New Member. 1976 Fleetwood Brougham d'Elegance help

[Atko]

New member here. Had the pleasure of getting a 1976 Fleetwood Brougham and looking for some helpful advice from the forum as I begin to start to do some basic improvements on the vehicle. Picture enclosed. Got some rust, electrical and leaking issues which I plan to address as much as I can.

1. Whitewall tires. Current tires blackwall. What is the correct or best looking options for this model? Width of whitewall? Looks like original came as approx 1 inch but thicker may look better?
2. Rims. Basic research online makes me think these rims are not the original but newer versions? What was the original?
3. Padded roof. Quite a few small marks unfortunately. How best to protect from rain? Will be in garage but Portland, OR rain is tough. Can I weatherize it somehow?
4. Floor mats. No floor mats. Any recommendations on where to get originals or replica?
5. Mechanic. If anyone knows of a trusted and knowledgeable shop in the Portland, Oregon area please let me know.
6. Trunk leaks. Any place online to get seals for trunk, windows etc or is it junk yards for me at this point?

Thanks for any help. I'm a first time Caddy owner and looking forward to getting to know the car and the models. Love reading the forum.

Cheers

Simon A

[Davidinhartford]

Welcome to the group Simon!

Great looking Brougham!

They did come from the factory with a standard width whitewall.  But there was an optional "Wider Stripe" whitewall available.

Below are two pics of my friend Johns' 76 Brougham d'elegance with the wider whitewalls.   You can still buy them, but you won't find them in stock at your local tire shop.  you'll need to order them thru a place like Coker or Diamond Back Classics.





The wire wheelcovers on your car were a factory option.  1976 was the first year wire wheelcovers were offered on the Broughams.   There was also a standard full size disc.   An optional Turbine disc and an optional Turbine disc with black centers.

As far as I know, there are no reproduction factory type mats being made.  You can get custom made mats to fit or look on Ebay for some used correct ones.

The roof?    I don't have an answer on that one.

Trunk weather stripping should not be a problem to find available online.

[mgbeda]

That's a nice looking Fleetwood; congrats!  I have a special fondness for 76's like my Bessie (I have also owned three others).

My 76 SDV was bought by my father in 78 so I can remember some details from when it was nearly new.  The whitewalls were 1 7/8 inches.  BF Goodrich.  I remember measuring this because my brother bought a 79 coupe and we wondered whether the whitewalls were the same width.  They weren't.  His were 1 5/8 wide.  Of course it's pretty hard to tell the difference without a ruler.  These days 1.6 inch whitewalls can be found, but are pricey.  There are still a few narrow white wall tires out there made by non-speciality firms; there was a thread about that topic not long ago.... Ah, here it is:

http://forums.cadillaclasalleclub.org/index.php?topic=122043.msg217456#msg217456
(by the way, 235/75R15 is the right size for a 76)

I've never seen any factory picture of a 76 with a narrow whitewall, and the wide whites were not listed as an option on my car's window sticker.  Of course dealers did a lot of tire changing back then.  Bottom line is, in my opinion, a narrow whitewall is better than none, and the wider you can get the better until you start getting up to 2 inches or more when they start to look silly (on a 76).

Those wire caps were optional in 76, but I'm not sure if the Fleetwoods were supposed to have a wreath around the crest.

I notice that the Fleetwood nameplate on the fender has drifted up over the side chrome strip instead of under where it was originally.  This suggests the car has been repainted.  Not a bad thing in itself as long as it was done well, and as long as the paint isn't covering up more rust.

I know of no place that sells reproduction floor mats.  Originals are rare as hen's teeth and very expensive.  They just didn't last.  Plenty of places sell "custom fit" floor mats for these that are basically pieces of carpet cut to size, maybe with a Cadillac logo stitched on.  OPG (original parts group) sells repros for up to 1970 which look and fit right in front but not in back.

Lots of places sell trunk rubber; try Steele or "Rubber the right way".

I found a vinyl roof product that was great for the one on my 91 Brougham.  But I'll have to go home to see what it was.

Welcome and enjoy your awesome Caddy!

-mB

[jagbuxx #12944]

Congratulations on your Fleetwood, the "Cadillac of Cadillacs" for sure.
For the Fleetwood series and Sevilles, hubcap ornamentation was the wreath and crest. Devilles were crest only.
The wire caps you have fitted were first optional for the 1976 model year.

[C.R. Patton II]

Hello Simon

Welcome to the forum. You have a nice vehicle.

If you have not initiated the following please begin.

(1) Join our national organization and a region convenient for you
(2) Acquire your copies of your original documentation from Allied Vaughn
(3) Plan to attend our next Grand National in Boston

Congratulations are your acquisition.

[joecaristo]

Hello,
If you have water leaking into the trunk, it might be water getting in through the vinyl top. Might be something to check before replacing the weatherstriping.
Joe