https://lubbock.craigslist.org/cto/d/lubbock-1975-cadillac-deville-pickup/6950318960.html
I like this one, too high on price. But, is the rust run on the driver's side a deal killer for a driver?
This is a rare Cadillac Deville with the pickup bed conversion!
It has an El Camino bed that was professionally grafted into it back in the day
Body is 100% solid with an older paint job that has some minor surface rust
93,000 original miles, known ownership history with receipts
Rebuilt 500 cid V8 engine runs great!
Original green interior!
New master cylinder and front brakes!
Brand new tires!
Asking $7500 Or Best Offer
Call or Text for more info/pictures
8O6 five zero zero - 8 nine 7 nine
There's obviously a rust problem underneath the vinyl top.
In this (rare) case I would replace the vinyl top because you'll probably find a patchwork nightmare underneath as a result of chopping up the original and grafting on a bed.
NOT the factory authorized MIRAGE conversion offered in 1975 or 76.
Could well be a Caribou ---- doubt that "It has an El Camino bed that was professionally grafted into it back in the day". Just someone unfamiliar with Caribous and Mirages (no, it is certainly not a Mirage) built back then.
Certainly looks to have its share of rust issues.
I agree.
Update --- I communicated with the owner earlier this morning. The car does indeed have an El Camino bed grafted on, he sent me the picture below. So, not a Mirage and not a Caribou either! ;D
That is a one off done by an individual, not a coachbuilder. Just look at the rear lamps used. Looks like the small square ones used on the back of late 60s Chevy wagons.
So since it's home grown, is it worth less than a Caribou or Mirage, assuming quality workmanship on it?
It would take experienced eyeballs on the car in person to answer that.
Those square tail lights in the tailgate would come off first thing if I bought it.
I agree it needs to be seen in person but I believe it is very well executed conversion. Usually when I see a Caribou there is an angle that just looks wonky, wrong. I look at them and love what I see until I don't. The El Camino back makes sense to me. Now, I believe this took a lot of work to graft the back quarters of a CdV (or whatever was used) onto the El Camino bed in what looks to be seemless work. Which is where a personal visit is needed. I would need to drive it and make sure it didn't rattle and squeak all over.
I would repaint a dark color personally. Starting point needs to be in the $3000 range IMO.
The more I look a these photos, the more apparent it becomes that this wasn't a "graft" as much as it was a "transplant." The builder left the outer shell of the original CdV in place, chopping out the back seat + trunk. Then he chopped out the "inner" bed of an El Camino and dropped it into the open rectangle on the CdV.
That, in addition to the fact that the CdV is RWD to begin with, accounts for the fact that the bed is awfully high.
Given that, I'd say the most important aspects of the construction are the one's you can't see without getting it up on a lift. There could well be huge chasms between layers of relatively thin sheet metal that are unenclosed and untreated for rust resistance. In Lubbock, you can get away without worrying about rust. No so in most other parts of the country.
One good aspect is that the CdV frame hasn't been altered. So you'd still have the original wheelbase. And you'll be searching for the inevitable plastic bumper fillers.
If the owner is the person who made this conversion, I'd be surprised if he'd drop to $3k. But then again ...