My neighbor is the original owner of 79 Brougham D'Elegance.
It is Cerulean Blue Firemist Metallic with a blue top and blue leather.
It has 80k original miles.
However it has not been driven or started in 5 years.
Body is rust free with some typical midwest scale on the frame.
What would be a fair price to pick this up?
I know it will need to have the fuel tank dropped, likely brake work, tires and more and I want to leave room for that.
Given that it will turn over and run ok, the body/interior is in respectable shape and the frame scale isn't severe rust, I'd say 1000 would be a fair price. Replacing tires, brakes, suspension, steering rack bushings, all fluids changed, and a full tune up can easily run 2-3k (given you have the work done at a shop).
Here are some things you want to check body wise (in no particular order.)
1. Door bottoms. Poor drainage causes rust to appear on the inside door bottoms where the exterior sheet metal meets the door frame. Salt can also get up under the weatherstripping and cause rust. This is minor and pretty simple to fix/ prevent.
2. Rear quarter panels. The quarter panels (especially on 77- 79s for some reason) have a tendency to rust out around the chrome trim. Check around the chrome rocker panel trim and at the bottom seam of the quarter panel where it meets the trunk floor, and around the rear wheel well.
3. Vinyl top. Vinyl tops can fail after 15-20 years. This can cause rust (seen as knots or bumps under the top). Typical rust spots are on the A pillars (between the windshield and front doors at the roof and C pillars (at the top near the roof and right above the chrome trim at the bottom of the vinyl top.) If you see rust streaks coming down the paint from under the top, this is not good. by pushing on the rust, you can tell how severe it is. It the rust is hard, chances are the metal is still solid. if it feels squishy or gives way, then there is a hole in the metal under the top (fixable but more costly.)
4. Frame/ underbody
If possible, put the car in the air (either on a lift or jackstands) and look at the underside. The frame should be fairly smooth and light to medium brown. Any scale/ rot (typically dark brown to black) on the frame is a bad sign. The underbodies of the cars were usually treated with some sort of tar on the underbody in the midwest, which helps prevent rust.
That would be a great find if you are planning to do a lot of the work yourself. Just keep in mind too if you plan on using it for a daily driver anything rubber related will be on the way out if it has sat that long. Hoses , belts, diaphragms, and seals. Go in with a good sized budget in mind. Then you have a car you car rely on and be proud of. Is it the coupe or four door??
It's a four door. I am pretty handy and am very familiar with these cars. My family has had my 77 SDV since new, so I am confident I could get it running. I went back under the car tonight. The frame looks solid light brown rust (it appears to have been undercoated) and the door bottoms and rear quarters are solid as well. The car is really dirty and it's hard to tell the condition of the top. There is some very light pitting in the chrome. I am thinking about floating an offer and going over with $1k or so in cash...Thanks for the input, I will update with progress!
Good luck! Those FWBd'Es are awesome road cars and a real pleasure to drive. The only thing that could make this one better would be the cloth interior vs. the leather. :cloud9:
I parked my Seville for 10 years in a garage. When I got it running again I was having running issues and thought the fuel tank was gunked up. I took it out and it was clean as a whistle inside. That was a nice wasted day. I still have never seen any evidence of this bad gas we're supposed to have. Every tank I take out of a car is super clean inside. I don't think a 5 year rest is that hard on a car unless it's in a mud bog or something.
You bring up an interesting point. My 78 has been sitting for about 10 years. I brought it from storage last fall to my house, and before starting it, put a few gallons of fresh gas into the tank. It runs fine, and I just thought my Irish luck was with me. I have never myself dropped a tank to clean it, and have always wondered what I would find if I did. So you have dropped them, and never found anything weird or gunky?
I haven't picked it up yet...I plan to get it this weekend and start to work on getting her running next week. I will send some pix once I get her out of the garage. Thanks for input!
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Related Threads
?
?
?
?
?
Cadillac Owners Forum
4.8M posts
369.7K members
Since 2002
Cadillac Forums is the perfect place to go to talk about your favorite Caddys including the ATS, CTS, SRX, Escalade, LYRIQ, Vistiq, concept and future Cadillac models.