It was only a matter of time before Cadillac would respond to the personal
luxury car segment of the market, which had been growing rapidly since
the early sixties. Since 1953, the Eldorado had been among Cadillac's most
prestigious (and expensive) series of automobiles, but to compete in the
personal luxury field, it would have to undergo some changes first. The
1963 Buick Riviera was originally designed with Cadillac in mind, the vertical grilles on
the front of the car even hark back to the Cadillac LaSalle grille in their
appearance. At the time, Buick needed a specialty car more than Cadillac,
so Buick got it. But this began the process of design for Cadillac's own
personal luxury car.
The 1967 Cadillac Fleetwood Eldorado was very different than the 1966 Eldorado. No longer a convertible, this
sporty two door hardtop was quite racy for Cadillac. A masterpiece from
front to rear, the Eldorado sported flared open wheel wells, with slotted
wheel covers. Concealed headlamps up front gave way to razor-edged chrome
trim on the tail lamps out back. A sharply vee'd rear window emphasized
that this wasn't your typical Cadillac. The first car to offer automatic
level control, variable-ratio power steering, and front wheel drive, it
was not traditional by any means. Concerns that Cadillac's customers would
not accept the new car disappeared when sales exceeded production abilities.
Cadillac had created a hit!
Minor styling updates through 1970 gave the Eldorado a fresh look each
year, and Cadillac's spectacular 8.2 Litre 500 cubic inch V-8 engine became
standard equipment in 1970. An Eldorado Convertible rejoined the series
in 1971, and the Eldorado's clean lines became a bit busier, in keeping
with styling trends of the time. The Eldorado Coupe was the first production
car to come with Coach Windows as standard equipment, a styling touch that
started a fad during the 1970's. Before long, any car with enough space
in the roof rear quarter area was being fitted with the additional windows.
Some pulled it off better than others.
In 1975, the Eldorado lost its rear fender skirts, which had been standard
since 1971. Once again, open rear wheel wells gave the Eldorado a sportier
appearance, and new options such as Electronic Fuel Injection were made
available. The 1976 Fleetwood Eldorado Convertible would be the last American-built
convertible, and Cadillac made sure appropriate press would accompany this
milepost. The final 200 convertibles built were all identical, with Cadillac
keeping the actual last one for itself. Prices went through the roof for
a time after production ended, but soon came down to more reasonable levels.
Cadillac bid farewell to the traditional full size Eldorado in 1978, with
a plush Eldorado Custom Biarritz Classic edition. This car sported a two tone paint job with matching two tone
pillowed leather interior. It was flashy, and it was expensive, and like
it or not, it was the perfect way to bid farewell to a motoring experience
we'll likely never see again. The full size personal luxury cars like the
1967-1978 Eldorado were distinctively American. Huge cars propelled by
huge engines that put passenger comfort above all else. Fuel economy didn't
really matter, because the people who purchased these cars new had money,
and weren't concerned about such things. But the realities of the world
would not allow such extravagances to continue, as fuel shortages forced
people to look at what they were driving. After all, what good was having
a masterpiece in your driveway if you couldn't buy the gas to drive it?
The Eldorados that followed were smaller, and more fuel efficient. Every
bit as plush, perhaps, but they didn't have the same eye appeal as their
predecessors. And there was really no way that they could, considering
the sheer size of the car was an important part of the overall expression
of luxury. There's something about floating down the road in one of these
cars that just can't be experienced when driving anything else. And that
feeling is something truly rewarding, something that Eldorado drivers will
tell you makes it all worthwhile. It is sad that they don't make them like
this any longer!
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