1974 Cadillac Sedan de Ville: Vivid in Victorian Amber Firemist

Klockau-Classics-Firemist-De-Ville-Lead
Thomas Klockau

If you’ve been following my posts here the last few years, you know that I’ll occasionally throw in a BMW 2800CS or a Porsche 356 or Vega every now and then, but I always, always come back to the 1970s American land yachts I love so dearly. While many in the ’70s were disdaining how massive and fuel-guzzling the new Cadillacs, Lincolns, and Imperials were getting, I see them as their marketeers likely saw them: sumptuous, mind-bogglingly roomy, and totally awesome.

Thomas Klockau

The American favoritism towards long, low, and wide was still alive and well when the 1974 Cadillacs debuted in Cadillac showrooms on September 16, 1973. The usual assortment of Caddys, naturally all full size, included the base model Calais two-door coupe and four-door sedan, flossier Coupe and Sedan de Villes, top-of-the-line “owner driven” Fleetwood Brougham (with d’Elegance and Talisman packages available for even more blatant Broughamage), the swank personal-lux Eldorado coupe and convertible, and last but most certainly not least, the Series 75 Sedan and Limousine, the only factory-built limousines in production.

Thomas Klockau

But while the extra-fancy models got all the glory, it was really the Coupe de Ville and Sedan de Ville that kept Cadillac in gravy. Fancier than the rather-plain Calais series, but less expensive (please don’t call them cheap) than the Fleetwoods and Eldorados, the de Villes were “just right” for many luxury car buyers.

Thomas Klockau

In 1974, Cadillacs were mildly but still noticeably restyled, incorporating the new 5-mph rear bumper that was required on all new ’74s sold in the U.S. Inside, a new instrument panel was prominent, with the expected new colors and fabrics. There was no beige or dark gray, only color choices. No sirree, Bob! Want green, blue, red, white, or amber (as shown here)? No problem!

Thomas Klockau

One cool feature, at least to me, was that all 1974 Caddys had a brushed-metal, silver-hued gauge cluster. It was a one-year-only feature, though later Buicks had them several years in a row. I always liked that.

Thomas Klockau

One thing the new 5-mph rear bumpers did was make Cadillacs look even longer, not that the ’73s were skimpy. The 1974 Sedan de Ville was 230.7 inches long, with a 130-inch wheelbase. Curb weight was 5032 pounds.

Thomas Klockau

As the middle-tier Cadillac, these were pricey but not too bank busting—for a Caddy, anyway. The ’74 Sedan de Ville had a base price of $8100 ($48,083 today), and 60,419 were produced for the model year. Its sibling, the Coupe de Ville, was far more popular, as coupes ruled the roost for the most part in the ’70s. A total of 112,201 Coupe de Villes were made and were slightly less expensive at $7867 ($46,700) a pop.

Thomas Klockau

Of course, that was before options were added. Cadillacs came well equipped, but as you’d expect there was a long list of extras for people so inclined. As a Cadillac, however, there were plenty of standard features, including Dual Comfort front seats, digital clock, cornering lamps, power windows, simulated distressed pecan wood-grain vinyl trim in interiors, variable ratio power steering, Turbo Hydra-Matic automatic transmission, and the 472-cubic-inch Cadillac V-8, which in ’74 produced 205 horsepower at 4,000 rpm and breathed through a four-barrel carburetor.

GM

But what about extras? Gadgets, gizmos, and the like? Oh, there were plenty. As the brochure extolled, “Cadillac offers an inviting array of luxury features, equipment, and accessories you can order to individualize the Cadillac of your choice …”

GM

Things like a stereo radio with built-in 8-track player, an electric sunroof, turbine-vaned wheel discs, Twilight Sentinel, tilt/telescope steering wheel and Track Master, an early version of skid-controlled braking. If that wasn’t enough, you could get the expected leather interior (standard only on the Eldorado Convertible), a heavy-duty trailering package, Firemist paint, lamp monitors, and a security system.

Thomas Klockau

I could go on about how the gas crisis in late 1973 brought a sudden shift in the minds of a lot of people to go smaller and was responsible for Cadillac’s resulting shrinkage for 1977. But I really dislike jumping on the oil crisis schtick and loathe the “Malaise” terms bandied about by bloggers who should know better. But suffice it to say that Cadillac sales did take a hit.

Thomas Klockau

While 1973 sales tallied up to 267,787, the ’74 results were assuredly lower, to the tune of 242,330 Cadillacs built for model year. Not necessarily devastating, but a downward trend is a downward trend. But after a recession in ’75, the national economy bounced back and GM made a lot of hay in 1976 with everything from the Impala taxicab-grade sedans all the way to the vaunted “last convertible” 1976 Eldorado.

