1957 Cadillac Fleetwood restoration in high quality

[Renato]

Hey Guys,

I bought a Fleetwood from the US. I'm living in Europe it arrived on 24th nov. I will start the restoration 2013 Spring/Summer. Now I just would like to buy parts and restoring little things like the old radio. So I will post the important moments, pictures here.

[Renato]

More pix

[Andrew Armitage]

Wow, you have your work cut out for you.

In the future, could you please resize your photos to about 25% of their original size?  As it is now, the expanded views are so big that they're pretty awkward to view.

What are your plans for this car?  Keep us posted on this project.

[Renato]

Hey,

(First of all my english is not perfect. I used to say my knowledge a perfect kitchen English. So just tell me if sy do not understand something.)

I oversized them, but sure I can more smaller.

I'd like to restore it in factory condition without any compromise I had a 57 De Ville, but I sold it. This Caddy will be my company reference car must be beautiful.

The seller told me it stop in 1970 and did not run since. I hope I can save the original pistons. Why? They were much more stronger than I can make or buy from the store. (You know the irons are not the same quality like the 50's.) If not I need to make new. I bought many parts to my 57 De Ville from the States, but most of were poor quality. Wheaterstripps and rubbers were the poorest...

[David King (kz78hy)]

Your '57 pistons will be made of aluminum.

David

[Renato]

I worked a little on the Caddy today. Guys it's much more better than I imagin. Many parts are in good shape. I found a keychain with these datas:

Cím:
Bakke Repair Service‎
301 2nd St SW
Crosby, ND 58730

I'm trying to find the history of the car. I bought it from Georgia. I searched in the Google, but I can not find mail address from the company.

I checked the engine and gearbox oil. Both of looks good. Luckily sy blow out the radiator (winter in Hungary) so it is empty now. I dissambled the radio. Unfortunatelly the power supply missing so I need to buy one before I starting the radio restoring. I will start the dissambling at the Spring starting with the engine/trans.

Driver side B column needs repair it damaged. I'm sure it is repairable. Pictures soon

[Renato]

Sy modify the fuel pump to electric (thanks the info), and made manual choke...pooor Caddy. The most important to find power supply to the radio. It's missing. I found a pair nice Cadillac script in the glovebox.

[Walter Youshock]

The radio amp is to the left of the radio.  It is a TOTAL PAIN to remove and reinstall.  I bet it's still in the dash.

[Renato]

Thank you your advice, but it is not the first time to remove and instal it. It is not there. Sy remove it before me. It's located on the left side behind the ashtray.

[Renato]

Today is the coldest day in this year. What should a car maniac do? Collecting a few restorable parts. So I will rebuild the instrument panel, clock, radio.

I must have to say sorry for Walter. The amp was in the car. Sy remove the screws and I thought it is missing. I checked again from under and I found it. It looks really good. The factory tubes are awesome

I discover a strange thing. Actually the master power window switch. My De ville did not signs of the windows. It has "L" "R" mark for each window. I tried to find picture in the manual or parts catalog. I'm also used Google pic. Is it not factory parts (look like the same as the original)? Any idea?

[Renato]

Needs to make a new body plate as you can see on the picture. The power windows is not in the options.

EHY

E - EZ Eye Glass
H - Heater
Y - Power seats

X will be the power windows

[Roger Zimmermann]

I discover a strange thing. Actually the master power window switch. My De ville did not signs of the windows. It has "L" "R" mark for each window.

It's hard to tell from the picture but for me it's the original switch and somebody added the letters. In the seventies, there was a system to write text with a plastic band available in several colors. I have the impression that these letters were made mith that.

[Renato]

A hard to find part arrived today from America.

[Blade]

Renato:

Congratulations on getting the Cadillac, it always exciting to get an old car and restore it.

From the picture it does look like the power window was original or perhaps a new owner decided to add it to it just a few years later? Matter of fact my Cadillac does not have power windows but I am currently converting it using an original system removed from a parted out '59. The lettering above the switches are not original, they are letters typed with an old typing machine and glued on (probably for grandma  ).

I did a quick search for the car repair service in the Yellow Pages of Crosby ND (business phone book) but that repair shop does not exists anymore. Also the phone number on the tag has no area code which also tells me it's an older number. Most phone numbers in the US have a three digit are code at the beginning as standard since about the early 90s (perhaps even earlier) so that is an older tag.

If you need any help with anything let me know.

-Tibor

[Rob Troxel]

I like the high res pictures you posted.  Far better than small sized ones we usually see from others.  Good luck to you and thanks for saving another great Cadillac!

[Gene Beaird]

<SNIP>

From the picture it does look like the power window was original or perhaps a new owner decided to add it to it just a few years later? Matter of fact my Cadillac does not have power windows but I am currently converting it using an original system removed from a parted out '59. The lettering above the switches are not original, they are letters typed with an old typing machine and glued on (probably for grandma  ).

<SNIP>

That's some Dymo tape.  Great stuff.  I think I still have my Dad's Dymo machine around the house somewhere. Heh, I probably need to do that on our 79 Seville.  I'm always reaching up and pressing the window switch button closest to me, instead of the one at the very front of the switch panel on the driver's door!

Looks like an incredible project.  I'll be watching.   

[Renato]

Hi all,

Car arrived in my shop. I have some running project now. I hope I can disassemble it on May.

[Renato]

Today I got an e-mail from Mr. Jerome Knudson who bought my car in 1967, and write down the story of the car:

"In response to your letter about information on the 1957 Cadillac Fleetwood that I owned I submit the following.  Dates are as close as possible from my memory.
  I farm in a small town in North Western North Dakota.  In 1967 I was in Minot, North Dakota about 125 miles from my farm and I saw the Cadillac sitting by a gas station and asked about it and I was told that the transmission was slipping and needed to repair it but it did move. I purchased it and I did not make it back to the farm. The next day a pulled it home and removed the engine and transmission. Since I was a professional Mechanic I overhauled the engine and purchased a rebuilt transmission.   After installing them our family used it for three years until I got another car.
  It sat for a couple of years. My friend needed a car for college in Fargo North Dakota and so I loaned it to him.  In Fargo a person did not stop for a red light and hit the driver’s door. He continued to drive it until about 1973 when another friend needed a car to drive to the oil rigs, so I sold it to him.  He used it for about three years for that then it sat on his farm for about another five years.
  One day I met him and purchased it from him and placed it in inside storage for about 30 years. I sold it to a person in Georgia in January 2012.
  One day in the 1980’s I found another 57 Cadillac Fleetwood with parts missing so I purchased it and kept it for parts.  These parts were removed and sent with the car.  There are still some chrome parts, there are some engine parts but they have been sitting outside and I think there is a transmission in it. I know there are problems with the right front lower suspension frame on your car. These parts are on the parts car, but since it is part of the main frame it can be cut out.  You can have any of the parts at no charge, but they will not be available until the summer of 2014. A good mechanic and welder could repair the frame."

[Blade]

Renato:

Looks like you gathered some more information on your car, it is always very nice to have a story that goes with your dream machine. Make sure you save it for when the time comes for you to pass it along the story can go with it. It's a great story so far ... then you will contine writing it more.

I am also lucky to have my car purchased from someone whom I continue to keep in touch with and occasionally still exchange e-mails. I also just found out that the car was purchased in Providence, RI and it was already missing the parts that are still missing and they were removed by the owner before him to use for another '59 restoration (wonder what you would remove parts for from a convertible?). The previous owner said he purchased the car from this man and planned to restore it but never got to it, and in the mean time he also got another car and left the convertible sitting there for all these years untouched.

Post some pictures when you start working on it, we'd like to see the progress.