1965 Cadillac Fleetwood Eldorado
Convertible, One Family Since New, 92k Miles, Rust Free, Gorgeous!Harry's Thoughts
THE ESSENTIALS
This is a wonderful 1965 Cadillac Eldorado Convertible that had been loved by one woman and her son since new (prior to our acquisition). It is a rust and accident free example with only 92,000 miles since new. Everything about this car exudes loving ownership and care towards the car. The Eldorado has been thoroughly serviced and is ready for touring and showing. We acquired this for our personal collection and it was used by our children in our wedding seven years ago.
When we bought the car it was largely in its original livery with many areas having been touched up over the years. In June 2014 we repainted it in the original color of Sheffield Firemist (Code 92) with a nice quality two stage base coat clear coat. The color combination of the silver with red interior is just simply stunning! The trim items, chrome and stainless are all original and in very good to excellent condition.
One look at this Eldorado and it is obvious this has been garage kept. The interior has all of its original leather. We were planning on re-dying the front leather seats to keep it original but some may choose to replace the front leather. We prefer the originality. Importantly, there are no cracks in the dash or steering wheel which are common issues for those cars not garage kept.
This is a very well optioned Eldorado. The air conditioning has been completely converted to R134 and works beautifully. The power windows, seat and top all work well. Everything works well with the exception of the cruise control which we’ve not really played with.
We’ve performed all major and minor maintenance. We’ve put about 2,000 miles on the car and it is a dream to drive! The five wide white wall Coker radials are new with only the 2,000 miles driven thus far. The 429 cu in V8 has 340 HP and is a dream to drive!
For a valuation please review the Hagerty Value Guide (No. 2 Value is $47,850) at:
1965 Cadillac Fleetwood Eldorado Values | Hagerty Valuation Tool®
History of this Eldorado- This Eldorado was made at the factory during the third week in March 1965. The car was bought new in Miami by Ms. Evelyn Hill. We bought the Eldorado from Evelyn’s son, Pat Hill. Pat was the very first to say that his mother was quite the character. She was raised in New York by a very successful self-made man. He made his fortunes building thousands of homes for the Endicott coal miners in Pennsylvania.
She was his favorite thing and raised her to be quite the pistol. When she got into a little bit of trouble he thought it was funny, which made for a very colorful and dynamic adult.
Evelyn raced cars, belonged to country clubs, enjoyed her gin and tonics and smoked cigarettes. She also had quite a vocabulary which frequently included language as colorful as herself. She was also quite the player, having had five husbands and dating many notable people, including dukes and dignitaries from around the world. She was a long-time member of The Jockey Club of Miami (the Eldorado still bears the window decals of her membership).
She evidently drove the Eldorado in a very spirited manner, but luckily never had an accident.
Pat recounted that his mother went to the Miami Cadillac dealer and fell in love with the flashy Eldorado convertible and somehow managed to buy it out from under a basketball player who also wanted it.
Luckily, her two-bedroom home in elegant Coral Gables had a one-car garage. The Eldorado was never left out in the elements and was always garaged. The car saw little highway use. It was used mainly for driving around town and to the club.
By 1975 Pat had married Bunny and they had their first child. Pat and Bunny met at McPherson College and settled in Wichita where Pat took over an advertising agency. Evelyn wanted to be near her first grandchild and decided to move to Wichita. She sold her home in Florida, bought a house a half block away from her new grandchild and had the Eldorado shipped to Wichita because she didn’t want to add miles to the car.
She continued to use the Eldorado as her daily driver until her death in 2007. Pat and Bunny inherited the car and kept it in good repair but used it little (one of Evelyn’s last requests was that they take good care of the Eldorado).
The entire story of coming to owe this magnificent Eldorado is published on the ClassicCars.com blog at:
http://blog.classiccars.com/classic-car-harrys-1965-cadillac-eldorado-convertible/
It is rare to find a garage kept one family since new motorcar. It is rarer for it to be such as desirable model as an Eldorado Convertible. If you are serious about adding one to your collection this is worthy of your consideration. For more information please call Harry Clark at +1.602.245.7200 or email us at harry@classicpromenade.com. This Eldorado is located and may be inspected at our Phoenix showroom.
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