Then, things got somewhat hairy. The motorway we leaped on turned out to be crowed with countryside-bound weekend warriors. A few things happened: The second-most-frightening came in the form of those gawking at the car as they drove by, slowly listing into my lane and getting dangerously close to my beautiful metallic sky-blue classic.
The most terrifying aspect was the brakes, or the lack thereof. On a few occasions, I brought the car up to somewhere between 65 and 75 mph (the needle wiggles back and forth massively). The one time I looked up at the sky to thank the gods of old American cars for the Caddy, the line of automobiles ahead of me was suddenly on full stop.
Holy sharts! I was on the boosted 4-wheel drum brakes like Kirstie Alley on a 2-gallon tub of ice cream! The Caddy came to a halt, eventually, but not before I turned eight shades of white and lost a pair of lives. Lesson learned: keep my distance.
As you would expect, the DeVille roams the earth as though on a cloud. You've most likely heard of how floaty many of the older cars are and were, and you'd be right to assume that this applies to the Cadillac. However, this DeVille hovered about with a textured clunkiness that is far more interesting than it sounds. As far as handling is concerned, I fully expected to have to hang off the windshield frame when going around a bend, but such was not the case. Obviously, comfortable cruising and navigating leisurely are what this car excels at.
The three-speed, Turbo-Hydramatic transmission worked surprisingly seamlessly. I honestly could not tell when the shifts occurred. The 'box would refuse to downshift from 3rd to 2nd at any speed above 40 mph. Therefore, passing manoeuvres were laboured, but in that case I was the problem, not the car. The Caddy promotes soothing wheel time. I needed to chillax.
Thankfully, the Caddy's cabin is the perfect place to unwind. It is impressively cozy, but not in a snug way. Ten people can squeeze in on the enormous benches, and another nine bodies can slide into the trunk; who needs an SUV? Seriously, the two rows could accommodate six passengers with ease.
The driving position is surprisingly good as this Caddy has a tilt and – wait for it – a telescopic steering wheel. The seats are decent and the audio system is pointless as all I want to hear is the 429 breathing in through the huge air bowl and out through the subtle dual-exhaust pipes.
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| The second-most-frightening came in the form of those gawking at the car as they drove by, slowly listing into my lane and getting dangerously close to my beautiful metallic sky-blue classic. (Photo: Mathieu St-Pierre/Auto123.com) |
The most terrifying aspect was the brakes, or the lack thereof. On a few occasions, I brought the car up to somewhere between 65 and 75 mph (the needle wiggles back and forth massively). The one time I looked up at the sky to thank the gods of old American cars for the Caddy, the line of automobiles ahead of me was suddenly on full stop.
Holy sharts! I was on the boosted 4-wheel drum brakes like Kirstie Alley on a 2-gallon tub of ice cream! The Caddy came to a halt, eventually, but not before I turned eight shades of white and lost a pair of lives. Lesson learned: keep my distance.
As you would expect, the DeVille roams the earth as though on a cloud. You've most likely heard of how floaty many of the older cars are and were, and you'd be right to assume that this applies to the Cadillac. However, this DeVille hovered about with a textured clunkiness that is far more interesting than it sounds. As far as handling is concerned, I fully expected to have to hang off the windshield frame when going around a bend, but such was not the case. Obviously, comfortable cruising and navigating leisurely are what this car excels at.
The three-speed, Turbo-Hydramatic transmission worked surprisingly seamlessly. I honestly could not tell when the shifts occurred. The 'box would refuse to downshift from 3rd to 2nd at any speed above 40 mph. Therefore, passing manoeuvres were laboured, but in that case I was the problem, not the car. The Caddy promotes soothing wheel time. I needed to chillax.
Thankfully, the Caddy's cabin is the perfect place to unwind. It is impressively cozy, but not in a snug way. Ten people can squeeze in on the enormous benches, and another nine bodies can slide into the trunk; who needs an SUV? Seriously, the two rows could accommodate six passengers with ease.
The driving position is surprisingly good as this Caddy has a tilt and – wait for it – a telescopic steering wheel. The seats are decent and the audio system is pointless as all I want to hear is the 429 breathing in through the huge air bowl and out through the subtle dual-exhaust pipes.
 |
| The Caddy's cabin is impressively cozy, but not in a snug way. (Photo: Mathieu St-Pierre/Auto123.com) |