Oh, Come On Now. THAT'S A Cadillac?!?

Yes, it is. A Cadillac unlike any other, that's for certain. The 1967 Cadillac Fleetwood Eldorado was a bold new step into the personal luxury car market by the luxury leader, Cadillac. A styling masterpiece that was imitated for years, it was the first production car to combine front wheel drive, automatic level control, and variable-ratio power steering. This new Cadillac had a sporty flair to it unheard of in conservative Cadillac circles. Up front, a bold egg crate grille featured retractable headlamps that matched the grille texture by day, and folded down by night to reveal the Guide beams. Cadillac's handling of folding the grille covers down under the lights while the lights themselves remained stationary eliminated the momentary blinding of oncoming traffic as the headlamp assemblies rotated downward when they were turned on, as they did on the Buick Riviera, among others.

In profile, the 1967 Eldorado was a true masterpiece of restraint and elegance. Open flared front and rear wheel wells were not the typical Cadillac styling element, and the slotted wheel covers further emphasized that this was something different from General Motors' top of the line division. The rear ventipane windows slid horizontally back into the rear roof section when opened. The chrome-edged blade tail lamps in the rear not only displayed more than just a hint of Cadillac's trademark fin, they also had a very bold look to them that didn't resemble anything else on the road. From its aggressive front appearance to its angled rear fenders, the Eldorado was a bold styling departure for Cadillac that took some traditional Cadillac customers off guard at first.

The look of the new Eldorado was crafted under the supervision of William "Bill" L. Mitchell (1916-1988, heart failure) who was also responsible for many of General Motors' all-time best designs, including the 1963 Buick Riviera, which is considered by most to be one of GM's landmark designs, along with the 1963 Chevrolet Corvette and the 1967 Cadillac Eldorado. Engineering for the Eldorado originally began in the late fifties with an experiment in front wheel drive. A running chassis was tested in 1959, and while it looked to be feasible, front wheel drive was considered a bit risky at that time, so there was no real push to put it into production in the immediate future.

Nevertheless, Cadillac stylists began work on a project coded XP-727, unofficially referred to as the "new Brougham" around the same time, and it continued until the first quarter of 1962, when GM executives officially authorized a new front wheel drive "personal" Cadillac. The strong sales of Ford's popular Thunderbird had not been lost on Cadillac, but Cadillac's own entry into this market had to be spectacular, and would require additional development time to get it right.

Unknown to many, over at Oldsmobile Division work had also begun on a front wheel drive personal car, and by mid-year 1963, the Oldsmobile and Cadillac folks combined their engineering efforts in project XP-784. A few months later, in September 1963, styling design work began on project XP-820, followed by another in December 1963, designation XP-825, which was ultimately approved for production in May of 1964, with a reduction in front and rear overhangs being the only major exterior change made prior to production.

One Cadillac salesman reported that a long time repeat customer walked into the showroom in the Fall of 1966 to purchase a new Fleetwood Sixty Special for himself, as he was in the habit of doing every few years. He knew that 1967 would be a year for new styling for Cadillac, and he wanted to be one of the first in his area with a new model. When he saw the Eldorado, he couldn't believe it was a Cadillac. Was it a one off show car? No. Was it a limited edition model? No. You mean it's a real Cadillac, that can be purchased now? Yes.

That shock turned into love at first sight, and the 70-something gentleman left the dealership that day in a triple black Eldorado, just the thing to pick up his spirits he thought. And while the all-black color combination may have been conservative in appearance to some, it was rather sinister to others. Before long, this same salesman had sold 6 other Eldorados to gentlemen in this man's circle of friends. Each at first expressed shock that it was a Cadillac, but then decided they just had to have one.

First year sales of 17,930 were good for a car with a base price of $6,277. Sales improved dramatically for 1968, which tends to prove that it took some people a while to get used to the new, sporty Cadillac. The Eldorado was powered by the same 429 V-8 engine that was fitted to other Cadillacs, although the Turbo Hydra-Matic transmission was modified to accommodate the front wheel drive by being mounted longitudinally beside the engine. It was connected to the engine flywheel by a Morse "Hy-Vo" inverted tooth chain, the same set up used on the Olds Toronado. In fact, many suspension components were shared between the two cars, which reduced development costs and cut the amount of time required between design and production. The Toronado beat the Eldorado to market by one year, and was awarded the honor of Motor Trend Magazine's Car of the Year for 1966.

Interiors featured cloth and vinyl upholstery with leather available optionally. A unique black and white checked Dalmatian print fabric was particularly attractive, and emphasized that the Eldorado was not typical in any way.The front seat was of bench design with a center fold-down arm rest, although Contoured Bucket Seats with a center console were optional, and required leather upholstery.

GM's new Energy-Absorbing Steering Column was a new safety feature that debuted in 1967, along with folding front seat back latches.

While the new Eldorado took some time to catch on and become accepted by the traditional Cadillac masses, by 1968 they were selling very well, with many dealers reporting a low on-hand count for most of the year. Even the middle class had to have an Eldorado, with several sometimes being found on the same block.

The 1967-1970 Eldorados are Certified Milestone Cars that are being collected by enthusiasts in ever-growing numbers today. Despite their size, these cars handle and perform well. 1967 models without the optional front disc brakes can be a bit unnerving in panic stops, but they became standard for 1968, and overall drivability seemed to improve with each year.

Cadillac said the 1967 Fleetwood Eldorado was the world's finest personal luxury car, which is what most would expect from Cadillac, who could do no wrong it would seem at this point in time. The Eldorado certainly did create quite the stir when it first appeared in showrooms, and that shock was mostly from Cadillac's traditional customer base. In fact, it may have been the last youthful folly for more than a few aging Cadillac devotees. Now who was it that said the Ford Mustang started a youth movement?

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