Here’s another in the “Are you serious?” category. It’s everyone’s favorite example of domestic excess, a 1959 Cadillac Coupe De Ville but this is no Marilyn Monroe mobile; it’s, well, you’ll see. Located in Cullman, Alabama, is this wretched excess of a two-door hardtop. It can be had, here on eBay for a BIN price of $7,500. Thanks to Russ D. for this tip!
The seller is advertising this Cadillac as a Coupe De Ville (which I at first mistyped as a Coupe De Vile) but it could be a Sixty-Two Coupe as well. Cadillac aficionados are welcome to comment on that matter. Anyway, this one will be tough to sugarcoat but there is probably an ounce or two of good here somewhere. The last time that I covered a ’59 Cadillac it was a similar story though that subject was a twofer. And we do review some very nice examples of this era Cadillac, I just seem to be drawn to the more down-on-their-luck versions.
Right from the start, this Caddy doesn’t. It doesn’t because it is missing most of its engine. No word as to what happened under the missing hood or where the rest of the 390 CI V8, and its associated parts, ended up but you can take solace in the fact that this car, “steers and rolls”. There could still be a Hydramatic automatic transmission in place but that is not known for certain.
As mentioned above, among the missing, is the hood, no telling where that went but the trunk contains much of the excessive stainless trim that adorned large swaths of this behemoth of a car. Is it all actually there? Hard to say considering the sheer number of pieces worn by a ’59. While there is no worry about losing any of that trim through holes in the trunk floor, while you’re steering and rolling, the same cannot be said about the passenger compartment floor. Three of the four footwells are on a serious attrition program. The massive bumpers are still holding up both ends of this Caddy but they need to be replated. Good to see is that the very ornate grille would appear to be complete, though the center bar is not properly aligned. The seller references rust in the bottom of the passenger-side door, but rust actually abounds everywhere. That said, the frame is claimed to be straight and solid – it needs to be visually inspected. Also, something, or someone, sat on both front fenders and bent them.
As for the interior, I got nothin’. Examine the images and you’ll see that it is mostly a disaster zone. There is little that appears to be reusable except for the seat frames, oh, and the bottom rest for the back seat is missing so you can pretty much scratch that thought. The pine needle collection is good evidence that this Coupe De Ville has spent years in an Alabama pine forest with its windows rolled down, ergo, the missing floors. The interior, unfortunately, is probably a lost cause and will require an entire do-over.
There you have it, this icon of 1950’s American automobile excellence, in the form of GM’s top drawer Cadillac Division, the “Standard of the World”, reduced to this sad a state. But hey, it’s only $7,500… And there is no title because “we in the state of alabama dont have titles so there is no title,,,,,”. That’s not the only thing missing. I don’t think there is much that can be done with this Coupe De Ville short of checking scrap commodity prices but I could be wrong, it wouldn’t be the first time and certainly not the last. Tell me, folks, what do you do with something like this?
