experiences out there?

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