1972 Fleetwood 75. Sedan or Limosine?

[Larry F]

What is the difference between a 1972 Fleetwood 75 sedan and limosine? I was looking at a price guide and noticed that these two were listed under "Fleetwood 75". I know of one for sale and dont know which it would be. Thanks.

[Chad Oolman, #13269]

A Fleetwood 75 Sedan does not have a glass division window behind the drivers seat.  A Fleetwood 75 Limousine does have a division window.  Unfortunately, the limousines have VERY cramped leg room in front, the division window takes away a lot of space from the driver.

The division window cars came with black leather on the front seat and black dash and door panels up front, the rear was offered in cloth only, usually gray, blue or black.  The sedans had the same color interior all the way through.

Typically the limousines had seperate heating, air conditioning and radio controls for the rear, while the sedan usually did not.  But I have seen some sedans with the rear contols.

Also, the limousines had a 3rd key that unlocked one of the rear doors.  That way, the owner of the car could raise the division window, lock the rear doors and only he could get at any valuables left in back, yet the driver could still get to the front seat and trunk.

For the most part, sedans were used as funeral limousines while division window cars were intended for private and corporate use.

Cadillac also offered the option of a closed quarter top, they eliminated the small third window in the rear sail panel, often replacing it with a landau iron.  They also made the rear window small, giving it a closed in, private look.  This option is fairly rare, but beware of rust under that heavily padded roof.

They are very interesting cars, low production numbers, and certainly impressive.  Specific trim pieces can be very hard to locate because of the low numbers.

[Tim Pawl CLC#4383]

Executive Sedan is usually series 75-23, Limosine is Series 75-33,   Depending on year such as 1980  Sedan would be 6DF23 and Limosine would be 6DF33.    1972 sedan is 69723 and limosine is 69733.

[Larry F]

I stopped in the auction yard and looked at the car again today and it doesnt have a divider window and has a fabric front and rear seat. Black exterior/interior. It is locked but it doesnt look like there is any wear in the interior. The exterior is decent. I noticed some cracked paint but still a decent shine. Some pitting on the die-cast exterior door handles. The only rust that I saw was some bubbling (and touched-up rust) around the rear window. Mileage unknown but I would bet it is pretty low judging by the interior.

[Bruce Reynolds # 18992]

Gday Larry,

The bigest problem with any car with a vinyl roof, and especially, the padded vinyl roof is rust.

If you can see rust appearing, then I can nearly guarantee you that there is going to be serious rust at the base of the roof that is just waiting for the chance to rear its ugly head.

You see, the foam padding is a real moisture sponge, and will have been soaking up water for years.   Most metal under the vinyl wasnt rustproofed, and once the ruist starts, the only way to fix it is to remove the vinyl covering, cut-out and replace the affected steel, then replace a new vinyl top cover, after the area has been rustproofed.

I had a 72 Eldorado Coupe and it didnt look too bad around the rear of the rear window, except for a few rust bubbles, but when one fressed on the panel between the end of the vinyl, and the trunk lid, it was loose, all the way across.   Very bad.

Bruce,
The Tassie Devil(le),
60 CDV

[Larry F]

The car has no vinyl top and doesnt appear to have had one judging from the paint. But youre correct about the rust problems that can be encountered. There is always more than I think there is once I start taking them apart.

[Bruce Reynolds # 18992]

Funny, I thought all those 75 series vehicles had the vinyl top to cover the imperfections when the bodies were lengthened during construction in the factory.

I had a Holden Statesman deVille, and where the factory put a plug of sponge rubber in the "C" panel, to stop noise transfer from the trunk, it turned out to be a rustation area on all the cars.

But, once a car is sold, and the first owner has on-sold it, nobody seems to care.

Bruce,
The Tassie Devil(le),
60 CDV

[Johnny]

Funny, I thought all those 75 series vehicles had the vinyl top to cover the imperfections when the bodies were lengthened during construction in the factory.

I had a Holden Statesman deVille, and where the factory put a plug of sponge rubber in the "C" panel, to stop noise transfer from the trunk, it turned out to be a rustation area on all the cars.

But, once a car is sold, and the first owner has on-sold it, nobody seems to care.

Bruce,
The Tassie Devil(le),
60 CDV

Im not 100percent sure, but depending on the year, I dont think the bodies were "lengthened".  Actually the term used is "stretched".  I believe up until the about the mid 80s Cadillac produced series 75 bodies.  Around the time they downsized the line in 1985, they still produced limosine bodies, but they werent what the public wanted in a limosine, so I think it was about this time, that some of the larger coach builders, started taking Fleetwoods and "stretched" them.  I also think in a very short time, these aftermarket stretch limosines were offered by Cadillac.

[Bob Dziewit]

The vinyl tops on the 75s were an option in the mid-70s and an expensive one at that; around $1200.  You could also get it with blinded out rear quarter windows for about $1000 more and with artificial landau irons for another $250.  All of this was factory installed as were the bodies from scratch; not stretched from smaller cars.  Ill keep my triple black 1976 Series 75 sedan.  It makes me feel like a king!  I even designed my future garage to accomodate it ten years before I owned it.

