Minneapolis Street Sighting: Cadillac Eldorado

I usually pass on Cadillacs these days; actually, I lie. I still shoot them, but it takes quite a car to get me to notice. At first, I was shooting anything I deemed old or classic, be it rare or not. This seems to be the case here, as I used to shoot any and every Eldorado of this vintage I dare see. I've probably blogged at least five of these by now, and to be honest, I don't shoot them anymore. Hell, you'd be hard-pressed to get me to take a second glance at these now. With a lethargic V8 an front-wheel-drive, this this is definitely a product of the emissions-choked 1980s; and it shows. These aren't collectible, and they're not really a favorite on any Cadillac enthusiasts must-own list. Stodgy, iffy build quality, and a understeer does not a Cadillac make--well it does if you're familiar with most of the brands' offerings from 1978 to about 2003.

I usually try to not shoot custom cars, but some cannot be helped; they're either too awesome to pass up, but sometimes, the bad sides of automotive customization rear their ugly heads. Yesterday, I brought readers a fantastically ugly Ford pickup, and today, my example of Cadillac's least pretty Eldorado is no different. On the bright side, at least this once-luxurious barge isn't pretending to be a race car of any sorts.

Where do I start with this? First off, I thought the whole mural trend died out in about 199, and honestly it probably did; this poor Eldorado looks almost abandoned--and it probably is. The paint-job I'm sure costs loads of money when it was new. The detailing is extremely intricate, but unfortunately age hasn't been kind to it; the shine or candiness has all but disappeared, leaving extreme fading around the text and "Lowrider" logo; I'm almost wondering if this car was in Lowrider magazine when it was a fresh build. It certainly meets all the criteria: small diameter reverse wire wheels, gaudy-but-showcar paintjob, and gold-plated trim.

Cars like this leave me torn; on one hand, I despise them and think they're mostly garbage, and on the other side, they're at least better than donks. Way better. At least these things aren't jacked up so high they ride higher then pickup trucks. Also, these things for the most part, are done fairly tastefully by "ghetto" standards. I almost like this one. Almost. My love for this generation of Eldorado is dying rapidly, but it's nice to know that not all of them are red, white, or black with stock wire hubcaps an church grilles.

I would save this one, but it's too far gone at this point; at least there are plenty of others out there should I start caring about this bodystyle. As far is this one goes, its best days are clearly far behind it.