Tough Decision.....

[Cadboy425]

I have American Collectors for my '77 CDV , I've been with them for 10yrs and so far so good and I only pay $80/yr full coverage. If i were you I'd keep all of them and put the one you not going to drive as much in storage.
I had a mint 75 Country Squire i didn't know what to do with (77 Coupe got the garage spot) that i kept in a warehouse for a few years before i eventually sold it (paid $50/month to store it).

[Night Wolf]

Originally Posted by casciomichael

Rick,

I am 99.9% sure that the T400 did not ever have lockup. Although the T350 did have lockup, its model number was the THM350C. And was available somewheres around 1978-79 until the early 80's. I definately know that no cadillac models had a lockup transmission until I guess 1980-1981 when they used the 200R4 in Fleetwood, Deville models that were equipped with the 4.1 Liter Buick V6 with 4 Barrel Caurbureator. No big block Cadillac ever recieved the benefit of a lockup converter nor overdrive gears, hence the reason why they used such low ratio gears in the rear axle. Not even the 4-6-8 motors used in the Limos until 1984 recieved Lockup.

Wow, really?

I thought for sure the TH400 had lockup...

heh, still surprised about that, I guess I also thought my '79 had lockup.... guess I was wrong... man... still learning new stuff all the time

[casciomichael]

Cadillac makes no mention of a lockup converter in the 1977-1978 service manuals. General Motors would lock up their transmission via solenoid w/ Brake Pedal Switch and Speed Sensing Device. The Cadillac had no such items in the car. That is the reason why the standard rear end ratio was so low = 2.28. The T400 did not need lockup with this arrangement. With lockup, cadillac could have had a better axle ratio for low end performance. It is a shame they did not install it in these cars. On the other side of the token, I have heard that gm's early lock up converter designs did not work too well due to their complexity. Chrysler devised a lock up system that worked from line pressure of the transmission. When the pressure reached a certain point, it would cause the converter to lock up. It was much more simple. I think I remember you mentioning that your engine was only turning 2,300 rpm at 75mph. That is a very low rpm, and is due to the axle ratio.

Take care,
Mike

[Wheelman322]

Well....I've had a week to think about it and it's not going to be easy but I think the 78 has to go. I finally got the 91 home on wednesday night and it is perfect. The 80 is just to rare and if I let it go I'll probably never find another. And than comes the 78....being realistic I know the car is only going to eat more money and is probably not going to appreciate value wise over the years. So....what do you guys think I should ask for it?
Everything in it is new mechanically....Motor, trans, brakes(everything inc. lines), suspension, tires, paint, vinyl roof and etc,etc...

[96Fleetwood]

Use eBay as a reference. I would say the market could get you as much as $7,500 if you found the right buyer.

[Benzilla]

Dammit wheelman, you'll regret it. You selling that would be like me selling The Phaeton.

[Wheelman322]

Originally Posted by Benzilla

Dammit wheelman, you'll regret it. You selling that would be like me selling The Phaeton.

I knew you were gonna grill me...i'm just trying to make the smarter decision financially. the 78 is still not complete. the a/c still doesn't work and all the weather stripping needs to be replaced to make it perfect and it still won't be worth any more than it is now. It's going to be painful but I think it makes sense.

[Benzilla]

Sense? What does that have to do with anything? You already have it this far, what do you have, like, 10k into it? You did that because you wanted to, not because you'd get it back, so it doesn't make too much sense to me for that to be a reason for letting it go. Sell of one of the others before you have more into it than you can get out if you want to make it about money. Personally, I never let finances play a major part in something as personal as pleasure cars.

You already know you don't want to sell it, just don't do something you can't take back.

[AMGoff]

I didn't bother reading through all five pages of comments so this may have been said already...

If it were me I'd get rid of the '78 even though it has a lot of sentimental value. But here's why... you have the '91 now and it's the exact car you've wanted for a while. There's no reason to have two Broughams... it's awesome that you have a Coupe deVille... they've always been my fav. Cadillac ever. I still wish I could find one of the last-gen ones in good condition with low miles BUT with out the friggin full/half landau roof... I hate landau/roadster/vinyl roofs... I like clean lines.. but anyway.. where was I? Oh yeah... I would rather have a coupe and a sedan to satisfy whatever mood I am in on any given day. So get rid of the '78 and keep the newer one... I think if you use your head over your heart you might realize that's the better way to go...

If however you do decide to get rid of the '91 let me know... I had been eying that very same one for a while!

[Wheelman322]

Well After a month of hard thinking I decided to keep all 3 Broughams. My friend is gonna let me keep the 80 in his garage until I get a house with a bigger driveway.