Last of the real wood?

[Tony]

Was the last of the real wood on the dash and door panels on the 68 or 69 Cadillacs? (That is until it reappeared in the late 80s.)

From what Ive read and heard, 69s had the last.
For example:
(The Cadillac Buyers Guide):
[Caption under a photo of a 66 Fleetwood]
"Lavish wood door trim shown here on the 1966 Brougham diminished to a thin veneer by 1969 and has been plastic or vinyl ever since."

"...The last of the real wood trim departed in 1969, and in its place came good old plastic... stick to pre-70s in your shopping."

(From Cadillacs of the Sixties):
"...And all Fleetwood series cars feature a rich, rosewood insert."

The 1969 Cadillac brochure:
"Wood paneling enhances the dignity of the Sixty-Specials many upholstery fabics and colors."

"The rich look of rare wood accents and its long 133-inch wheelbase give the Brougham a distinction all its own."

So, can anyone definitely say when the real wood disappeared? Is the dash and door paneling on the 69s from a tree or a plastic machine?
Thanks for any info.

Tony Gaudenti, member #12310

[Lou 19058]

Yes, 1969 was the last year real wood(veneer)was used.In 1970 Cadillac went to a synthetic laminate . If you win a bet with this info feel free to mail me a check:) Regards Lou

[wm link]

1969 was it...the 1970 brochure (from memory)listed the wood trim as "The rich "LOOK" of oriental tamo wood"...or something like that. The way it was printed you were to THINK that it was real rather than a decal.

[Lou]

The "LOOK" of wood.Its fake alright,I had all of that trim off during resto of my 70.If you get a look at a 69 conv you will see the wood doesnt fair well.In a 70 conv the wood look like it just rolled of the line.

[Tony]

Wow... that was a fast response!

Thanks to both of you for answering the question.

A small portion of the dash trim on my 1969 Fleetwood Brougham is peeling. It looks like there is a thin layer of plastic or stain over it, and under that it does look like real wood. When I run my fingers over it it feels like wood; you can detect a slight roughness to it.

[Tony]

Yeah, thats a good way to tell... when youre restoring a car or pulling one apart at a wrecking yard.

[Bret Scott (CLC 21765)]

Hi, Tony-

Im pretty sure that many of the Cadillacs from the 90s had real wood.  It was used on Eldorado and Seville since 1992, and in DeVille since 1996 (perhaps sooner).  I think its called "Zebrano" wood in the sales brochures.  And if Im not mistaken, the new STS offers a real eucalyptus wood package on some of the models.

I learned this when I purchased my former 1995 Eldorado as a recovered stolen vehicle written off by the owners insurance company, and needed to replace some of the interior trim.  All of the inserts in the dash and doors were real wood, albeit coated to the point of almost looking synthetic.  The dealer price was astronomical (nearly $2,000 for all pieces), but fortunately I was able to locate a similarly-equipped vehicle at a local scrap yard.

Regards,

[JIM CLC # 15000]

03-07-05
All this talk about wood reminds me of a story I once read, regarding buying a RR.
The husband is telling his wife that they should buy a RR.
Because, that would be the last car they would ever have to buy, and that it had "wood" trim on the dash and doors that came from the same tree which was 100 or more years old.
The wife wasnt falling for this as the husband continued to try
to sell her on the idea.
Finely,he wore her down and she some-what agreed, saying to husband, "OK, go ahead and tell RR to plant the tree"
Good Luck, hope all enjoyed, Jim
P.S. I know more, dont get me started.

[Ed Dougher]

Wow, they must think some of the classic cars of the 30s and 40s are real junk, with their fake di-noc woodgrain!

[Mike #19861]

 The door panels on my 70 Fleetwood are real wood veneer. I doubt the wood is on the dash is real, though.

But, I would not limit your shopping to cars just because they use real wood. Many very good cars were made using the faux wood. Youd be doing yourself is disservice.

 BTW, I doubt many Cadillacs fron the 40s or 50s used any real wood in any of the trimmings either.

  Mike

[wm link]

 Its nice to hear that you feel that way about faux wood and certainly hope that doesnt change... a 1970 Fleetwood does NOT have real wood anywhere except the wood block in the trunk. Ive owned two 70 fleetwood Broughams and was surprised that it was actually a genuine wood "LOOK" decal on the doors.

[Tony]

I did check my 70 Sedan de Ville. Yeah, it doesnt look like real wood, but its hard to tell without pulling it off.

As was pointed out, I certainly wouldnt base my choice of a Cadillac on whether it has real wood or not. My 76 limo has no real wood, I still enjoy it a lot.

[Mike #19861]

 Hmmm...

 I thought it was. Im sure I saw a 70 Fleetwood 75 sedan that had the same front door panels and the veneer was in poor shape and splintering.

 Ill have a closer look when the car comes out of storage. Anyway, It wont change my opinion of the car. Its still a great car!

  Mike

[Mike #19861]

 Yes, in the late 80s and 90s Cadillacs used real wood on the dashes, and it was Zebrano. It was very nicely done, and very expensive to replace.

 Since then, Cadillac has used premium wood in many of their models and have become somewhat of a leader in this respect.

  Mike