My 1958 Coupe was purchased on October 10, 2000.  It was the culmination of a year-long-plus search that started originally with a quest for a 1953 Cadillac Coupe.  A few ‘53’s were found; they were either over-priced or in poor condition.  After a little further research I included 1952’s in my search realizing that a ’52 could also be equipped with Power Steering (an absolute must for me).  My “expanded” search continued to be fruitless, so I then expanded to ‘54-‘56 and quickly to 1957 & 1958.  I quickly found a number of very nice ’57 and ‘58 cars to look at.

The first time I saw my ’58 it immediately beckoned me.  Paint was good, chrome was great and the interior was excellent. Nothing to do cosmetically!  Mechanically, well that was another story.  It had been sitting for about 8 years with very little use.  Brake work, tune up, and miscellaneous mechanical work was needed.  After making an initial offer and having it rejected I looked at 2 other cars - A beautifully restored Pink ’57 Series 62 Coupe and a restored ’58 Cadillac Eldorado Seville.  The ’57 exhibited some electrical “gremlins” that scared me, especially considering the asking price.  The Eldorado Seville was finished in a color combination that I did not include in my palette of “first choice colors” and the interior was not restored to the level of the asking price. 

After looking at these two cars I decided to take a second look at my current ’58.  After a little further negotiation I decided to buy the car and have the mechanical work done.  After spending most of the winter months with my mechanic, the ’58 was finally done.  New tires, steering box, rebuilt carburetor, tune up, front end, shocks, battery, brakes, Master cylinder, etc., etc., etc.  My ’58 runs (and stops) smartly down the boulevard.  The car is finished in “Daphne Blue” and was repainted in its original color in the late 1980’s.  The interior is finished in Turquoise “Elascofab” vinyl and Black Moroccan Cloth.  This is a numbers matching car and has traveled a little over 92,000 miles since new.  The interior, with the exception of the carpeting, is original and in exceedingly fine condition.  In addition to all of the mechanical work, I treated Daphne to a new trunk kit from Jenkins Interiors.  Now, when looking this car over it’s hard to tell it’s not 1958 all over again!