Buying a '73 Cadillac Eldorado (beater quality). All stock with the 500 cid front wheel drive set-up. Runs and drives smooth and yes it pulls pretty good when the secondaries open up. It was a "grandpa's" car most of its life. Some rust on rockers but not bad overall. 3 digit price is cheap as is but "negotiable" as seller needs the parking space.
I'm thinking big smoky burnouts once in a while, occasional dd in our fabulous winter weather, or very unique ice racer up here. No one has fun with this kind of car anymore but am I nuts for even considering this?
You want us to talk you out of it? 
Buy it already, have some fun. Then pull the driveline and put it in the back of something, like an S10 or some hatchback. Then go ice racing. My 2 cents worth.
Ummm, I'm not getting on an ice track with a 5000 pound gorilla next to me...
Go easy on the burn outs. My father's ate up axles.
mndsm
MegaDork
12/31/15 6:57 p.m.
Why in the hell would we talk you out of that?
Ummm...500 cubic inches of cheap torque monster. Don't expect anybody here to talk you down... 
In reply to drainoil: We don't do that...
92dxman
SuperDork
12/31/15 9:45 p.m.
Wouldn't this be talk you into it?
mndsm wrote:
captdownshift wrote:
In reply to mndsm:
He's new here
Join date says 2012....
I thought he was being ironic.
OP-buy it already!
Don't think of the 8mpg, think of the awesome rear engined monster you will build from the powertrain when the body/frame rusts out the rest of the way. Also 385 ft/lbs at 2400rpm, probably more with some exhaust work.
mndsm wrote:
Why in the hell would we talk you out of that?
Yup. I'm not a Cadillac guy, but you definitely need that!
NickD
Reader
1/2/16 7:08 a.m.
A little bit of info on the 500 Cadillac. One, stock rocker arms, pushrods and connecting rods are marginal beyond 3500rpm. Two, the block and crank on these are damn near indestructible. Spectre Performance's Bonneville streamliner has run over 400mph with twin Cadillac 500s making 1200hp a piece via turbocharging on the stock blocks and cranks. Drag racers have also run eights on the stock bottom end.
Here's the Coupe De Kill for a little bit of inspiration.
drainoil wrote:
Buying a '73 Cadillac Eldorado (beater quality). All stock with the 500 cid front wheel drive set-up. Runs and drives smooth and yes it pulls pretty good when the secondaries open up. It was a "grandpa's" car most of its life. Some rust on rockers but not bad overall. 3 digit price is cheap as is but "negotiable" as seller needs the parking space.
I'm thinking big smoky burnouts once in a while, occasional dd in our fabulous winter weather, or very unique ice racer up here. No one has fun with this kind of car anymore but am I nuts for even considering this?
you do understand that that isn't what we do around here ? right ? you do understand ? 
Don't these have some enormous transmission/transaxle that was used in motorhomes and, just like was said about the crank and block, are damn near bullet proof?...now I'm starting to want one!!!
Needs some box flares and a splitter.
The_Jed wrote:
Don't these have some enormous transmission/transaxle that was used in motorhomes and, just like was said about the crank and block, are damn near bullet proof?...now I'm starting to want one!!!
Trans is a TH425, a TH400 made FWD. Most of the speed parts fit, paying attention to the fact that the guts spin backwards from a normal 400. The 500 engine is also stupid light for its displacement, with an aluminum intake a 500 is the same weight as an all iron SBC
