1980 Coupe De Ville

So I have not had a B or D body for about two years. We decided it was time to find a rolling, barely running complete project. Well we got just that in beautiful Bartlett NH. A 87k, unmolested 37 year old car that runs good, shifts great, but has a bad fuel leak, and no brakes. Well, none except the e-brake. Tires are so dry rotted I am surprised they hold air. But it has potential. I was going to swap in a late model truck 6.0/4l80e combo, but I think I will leave the original 6.0/th400.
Either way, this is a very long project. Hoping to have it road worthy sometime next year.

Nice find Bill!  You've got 3 weeks to get it roadworthy for the Round Up.

I'm guessing you probably know about this forum: http://www.cadillacforums.com/forums/rwd-19xx-1984-deville-fleetwood-1985/

Tom

Is that Mary Kay pink?

boojum wrote:

Is that Mary Kay pink?

Beige goldish top.

Awesome find! Looks like a sweet project!

Nice. 80 is the year to have. I took my driving lessons in the same car except it was navy blue in and out.

I would leave that drivetrain too. It's a smog motor but it's nothing like the HT4100.

There was a real decent 2 tone 80 or 81 d'elegance coupe in Maine a while back I kinda wanted to check out. Someone bought it and made a ridiculous looking rat rod thing.

Yank that ratty vinyl off and assess what needs to be done! The coupes are easier to convert to a steel top.

And come to the roundup!

Bitchin'!

When you said you bought it in Bartlett, I knew exactly where. I go by that place all the time. Never gave it any thought, as I noticed the guy was a "collector". I believe he has a bunch of El Camino's.

How did you find out about it? Just stop in?

Document the restoration with pictures.

Tom

Matt Trakker wrote:

Nice.  80 is the year to have.  I took my driving lessons in the same car except it was navy blue in and out.

I would leave that drivetrain too. It's a smog motor but it's nothing like the HT4100.

There was a real decent 2 tone 80 or 81 d'elegance coupe in Maine a while back I kinda wanted to check out.  Someone bought it and made a ridiculous looking rat rod thing.

Yank that ratty vinyl off and assess what needs to be done!  The coupes are easier to convert to a steel top.

And come to the roundup!

The plan is to fix the brake line, assess whatever the brake system needs, fix that, replace the dry rotted tires, replace the coolant, and roll in it. I cleaned up the interior, changed the oil, and air filter, and installed a new battery.
The roof might get fixed, or it might not. But the rust under the lower roof trim is very bad.

silverfox103 wrote:

When you said you bought it in Bartlett, I knew exactly where.  I go by that place all the time.  Never gave it any thought, as I noticed the guy was a "collector".  I believe he has a bunch of El Camino's.  

How did you find out about it?  Just stop in?

Document the restoration with pictures.

Tom

Yes, that is the place Tom. The car is a Florida car with 87k on it. The owner passed a few years back. It has not been on the road since 2014. It was advertised on Craigslist.

Looks like a cool project. Would love to see some updates.

Awesome!

Not going to lie, the classic cars have a certain flair to them that modern cars just can't seem to exhibit.