Well winter is well on its way and Spring is pushing its way through.
I have made a decision which is going to bring an end to this chapter, but probably start another. As you may know I always wanted a 1959 Flat Top. An opportunity presented itself some time ago during the photo shoot for the Unique Cars Feature in January when we found a Flat Top in an open warehouse adjacent to where we were shooting. I so wanted it, but decided to walk away because my wife would not be pleased if I came home with a second Caddy. I walked away trying to be sensible. Well I had almost forgotten about that car when I received a text from a friend who told me that the car was still there, and the owner was keen to sell it. Missing out on this car twice would guarantee I would always regret missing the opportunity so I went to have a good look at it. This time I made a different decision, and rescued the car from it’s dirty home.
The car has been living in an open warehouse for a number of years, and was covered in dust and bird poo. I had the car trucked to a kind friends warehouse where it lives for now, and before putting it away we gave it a wash. Underneath the crud was a pretty decent coat of paint. The car has new turquoise leather with black cloth inserts made from NOS material, E Z Eye glass, Air Conditioning and a 6 way electric seat. The colour & trim match the build plate, which is a big plus.
My wife was happy for me to buy it, as long as I made a decision on which Cadillac I wanted to keep (i.e. one only!). The Flat Top is in great condition, with the body, paint, interior, brakes and transmission done. There are a couple of inner panels I need to get for the engine bay to finish the body off. The engine has not been rebuilt, but seems to run OK…..I can feel a mild engine build coming on with an Isky cam! 2 weeks ago I picked up a 1958 Cadillac tripower manifold on eBay for $285….you can guess where this will end up living!
What does this mean? It means that the Brougham will be sold. I also means that I needed to get myself organized and finish off the interior, so that is just what I did. I removed the front seat (man it is so heavy!), the 4 door trims and the B pillar trims, and re-finished them with the paint I obtained. You can see below how the seat started off, and the difference it made. What is more amazing is you can’t tell the vinyl has been re-finished because it feels quite soft when you touch it.
I forgot to take more pictures as I was focused on getting the job done, but I can tell you the interior absolutely pops!! I will take some pictures and post them when I get a chance. I disassembled the door trims to paint them and fixed up all the little things that were not quite right. The next owner will benefit from everything fitting together just a little bit better.
I guess this is pretty well the end of the journey, which is a little sad. I really hope it goes to a great home.
The Brougham will be advertised in the next Unique Cars Magazine.
1960 Cadillac Eldorado Brougham 