Oh, the things people will park in their barn and just leave to fall into disrepair! It is hard to believe that anyone would let this amazing 1961 Cadillac Eldorado prototype decay in storage. Not only is it a beautiful car, but it is an important part of automotive history. Some of the styling cues featured on this car are still impacting design today. Reader Nadeem K. came across it while surfing craigslist and decided to take a look. After further inspection, he decided he needed to save it. He now has it running and driving, but it needs work to be auto show ready again…

Finding the history and provenance of this Caddy has taken some work, but with the help of the internet and some very knowledgeable Cadillac fans, Nadeem was able to find a little history on it and has confirmed that this is the Cadillacs shown at the 1962 Chicago Auto Show. The previous owner claimed that this one had been owned by golfer Walter Hagen, but other than a Traverse City Golf and Country Club pencil and two golf balls, Nadeem hasn’t been able to make any connection between his Caddy and Hagen. The previous owner also claimed that there was another one of these built and that that one was owned by Bing Crosby, but based on the information Nadeem got from GM this seems unlikely.

After contacting GM, he was finally able to get some information and photos of the car when it was new. A few things have changed since 1961, such as the grill, rear badge, and paint, but it’s otherwise the way Cadillac intended it to be. Nadeem has already fixed a few problem areas, such as damage to the rocker trim, grill, and some of the paint. He plans on preserving as much of the car as possible and restoring that which needs to be to make it safe to drive, but this is a costly and time consuming process, especially with a one-off like this. If finding information for it has been hard, imagine finding parts.

The interior looks fantastic for its age and really only needed a good cleaning. After detailing it and applying some new lacquer to the wood pieces, he has the interior looking like new. It is amazing how well it survived the past 30 years of storage, but it is testament to Cadillac’s build quality. The interior is loaded with unique one-off touches, such as the center console with floor mounted shifter, two spoke steering wheel, custom door panels, leather bucket seats, and ample amounts of aluminum trim.

From what we have read about Nadeem from this thread on JalopyJournal, it sounds like he is the perfect person to be caring for this special car. He has made some great progress since buying it and has even had the joy of showing it at Amelia Island. We wish him the best and we hope he will keep us updated on his progress! Does anyone here know more about the connection between Walter Hagen and this Caddy? It’s the one piece of the puzzle that Nadeem has yet to find.