My 1957 Cadillac Eldorado Seville Restoration Project

[Seville1957]

It would be interesting to know how many 1957 Sevilles survived. I hear many were parted out in favor of Biarritz models.

[57eldoking]

I've been cataloguing them for about 10 years now, collecting information on cars that come up for sale online and cars I've encountered at shows both in Europe and the U.S. I probably would have collected way more if I had been more active rather than simply collecting information from cars that I stumble upon.

Anyhow, today I have pictures and information on exactly 66 cars of each model. Not very scientific but it should give a rough idea, also need to keep in mind there were 300 more Sevilles built. In general Biarritz models are in better condition than the Sevilles. 

[57eldoking]

Very interesting...  and you may be onto something with the number of cars over there...

I do think the Just Dashes grain is a touch more shallow than the original.  You may also want to consider matching material for the upper doors and rear seat.

You are correct Walter, the Just Dashes grain is shallower and finer than the original Elsacofab Buffalo Grain. However, you probably have to be a bit of a 57 Eldorado connoisseur to recognize that a Just Dashes dash isn't completely correct without having an original to compare it to. They do very nice work by all means!

The following pictures are of the red Just Dashes restored pad in our Biarritz and the original green pad in Dave Morris` low mileage Seville. At the bottom is a picture of a 58 Eldorado dash and side panels done by RD Autoline in Sweden. As you can see their grain is closer to the original Elascofab although it too is probably a hair too shallow.

[Walter Youshock]

I know of 2 that rotted away in junkyards in Northeast PA.  One was white, black top and red/white leather.  The other was Starlight, repainted white, black top and black and silver paisley interior.

I have parts of both cars on mine.  One gave up its power trunk and the other the release button.  As I recall, both were single carb cars without air cleaners or valve covers...  they were probably gold...

[Seville1957]

That's sad that those two beauties were left to rot. I know of one junkyard that has a 57 Seville mounted way up on the pole with its top cut off. Birds crap all over the car and it is riddled with bullet holes from people using it as target practice! You wont see this done with a Brougham or Biarritz. Seems the Seville hasn't received the respect they deserve. I was tickled pink when I heard about the 57 Seville that sold for $150k last January! Any of you gents drive ur cars on the road? Not so sure I will put mine on the road when im done. Too many idiot drivers in my neck of the woods.

[57eldoking]

Driving them is what its all about! Nothing like getting out exploring the highways with these cars, it is an adventure like no other! We've put close to 30k miles on our Biarritz since it was done 13 years ago. That includes two coast to coast roadtrips on Route 66 and the Lincoln Highway from NYC to San Francisco. You only live once and when its all said and done the guy with the best experiences and memories wins. Even though I consider them rolling pieces of sculpture, they're just cars when it comes down to it. If its been restored once, it can always be restored again. 

[57 Eldo Seville]

You are correct Walter, the Just Dashes grain is shallower and finer than the original Elsacofab Buffalo Grain. However, you probably have to be a bit of a 57 Eldorado connoisseur to recognize that a Just Dashes dash isn't completely correct without having an original to compare it to. They do very nice work by all means!

The following pictures are of the red Just Dashes restored pad in our Biarritz and the original green pad in Dave Morris` low mileage Seville. At the bottom is a picture of a 58 Eldorado dash and side panels done by RD Autoline in Sweden. As you can see their grain is closer to the original Elascofab although it too is probably a hair too shallow.

I recognize that Versailles Green interior.

[57eldoking]

Yes, I was drooling all over that car but it was a little out of my price range. It is one of the most original untouched Sevilles I have in my records.

[57 Eldo Seville]

Yes, I was drooling all over that car but it was a little out of my price range. It is one of the most original untouched Sevilles I have in my records.

The interior is very original with the exception of new carpet and rear package shelf.  And the trunk is very original except there is no mounting provision for the jack and no holes where it should have been located.

The Olympic white paint looked to have been repainted forward of the windshield and original elsewhere.  Or so I thought.  Last week for the heck of it I did a search on the owner from 1970-1989.  And talked to him on the phone a day later.  Imagine my surprise when he mentioned the lime green (elysian green) color that it was painted when he owned it.  It was also that color when his good friend owned it from 1963-1970.  He knew that it should have been white and verified the mileage.  So my car was painted Elysian Green from around 1963 to sometime after 1989.

You learn something every day.

[Walter Youshock]

Hoods and front fenders of this era SHOULD have a color variation from the body.  The bodies were painted at Fleetwood and the hoods and fenders at Clark.

A real original paint car will have a slight color difference, especially on a metallic.

[Cadillac Jack 82]

Just received an email from the Swedes and they said they don't need the core.  They said this is something I install after they make it.  That would be great as it would save lots of time/money

[57eldoking]

That's right, I forgot you can also install the pad yourself. When I talked to them they recommended I'd bring my metal board because I have AC which requires trimming and you only have one shot at making those cuts right. I only live a 4 hour drive away from them so I'll probably have them do it as they've done many of them.

[Cadillac Jack 82]

I'm glad you posted pictures of Just Dashes grain.  They are several hundred dollars more than the Swedes are.  If the Swedes have the best grain then I'm going with them!  This makes me happy cause I can get this done later this year and finally install my Autronic Eye

[57eldoking]

The pictures I posted only applies for the Eldorados though. Your Series 62 didn't have the Buffalo grain. Here's a picture of a Series 62 pad redone by the Swedes. Perhaps someone else can post a picture of a Series 62 pad done by Just Dashes. In any event the Swedes do impeccable work so I'm sure you'll be happy, especially since it's cheaper too.

[Seville1957]

Beautiful dash, does anyone have Swedes contact info? Also, do you guys have any recommendation for a shop to chrome the rear bumpers and rear license plate holder?

[57eldoking]

http://autoline.se/?page_id=245

http://paulschrome.com

[Cadillac Jack 82]

I was told that Limbrandi's had a good quality chrome.  They quoted me 1500 for my rear bumper:

http://www.carchrome.com/beta/librandi/about.htm

[Paul Tesone]

I'm a little late in responding , but here's my Just Dashes black dash done a few years ago and an original red dash . As others have stated , the original appears a little deeper grained than the Just Dashes repro . Quality of the Just Dashes product is excellent .  .. Paul Tesone CLC #6876

[Seville1957]

Nice, I think Im going with RD Line for my dash. Recieved estimates for plating the rear bumpers, $6,000!

[57eldoking]

Another option you may want to consider is buying a new recast pair of rear bumpers. These are made in a modern aluminum alloy which is more stable and should be easier to chrome. I have yet to have a plating job on a set of recast bumpers priced out though. However what makes plating so expensive is the labor that goes into prepping the pieces. I would imagine new bumpers would require far less prep work.