So I sold the Impala and bought a new toy...

...to drive while I'm building the wagon.

AM radios and drum brakes are cool!

Here's a few more hints...











Not enough? How about this?















Ok ok... This has to help...

















No???? Ok... ONE more!






So what is it? (Besides the current bane of my existence)

...off to the shop!

I spy a sexy sedan DeVille.

64 to 66 Caddy

Come back to the RWD section of the Cadillac Forums. You haven't been there since the T56 Fleet! You get to hang out with Sting, and me, and other crazy Caddy owners.

65 or 66 either a Calais, or Sedan Deville.

Used to know my Caddy's down pat from 54 through 76 (Dad was a Caddy guy).

fuzzy pic of the tails, but it's one of the two. If I had more time to invest (at work) I'd prob be able to figure it out with in depth study

Yeah, come hang with us on the Caddy forums.

Wow, you really did sell the Impala....

Sweet new toy though!! You better post updates

Wow, slight change from the SS there! Looks nice!

Hey, if you aren't keeping that license surround, I'll take it!

Nothing is a surprise anymore with this guy..

Yup. 66 Caddy Calais. Baby powder blue with a metallic blue cloth interior. I diggit! It's a 429/TH400! Wooo!!!! The thing is a friggin moster. Four wheel drum. Ooof! Frame is a bit more rotted than I thought it was though. Ruht row. Anyone got an old bedframe laying around I could cut up? Heh heh.

I wish I could let you guys see it in better pics, but with all the hours we've put into it the past two days, we're still right where we started. It's dead-ended on Al's lift right now. Grrrr... I feel like an ass. So no pics. But all the parts that were supposed to be right for it, weren't. So we're back to square one. I'll drive it eventually! I wanted to just put it back together, but he talked me out of it... Who knew it'd be tough to get parts for a 66 caddy????

As far as plans for it? Yeah, I plan to paint it. I'm going to use a color I saw on a new Harley. It's a metallic medium blue satin (ice blue denim or something). I'll do that on top and satin black on the sides. Stock wheelcovers or just painted black steelies with bullet centers. Maybe some tint, but I dunno. I have to do something about the tunes too. Probly gonna build a small MDF box on the floor in front of the seat for a CD player and a couple 4" speakers and some 6x9's on the rear deck. Stuff that won't "destroy" the interior at all.

But first things first, we need to fix the brakes. Then a few lighting electrical issues. Then figure out why the AC stopped working. Gotta remove the old alarm system and patch the frame too. Knowing the way I am, I'll fix the brakes and electricals first, then do the stereo. Paint it in the next couple weeks, then worry about the frame. Wink

Oh yeah... It already has a name and going to get the plate for it Monday. "CADIRAT" Very Happy

What? No flat.. er.. uh.. satin black paint this time?

Quote :

I'll do that on top and satin black on the sides.

you are bringing that to flint this august, right!

DBeaSSt wrote:

What? No flat.. er.. uh.. satin black paint this time?

Dude! I just brought it home late thursday night! Gimme some time with it! I need to chase out some demons before I can introduce my own.

And Pat, I don't think that Flint is in the cards for this year. I also don't know that I would trust it for the drive. I have like 17 miles on the car, so I have no idea of its reliability. And the frame is pretty rotted. Don't know that I'll have that repaired in time either...

silly slut,...

You sold a nice car, sorry to see it go. But what fun..... a new project!!!!

Bill,

I work at a sheet metal shop, and while I don't have any old bed frames, the shop does through out a lot of scrap angle, tubing, pipe, and channel (under 5'-10' in length). If you are still coming to WF, get me a list and I'll see what I can get. I don't know about getting it to the park, but I don't live all that far from Geneva (30 min.).

Mike

whoops, that was supposed to be a pm, brain fade.

Hey thanks Mike. I may just take you up on that!

Hey, I just noticed your sig! Is Big Ugly gone, too?

Yup. Sold it... uhm... like 3 months ago.

Update on the Cadirat: Got the brakes just about all back-to-serviceable this afternoon and as I snapped the last shoe return spring on the driver's front, the damn wheel cylinder let go! Grrrr!!!! So it looks like I'm off to find some more parts for it that don't quite fit tomorrow! And I really thought I was about 15 minutes away from driving it when it happened! Dammit!

I WILL drive it this week!!!!

SO a little update... Al and I FINALLY got the damn thing back on the road on Tuesday night. Woot! Got a good set of brakes in it all around, right front wheel cylinder, and a new brakeline and she's back! It had a "no crank" issue too and we couldn't get it to start all the time and I noticed there was no ground from the battery to the frame rail!!! There was just one from the battery to the fenderwell and that was it! So I dilled a hole in the framerail and ran a 4 gauge ground from the fenderwell to the frame and it cranks right over every time now. The automatic climate control/AC even started working (intermittently ) again! Woot!

So I've put about 120 miles on it so far and MAN! It drives so nice! It just floats down the road and the brakes are getting better with every stop. I'm even digging the AM radio for now. See:



It still has a few issues that need to be sorted out. There's something wicked funky going on with the parking lights/directional circuit. There's an 80's-era Viper alarm in there that I am pretty sure is at least part of the culprit, if not the entire issue, but it is nothing like I've ever seen, so I don't want to attempt to remove it myself. I have a friend who is a car stereo/alarm guru and he's gonna get it out of there for me next week some time. I also ordered the factory service manual on CD so I could trace out the wiring diagrams and hopefully that'll get here soon. I will probably remove and clean the grounds I can find and then even run a couple more 4 gauge ones from the body to the frame to be sure everything has a proper ground.

