1961 Eldorado Concept Motorama Show Car

[N Kahn]

Forgot my monker:

Tim Stephens

Monker?

My car had no trunk key, still doesn't but I took out the barrel and I'm finally getting it made. I put a battery in her and pushed that button in the glove box having no idea what it did and the trunk popped open, wow!
Every time a new person sees the trunk in operation they are amazed that such a thing existed in 1961.

[cadimec]

Sorry - that should have read "moniker" = Australian vernacular for "signature".   Yes - Cadillac had the remote release/power pull-down in 1956 (standard on Eldorados).  Required the ignition "ON" from 1977 onwards.   Fog lights were also standard on Eldorados - including the 1961 model.  I was looking at your turn/park lamps, and noticed also a ring behind the headlight knob.  On Cadillacs with fog lights these years, that ring had 2 positions - rotating left or right.  With the headlight knob at the 1st stop (parking lights position), turning the ring left lit the park lamps, right lit the fog lamps (or the other way around).  If the car doesn't have an integral fog light switch in the headlight switch, this ring is just an ornament, and doesn't rotate to give the 2 detent positions.   Since you have 2 lamps per side in these custom-made lamps, I was wondering if one pair might be for fog light operation?  Wiring colours for front fog lights were purple, turn signals light and dark blue, and park lamps white.  My guess is that if one pair (inboard or outboard) has purple wires and the one next to it has a blue wire, then the idea was one pair are fog lamps.  (I would presume all 4 have the white wire for the 5w parking filaments in the globes).  Just a curious detail...

Tim Stephens

[N Kahn]

Tim, I'll check that but both lamps come on with the turn signals and they're just regular dual filament 1157s.

[Guidematic]

I have had very little trouble with the later plastic pull downs. They have worked fine. The sole exception was the one on my '88 Eldorado. It was the switch that was defective, that little thing with the paddle on it. I took it apart, cleaned the contacts and put it back together. It has worked flawlessly since. That was 5 1/2 years ago.

The one on my '70 has worked great since I bought the car in 1993. And I had a '75 CDV where it didn't work when I got the car. I replaced it with one I bought from the wreckers and it worked great, but that one was really noisy compared to the others (the '70 is completely silent) but it did mean business. If anything got caught in there it would crush it.

Anyway, back to our regularly scheduler program....

Mike

[N Kahn]

I got the grille all finished, I had the vertical pieces waterjetted. It's all straight now, it was a real mess, it looks great now, not perfect though, just like the rest of the car.


Before


Almost flat from being hit.

After

[Eric DeVirgilis CLC# 8621]

Incredible work Nadeem. That car is going to shine at Amelia Island.

[Barry]

I so appreciate this being shared with us !

[Walter Youshock]

Simply GORGEOUS!  I wish you'd bring this car to Boston for the Grand National.  It would be the highlight of the show.

[N Kahn]

I found this neat model kit on ebay.
Found this rad kit, I've never seen one

[Jerry Puma]

Palmer also made a 1964 Eldorado model.

[veesixteen]

Both of these replicas (1961 and 1964) were part of my former collection of "all-Cadillac-LaSalle" replicas,  scale models and toys,  begun in 1964 and sold in 1989. They could be built up as "stock" or "custom" versions, like many 1/25 scale models from Jo-Han, a well-known plastic lit manufacturer  of that period.  The Palmer products were not the best quality plastic kits, nor very true to scale ... but they were still worthy of a spot in any Cadillac toy collection.  BTW. this entry has no real  bearing on the one concerning your rare, custom 1961-62 Cadillac Eldorado.

[Barry]

Sorry to veer off topic, but here is my 61 Continental kit by the same company!

[N Kahn]

That's a neat model, has the same ridiculous graphics as the Caddy one, thanks Barry.


Here's a video, a jarring one, of the Caddy's first drive in years under its in power, this was a week after Labor Day 2012.
http://static.ak.fbcdn.net/rsrc.php/v1/y2/r/5l8_EVv_jyW.swf?v=4611197192563&ev=0

[R Schroeder]

All I got was log in or sign up.........ha

[N Kahn]

Sorry, I think you have to be on facebook to be able to see it, I'll see if I can put it on youtube.

[R Schroeder]

Sorry, I could have done that. I didn't see the Facebook image in the corner of the screen.
Roy

[N Kahn]

got the grille installed, it looks great and it fits great, all straight.

[R Schroeder]

If you had not used the waterjet for cutting them out, it probably wouldn't have looked so nice. Much straighter.
Quite a car.
Roy

[N Kahn]

If you had not used the waterjet for cutting them out, it probably wouldn't have looked so nice. Much straighter.
Quite a car.
Roy

No doubt, my home made attempt was a failure, the grille could not have been straightened without taking it apart, it was a daunting task, but it got done.
You can really see how damaged it was before in this pic.

[R Schroeder]

With a car like that, you want to take your time and do it right. It is coming out real nice.
Roy