Lovey, the 1955 Eldorado restoration story

[David King (kz78hy)]

More front end work.  The headlamp adjuster nuts and screws were damaged and missing, so only one lamp was installed.  Rear bumper installed.  Other work was done, but no photos.  Fuel was added to the tank and no leaks below, but there were some on top when we started the car.  Those were addressed.  The car needs timed and tuned and does not run well yet, so this my next thing.

The progress was enough to determine it was time to bring home for completion, so everything was gathered and packed for the ride back to Michigan.  When assessing for my trailer, it is awful tight and now it matters if it makes contact with the car, so Rick's local hauler was available to assist in loading the car and I called an audible to have him bring the car to MI and I would take everything else.  Everything but the car was in my rig and trailer and the car came the next day.

Derek (transporter) my wife & I got the car unloaded and maneuvered into the garage.  That was hard work pushing and pulling that heavy girl around getting into the garage.

Then next chapter of assembly is about to start.

[Ralph Messina CLC 4937]

In a word, spectacular!

[Roger Zimmermann]

Nice!
At the bottom of the rear bumper end seals, you'll have to add a steel support for the exhaust tubes. Without that, during the dilatation of the exhaust system during driving, you may have bad surprises because the tubes will stick on the rubber. I omitted them when I restored my '56 de Ville; after a while, both mufflers were crushed a bit.

[Mike Baillargeon #15848]

Amazing work David !

Great job, attention to every detail....what your doing isn't easy....

I was a kid in high school 50 odd years ago and me & a buddy of mine walked thru a "Classic Car" dealership and a copper 1955 Eldorado caught my eye.....The color, the styling, just the sheer presence of the car.....I was hooked on Cadillac that very second....decades later I'm still hooked.....

I love watching you do what you do with one of my fondness memories !!

Mike

[David King (kz78hy)]

Doing a little bit in the garage, but it is still cold to really do much, and also lots of set backs.  One was to install the gear shift lever to the column.  1st issue was I could not locate the 2 lever springs I bought, so I order one more.  Next, when the spring gets here its an oh shit moment, the chrome dome that covers the arm/pin to column joint is to be installed BEFORE the knob is cast onto the arm and of course I am holding the cover in my hand.  I had to walk a away for day or two.  I called Dennis Crooks who did my steering wheel and knobs looking for advise on if the knob could be removed from the arm.  Dennis called me back in a couple days and said "try a hair dryer to heat it up and then pull it apart and slip in the cover.  If you mess it up, send it back and I will recast the knob".  The fix worked and I will put the lever in tonight.  Photo of fixed lever before installation.

Added:  I installed the lever this afternoon.

[Roger Zimmermann]

You were lucky with the removal/installation of the gear lever's knob!
Don't forget to solder the horn's contact before you install the steering wheel...

[David King (kz78hy)]

The horn contact wire is already soldered, just not cut flush yet...incase I needed to remove it again.  Now I'm far enough along that won't likely be needed.

Thanks for watching out for me.

David

[David King (kz78hy)]

I have been working on the car, but just not photo worthy content.  A long ordeal on ordering replacement heater control cables as that is holding me up from completing the dash work.  Those are the most buried parts so I have to get those installed and working before building up the rest.  There should be a set of cables coming now.  I have managed to sort the electrical issues so for the moment, the body harness and engine harness and attached components are working.  I found a new light switch in my stash of parts and that corrected the non dimming dash lamps.  Fog light switch cleaned.  All gauges, dash, exterior (except license plate, wires not connected) are working.  When the car is started, the temp & fuel gauge work and the oil pressure and generator lamps go out while running.

I bought the missing "Fleetwood" badge for the seat base.  I polished it and painted in the etching area for the logo.  The seat base still had the attachment hole so aligned the hole with the plate and used the screw point to find where to poke the hole in the leather to attach.  This worked out fine.

[David King (kz78hy)]

Connected the license plate lamps.  Bulb sockets were rusty and not making a ground, so soldered a wire to base and grounded it through the attachment screws.  One more thing done.

I pulled it outside with it running poorly and brakes need further adjusting, but this was its first movement under its own power, just a few feet, but more will come.  I will add the front shot to the Brown car thread currently going on in the general area.

[Mike Baillargeon #15848]

Car looks great David !

It's a good feeling with the trim going back on and the car is moving under it's own power...

This is fun to watch !!

