Rare Rides Icons: The Cadillac Eldorado, Distinctly Luxurious (Part XXXVIII)

Today we wrap up coverage of the sixth generation Eldorado. Last time, we saw the 1964 edition of the sixth-gen revised inside and out. Subtle editing everywhere added up to a more modern looking vehicle, particularly where the interior was concerned. Time marched forward underneath the Eldorado as well, and there were some mechanical improvements for its second year as Cadillac continued its stellar sales.

Both the engine and transmission of the Eldorado were new in 1964. Cadillac’s OHV V8 increased in size from 390 cubic inches (6.4L) to an even better 429 cubic inches, seven full liters of displacement. Power increased from 325 horses in 1963 to 340 in 1964. The engine was at its best low down, with gobs of readily available torque when accelerating between 20 and 50 miles per hour. 

The engine also received its first emissions controls in 1964, when engineers added a positive crankcase ventilation unit. Such a system removes unwanted gasses from the engine and leads to a cleaner burn. PCV systems grew in automobile usage from 1963 onward, to prevent state-specific engine variants as legislatures began to introduce their own emissions laws. This effort was of course led by the California Motor Vehicle Pollution Control Board (later CARB), established in 1960.

The transmission used in select Cadillacs was all-new in 1964, as General Motors said its gradual goodbye to the old 4-speed Hydra-Matic in favor of the Turbo-Hydramatic 400. With three speeds and tank-like build quality, the THM-400 transmission and its 4L80E successor would become transmission legends. Its robust nature would eventually find it installed in some of the most exclusive luxury cars in the world. British luxury manufacturers in particular held the THM in high regard and found it rather jolly.

There was another Eldorado improvement in 1964, and it became one of those watershed moments. For the first time, automatic climate control was installed in a passenger car. Branded as Comfort Control, the system used a thermostat on the dashboard and was a first in the industry. A thermostat for temperature setting, a slider for automatic or defrost, and that’s it. 

As Cadillac restyled its line in 1963 and then revised engineering and interiors in 1964, it hoped to continue the brand’s strong sales. In 1962 the company shifted a very impressive 160,840 cars, which it trumped in 1963 with total production of 163,174. The Series 62 line continued to fall in popularity, as customers chose better trimmed examples from the DeVille line over a base model.

The most popular Series 62 model was actually the most expensive, the “Cadillac Convertible.” It sold 17,600 examples that year for $5,590 ($57,978 adj.). Next up was the four-window sedan with 16,980 sales, and the coupe with 16,786. Least popular of the 62 series was the more formal six-window sedan, with 12,929 sales. 

The DeVille line increased its popularity further, as the Coupe DeVille proved very appealing with 31,749 sales. The four-window, $5,633 ($58,424 adj.) DeVille sedan also did very well, at 30,579 examples. The six-window Deville sedan was about half as popular with 15,146 units sold. And finally, almost nobody cared for the short-deck DeVille Park Avenue, and only 1,575 were sold. 

Of the Fleetwood bodied cars, the Sixty Special (only offered as a four-window) was again the big seller at 14,000 examples, each priced at $6,366 ($66,026 adj.). The new sibling to the sedan was the Eldorado Biarritz, which sold 1,825 examples at $6,608 ($68,536 adj.). This figure was a notable improvement over the prior two years for the Eldorado Biarritz, where Cadillac sold only 1,450 examples each year.

In the limousine class, the Fleetwood Seventy-Five Sedan and Limousine sold 680 and 795 examples, proving once again the buyer of the largest Cadillac preferred to be driven rather than drive themselves. The Seventy-Five was very expensive once more, as a Sedan asked $9,724 ($100,854 adj.) and a Limousine was $9,939 ($103,084 adj.). There were also 2,527 commercial Cadillac chassis sold, and 3 total bare chassis.

Cadillac replicated its success in 1964, and increased its overall sales to 165,959. Though prices were higher, overall inflation meant the models were technically less expensive in 1964. There was a slight product reshuffling this year with regard to the Series 62 and DeVille lines. Series 62 was slimmed to include the coupe (12,166 sales), four-window sedan (13,670 sales) and the unpopular six-window sedan (9,243 sales). The Cadillac Convertible was eliminated.

The DeVille line increased its breadth and sales in 1964. Its top seller was the four-window Sedan DeVille with 39,674 sales, followed closely by the Coupe DeVille with 38,195. The DeVille convertible was more popular than the base Series 62 version, and sold 17,900 examples at minor upcharge over the previous 62 convertible: $5,612 ($57,264 adj.). The six-window Sedan DeVille hobbled along with 14,627 sales, and the DeVille Park Avenue was dropped. 

The Fleetwood Sixty Special increased its sales slightly to 14,550 at a marginally increased cost of $6,388 ($65,182 adj.). Eldorado Biarritz sales increased slightly to 1,870, as customers enjoyed the reworked exterior and interior looks. For its final outing in 1964 the sixth generation Eldorado asked $6,630 ($67,652 adj.), or about 16.5 percent more than the DeVille convertible. The Seventy-Five Sedan was slightly less popular with 617 sales at $9,746 ($99.447 adj.) each, while the Limousine increased its figures to 808 cars at a cost of $9,960 ($101,631 adj.). Given inflation, the Fleetwood models were dangerously close to cresting the $10,000 mark for the first time.

The styling revisions and the additional air of “Fleetwood prestige” to the Eldorado line seemed to make a difference in the minds of consumers. Buyers were also very willing to pay a small premium for their Cadillac convertible to display DeVille badging on its exterior. Big changes were in store the following year, as the “Series” naming vanished, DeVille became more important, Brougham arrived, and the Eldorado took on a new naming scheme. Until next time.

[Images: GM, seller]

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