[Johnny]

The vinyl tops on the 75s were an option in the mid-70s and an expensive one at that; around $1200.  You could also get it with blinded out rear quarter windows for about $1000 more and with artificial landau irons for another $250.  All of this was factory installed as were the bodies from scratch; not stretched from smaller cars.  Ill keep my triple black 1976 Series 75 sedan.  It makes me feel like a king!  I even designed my future garage to accomodate it ten years before I owned it.

I have always considered the 74-76 Cadillacs the last of the "big ones" and what a Cadillac stood for as far as size. Not only were they big, but I think they were quite magnificent in looks and style.  I dont think they ever came any bigger and longer then a Series 75, and a 1976 should have special recognition as being the ultimate, "last of the big ones"

[kevin M. Parkinson 20216]

My 1972 Series 75 Sedan never had a vinyl top and it has front and rear AC/Heat.

[Mike #19861]

 The Fleetwood 75 bodies were largely hand built in a separate facility, and then the bodies trucked to the main assembly line to be mated with their chassis.

 With production numbers hovering around the 1500 mark, they could not have been a very profitable venture for Cadillac, but did wonders for their image as most all heads of state, company VIPs and clebrities were chauffeured around in them.

 Its really too bad that Cadillac stopped production of these cars after the aborted run of the unpopular FWD 75s in the mid 80s. I have worked on a few of the "stretch" limos and their craftmanship on some leaves a lot to be desired. Under the panels, there is some really rough fabrication techniques, and the wiring is a nightmare, being all one colour - red.

  Mike

[Larry F]

I looked at the car for a 3rd time and can see no indication that it ever had a vinyl top. My beliefs are that the paint is original. The rust around the rear window is a concern, though. Im sure it would be impossible to repair this without much fabrication. Are any body parts available for this car except for the parts thats interchangable?

[Porter 21919]

I had a few rust throughs under my vinyl top at the bottom/rear and the lower window channel on my 66 CDV, I welded in some new steel patches, no big deal.

I just picked up a 67 CDV sans vinyl top, the leaking rear window damage is all on the inside, under the seat, sail panels, etc. Even the seat upholstery is shot.

[Rusty Shepherd CLC 6397]

Those were really regal automobiles.  During college, I worked part time for the local funeral home, usually driving the family car or coach.  They had a black 1975 75 sedan with navy blue cloth and leather upholstery front and rear for the family car and it went down the road as if it were hovering above the pavement and virtually without road noise. That big 500 cu.in. low compression engine had its work cut out for it, though, propelling 5800 pounds of Cadillac plus seven passengers; merging had to be done very carefully and with plenty of room.

[Bruce Reynolds # 18992]

Larry,

Any rust repairs around the rear window will require a series of "patch Panels" which you will have to fashion out of steel stock, then weld the pieces in place.

The rear window will have to be removed to accomplish this.

I am afraid that the manufacturers of the modern vehicles, built in a lot of "Water traps" when constructing things like "flush fitting" glass, etc.   Most cars of the mid Sixties, onward, especially in the GM range, suffered from this phenomonum.   The "Stick in" windows were the worst culprit.   Drains were just thought not necessary.

I have to weld up some large holes in the rear window frame on my 67 Chev Impala, wqhere the water just used to lay there, and had to evaporate out when it got wet.

Bruce,
The Tassie Devil(le),
60 CDV

[Larry F]

Doesnt appear to be leaking inside, but it looks rough on the outside. Someone has touched it up by painting with a brush at some point. Only rust that I can see(?) on the whole car.

[Porter 21919]

Or known by the manufacturer that it will be prone to rust from moisture.

But as Bruce has reiterated numerous times, once the initial buyer has offloaded the car it is the used car buyers problem.

Which leads me to another issue, designing cars that are not prone to structurally rust out, today we have better rust preventive coatings so that will help, regardless of the design.

The older cars lasted due to the thickness of the steel, the new cars dont have that luxury.

Porter

[Porter 21919]

Best thing to do is remove the rear glass, get down to bare steel, (wire brush, etc.) epoxy prime and repaint to match, reglaze and install the trim.

Check out my vinyl top replacement photos at http://www.modifiedcadillac.org/ TARGET=_blank>http://www.modifiedcadillac.org/

Thank Stampie for the website, he set it up.

Porter

[Jim Tighe]

A decade-or-so ago I had a 72 Fleetwood 75 formal limo with blind rear quarters and the tiny back window, but no landau bows.  The paperwork with the car indicated that the special roof treatment came to somewhere around $2,500, which would have bought an entire small car back then.  I later owned a 76 9-pass. sedan, and can say that I much prefer the sedans to the limos, as the leather front seat with only a little fore-and-aft movement is nowhere nearly as comfortable as the cloth sedan seat with 6-way adjustment.  And its not as tall, either.  To me, the most distinctive trait of these rigs is their half hardtop/half sedan motif, with frames around the windows in the back doors, but none on the front door glasses.  Long ago and far away........