Thomas Klockau

I spotted this remarkably nice example at the annual Trains, Planes, and Automobiles car show in historic downtown Geneseo, Illinois, in September 2016—just a stone’s throw from my favorite restaurant wihin a 50-mile radius, The Cellar. It’s always a terrific show and brings a ton of people into the small town to gawk at the classics.

Thomas Klockau

There was some debate as to the color of this car. Cadillac had a vast assortment of wonderful colors in 1974, and there were no less than THREE orange hues available: Mandarin Orange, Andes Copper, and Victorian Amber Firemist. After some debate on Facebook at the time, I posted this car on my page, and Brougham guru and pal Dave Smith confirmed it was Victorian Amber Firemist.

Thomas Klockau

The Cadillac Firemist colors were extra sparkly and really nice, so nice that if you selected a Firemist color for your new 1974 Cadillac, it ran you an extra $132 on the bottom line. But what the heck! Life is short, youth is fleeting, and you might as well get exactly what you want, am I right?

Thomas Klockau

This car was just like new, and I loved the Mardi Gras striped velour interior. It’s soooo 1974. And so much more lush and impressive than many alleged luxury cars in 2023.

Thomas Klockau

Manufacturers take note: Not everyone thinks black leather is the bee’s knees. Injecting some color into your life can be most beneficial. And whoever ordered this ’74 SDV definitely took that into account. As the ’74 Cadillac brochure said of the Sedan de Ville, it was “a perennial favorite.”

Thomas Klockau

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Comments

    I would have this, if only to tell the restaurant valet as I departed, “Mine’s the Cadillac. The orange Cadillac.”

    Great line. Like “Bond… James Bond.”
    I’m pretty sure that the valet would have remembered the car coming in.

    I’ve got a 73 caddy Deville four door hardtop..triple white..right hand drive. Drives great, nice and big just the way I like it.. wouldn’t down size ever..love that it doesn’t have a B pillar..new cars lack looks and variety of colours and they’re boring all Round ..also I have to add.new car seats are so hard on the body unlike the old cars that had Springs..

    I may be in the minority on this, but I still think vinyl roofs look great.
    ‘Had a gloss black ’70 Coupe de Ville with a white vinyl roof and a white leather interior. Perfect.

    I appreciate big cars. I agree with many points in this article (i.e., dislike the “malaise” term, wish colour interiors would come back on attainable vehicles, etc.).

    1974 Cadillac does some things well, some details not to my eye:

    -one of the better integrations of the big bumpers
    -I prefer the 70 or 76 Caddy front end to this era
    -don’t like that steering wheel
    -I’m in the no vinyl top camp (with the possible exception of the 69 Thunderbird 4 door because that cut line is problematic…)

    Hello. Thank you for that great story. You are so right. Cadillacs were the sign of Luxury (no longer the case ) also I agree with your comment to manufactures, as today’s new cars need some spice with more interior taste and color combination. New cars have become boring. Thanks again. I owned a 1974 Coupe De Ville. Beautiful car.

    My dad was an Oldsmobile man (speaking of land yachts) but my best friend who lived across the street had a dad who always drove Sedan de Villes. (Both our moms drove station wagons – mine Olds, theirs always Buicks, and if you learned to parallel park in one of those you don’t need the self parking gizmo today) I remember he got a 74 model but as both his kids were away at college – Tim and I were both younger sons – he plopped for the sportier Coupe de Ville and I remember joking that “next they’ll be turning your room into a study or something.” The Arab oil embargo didn’t affect the 74s at first because it came in October of 73 and in those days the next years models always came out at the beginning of September. Mr P got a new 74 Coupe and dad, who also traded in every three years got his 98 sedan but being a skinflint dad went with a new but suddenly old 73 model the weekend before Labor Day cuz the dealer always gave a good deal to clear the old models out. Of course if you’re old enough to remember that era you know middle class families traded in every 3 or maybe 4 at most years.

    Had a 56, 59, 70, 75, 79, 88, 91, 94, 06, 08, 11, and now 2016. Still have the 59 Sedan Deville. Most were coupes, 88 and 94 Fleetwoods, the newest DTSs and an XTS. Don’t know that I’d buy another new one, I’d go get another 75 or another 94 Fleetwood, great car

    If Cadillac could do it over again, I would have liked to see them give up sales (which would have gone to Olds/Buick anyway) and just up the price to cover more standard equipment and more exclusivity. The early/mid 70s were just too much about chasing volume and they should have been upping margins. Oh well, I still like them better than anything that arrived on a boat.

    We have the 77 Sedan deVille..30000 miles, ranchers church car..loaded, white leather. The 85mph speedometer bothers me but love the rest. Even the 8 Track. 🙂

    Oh, to have comfortable seats in cars again. Love the American land yachts. I like the vinyl tops. Cars had character and you could tell what kind of car it was without trying to find the emblem or name on the car.
    Enjoy your articles.

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