And as much as I hate to admit it, the color is REALLY growing on me. I really wanted to do that two-tone paint job, but this color really is the balls. There's NOTHING like it out there on the streets now! It stands out in any lot, and gets more thumbs up and shouts on the road than any other car I've owned. Seriously. So, not sure what I'm gonna do with that. I may have one of the local guys who does detailing buff it out and get some Von Dutch style pinstriping done on it instead. Stay tuned for that.

It does have a few occasional weird clunks and shimmys and such, but it doesn't seem like anything serious. I've had it to almost 80 on the highway and it goes smooth and straight and even backroad driving is getting better with each turn. The engine runs the balls, doesn't smoke, and fires every time. Feels very strong. The tranny shifts nice and smooth and does what it's supposed to do. I just really can't believe what a "driver" it's turning out to be.

I even took the wife and baby out for ice cream in it tonight! It sure was a challenge getting that baby seat in the back, but it was worth it. And for the record, both Keri-Lyn AND Bella pretty much hate it, as far as I can tell. (Which kinda makes me love it even more! )

So that's the update I'm sure you guys have been dying to hear. I'm so friggin stoked about this stupid old car that I can't even begin to explain it. Hell, I even went out and bought a fedora today. Who does that? LOL!

Oh, and another side note. Ever been working in the shop or garage and REALLY needed to listen to your iPod because you were sick of friggin commercials and didn't have a cable to hook it to the radio?

Neither have me and Al.

That's VERY cool! I love those old 60's Caddys! Post more pics when you can.

81X11 wrote:

That's VERY cool! I love those old 60's Caddys! Post more pics when you can.

Thanks.

I didn't realize I hadn't posted any exterior shots over here. Here's the couple I have right now from when before it was mine.





So now it pretty much still looks just like that, but with greasy handprints all over it and PB Blaster splatter all over the skirts.

Ahahahaha!

Very cool! I helped a buddy try to restore a 67 Deville convertible and a 69 Deville sedan. The vacume door lock system about drove me insane on the 67, but that big 472 was a hell of an engine. He's a Caddy nut. His latest project is a low-mile sea-foam-green 76 Deville Coupe.

Old Caddy's a really cool. Keep the pics coming.

Congrats on the progress so far! So there are still AM stations huh.

DBeaSSt wrote:

Congrats on the progress so far! So there are still AM stations huh.

down here they are all either idiot talk radio, Spanish, creole, or the occasional sports channel. Can't find any tunes on AM anymore

Keep trying to find Super Soul, but they took him off the air

Yeah, all the strong stations are talk or sports. Boo! Then the next strongest are the 3 mexican stations. And there is ONE weak station that plays cool old music, but it fades completely out for minutes at a time. But there's something to be said for Ray Charles or Frank Sinatra flowing out of that one center speaker.

When you get done fixing it and you put it up for sale, I'll buy it.

In all seriousness, tell the kid who bought the Imp that I may be interested in that too.

Congrats on the Caddy, Bill. Looks like a fun project.

I've had two older caddies in my history - a 64 Fleetwood Limo & a 62 Series 62 Sedan. The parts are quite pricey and some are hard to come by, but they cruise like a dream when they're running good! Be glad you have a later one with the TH400 - the old hydramatic is funky.

The 64 limo with the blue crushed velvet interior (and gobs of rust!)



The 62 with Boyd Coddington "Rodders"



There are several classic Cadillac parts specialists - McVey's, Caddy Daddy, and recently OPG started a Cadillac catalog.

we had the same car for a while when i was a kid,.it was a darker blue with the painted on vinyl roof (white) dad traded it in for his 76 fleetwood,.
200r4 for the overdrive upgrade mod,.discs off a later caddy for the upgrade braking mod,.
cool ride billy, just one of my "what i,d build if i won the lottery" day dreams is a 59 cad 4 doorhdtp
but with later model running gear, i.e 5.3 1/2 ton pickup frame running gear etc,.
Fedora?

Nick

Nick you reminded me of the brake mod I did to that 62. I bought junk yard backing plates from a 69 ( I think it was ) and all new calipers, rotors, pads, bearings, etc. and rebuild my 62 with front disc brakes. IIRC the master cylinder was also sock 69. The only thing unusual was the hoses but there is a stock part number that works for those too. It was an easy conversion. The same conversion will work on a 66. I chopped a coil out of the front but it was wayyy too low then. The frame smacked the slab in the garage when I drove it out the back door (2" drop off to the ground outside was all it took). Later I got some custom made springs from Espo. Had the carb freshened up and had to have the distributor completely rebuilt. Factory AC was all there but needed some work. Neat cars for sure, I love 'em...

Cool cars, Mike. I dig the fins on that 62!

I don't know that I'll keep it long enough to bother with upgrading the brakes or tranny. Probably not. But if I do, I'm sure it can be done fairly easily. Thanks for the tips!