Rodder's Journal

The two inch chop works nicely with the more restrained '61 tail fins. Cary Howard accomplished the low-ride height with the installation of air bags. Craig Willits gets credit for the black leather upholstery. The front seats were pirated from a '61 El Dorado. Lee Pratt machined the aluminum dash pieces. The comparison photo with Steve Stanford's lowered, but otherwise stock, Cad gives some idea of the work that went into the roof.

The overall goal was to make the car look like it had just rolled through a time warp from the Tridents of Long Beach car show of the '63-'65 era.
Which brings us to the most controversial aspect of the car- the mixing of hard core hot rod parts like the supercharger, and specifically the slicks, with he obvious custom theme. At the car's debut at this year's Oakland Roadster Show, the slicks caused more comment than any other single component of the car. Pat Ganahl told me if he were writing this article, he would have begun by stating "It's all about the slicks." Since he's not, its buried in paragraph 27 or so, but his point is well taken. Ho could the absence of a little tire tread be such a concern? Jimmie stated that he wanted to "shake things up a little with the slicks, and I've succeeded. If the rear tires really offend someone, I'll pop the trunk and show them the street tires I had mounted on another set of Skylark wires."
The reason for the slicks, blower, and big exhaust is to try to replicate the early Sixties California car show era. Cars like Mox Miller's panel painted '58 Impala had blown motors, knock-off magnesium Halibrands, and - yes- slicks. All this performance stuff helped get points at the car shows, and was part and parcel of the time when the more organic chopped Merc and Valley Custom-type cars had faded from the scene, and before muscle cars and mostly silly show-only machines had taken over.
Construction of this Cadillac dragged on, but the 50th Roadster Show became the do-or-die deadline. In a typical last minute thrash, Howard, upholsterer Craig Willits, Roach, and Vaughan put in more than a few late nights. Lee Pratt even flew to Texas to lend a hand with final assembly.
The result, in my opinion, is one of the classiest and prettiest custom cars of recent times. The styling of the '61 Coupe de Ville is in every way Cadillac to start with, but without some of the excess of the '59 and '60. The mild chop top and other modifications only serve to "tighten up" what was already a nice design. Gary Howard deserves considerable praise for the custom bodywork, but even moreso for the absolutely stunning paint job.