Mike

[James Landi]

Spring is here and so is DAVID'S car... perfect timing.   Happy day, James

[David King (kz78hy)]

Yesterday I was trying to get the door to fit better, it does, but to much striker drag, so not happy with that.  I put on the LH center molding and used my NOS retainers.  It is cool to open those parts and use them, though a little sad at the same time.  Having and eating the cake syndrome I suppose.

I was going to move to the LH fender molding next and opened the bag of NOS retainers for it.  However when I took the part from the protective bag from the chromer, I noticed some blemishes on it, then checked the RH one and same thing, so those have to be redone.  The parts were plated by the guy Rick uses in Minnesota, so no rework on these as the hassle will be more than having my local guy do it, so next week those parts will be dropped off.

[David King (kz78hy)]

This morning I received a box from Rick that has some parts in it.  A new remade lube tag that has my VIN on it, very cool.  5 seat Eldorado badges for the seat base.  I restored mine 3 years ago and they were perfect cores and now I can't find them, I hate that kind of shit, and I'm sure once the car is together, they will present themselves.  Out of the five pieces Rick sent, I polished 3 and used two.  One had some delamitation which bugged me.  The other one had some of the foil and paint missing in the colored areas.  I used some flat white paint with a wood tooth pick and Bill Hirsh blue engine paint with a tooth pick and dabbed on the missing area and it looks good.  that blue is almost a perfect match.

Then I figured out how to assemble the polished pieces to the leather wrapped base and clip in the badges.  It took a little bit and a couple of hours of polishing the badges but it looks great.

[David King (kz78hy)]

Lube Tag.

[David King (kz78hy)]

Weekend update:

I got assistance from a GM Tech friend to try and tune the car on Saturday.  After 2 hours of making little progress, a problem was uncovered.  The floats in the rear carb were leaking.  That stopped that project.  I found out that Daytona Products is remaking that Rochester float P/N 70000199.  2 are on order.

Sound deader has been added to both doors.

More rework, the outside handles had to be removed to remove the latches which was missing the inside lock rods, what a pain just to install those rods, but done now.  Make sure to have those rods on the latches when you first install.

Heater control cables arrived and the needed ones installed, no joy in that job, but allows for ducting to completed.  Passenger side done.

Glove box compartment installed and door refitted with everything.

Most of the behind the dash work is getting done.  Drivers ducts left, washer line, and tidying up the wire harness and vacuum hoses left.

[wrench]

 Very entertaining read here.

Those retainers wanted to be out of the bag and installed on a car. You know that, right?

It's like letting the genie out of the bottle.

I try to use NOS parts when I can find them, I open the bag or the box carefully and install the parts and put the NOS packaging in the storage container for that car for future reference.

[David King (kz78hy)]

I will be on vacation so this is it for awhile as we fly out tonight.  4-5 hours today on the LH upper door belt trim.  Today was my first attempt at installing trim material.  The interior guy who made my interior sewed up the piece, but I had to install it to the metal trim.  So cut foam, glue, scissors, razor blade,  and trial & error to fit it and complete.  I'm happy with the result.  I will wait for another day to RH side.

[David King (kz78hy)]

More door trim photos.

[David King (kz78hy)]

I'm back a week from a 2 week vacation to the UK.  I have a 2 Bay garage under my main 3 bay garage, so its like a walk out basement.  In in the spring the approach is steep so getting cars moved around is hard due to soft ground.  I've sold my Pininfarina Eldorado Brougham's and the 59 was stored in this basement garage.  There is also a lift which had my Studebaker on it.  The 59 EB has been sold for some time, just waiting for the ground/weather to cooperate.  On Tuesday it was possible to drive the Studebaker out and up to the top floor, move the lift, and drag the 59 out and up the hill so it can be shipped.  I cleaned the garage a little, repositioned the lift and yesterday I drove the 55 down and parked on the lift.  It will be finished here. 

General sorting of parts, still missing all kinds of stuff which is driving me nuts and prepping a few other things as I find them.  The fender moldings were ready for pick up at the chrome shop so I got those on Tuesday and installed over the next 2 days.  Used the NOS retainers, it is nice to work with quality parts.  Two different packages of parts, one older than the other.  In the older version, there was no rubber  insulator on the washered nuts, like the pull-off part.  The newer package had the same nuts with a rubber insulator attached, same part numbers on both packages.

[David King (kz78hy)]

More photos, trim and car move to lower shop.