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Labour of love: 1962 Cadillac Coupe de Ville

23 May, 2018

 

 

Bruce Haye from Ace Panel and Paint in Whitianga purchased this 1962 Cadillac Coupe de Ville from the original importer of the car, who had rolled it down his driveway and crashed it into a massive rock. After assessing the damage, Bruce provided the owner with a price to repair the car, but, as it was outside their budget to carry out the necessary repairs, they offered the car to Bruce. 

A 1962 Cadillac wasn’t really Bruce’s cup of tea, but he thought, what the hell, and bought the car anyway and proceeded to restore it. After completely stripping the paint and body filler out of the car, what was left was indeed daunting. The car looked as if it had been driven down a narrow alleyway — the middle swage down the side of the car was non-existent, as it had been completely filled with body filler. Then there were the usual American quick-fix repair jobs to contend with; these ‘fixes’ included drilling holes and using a slide hammer to pull the dents out through them.

“The car looked as if it had been driven down a narrow alleyway — the middle swage down the side of the car was non-existent, as it had been completely filled with body filler.”

 

 

Bruce also discovered that the original 390ci (6.4-litre) V8 engine had seen better days, and wondered how it even ran at all. A closer inspection revealed one missing cam lobe and massive lips on the bores, which meant that the engine would need to be totally rebuilt.
Bruce decided it was best to retire the old Caddy motor to the back of the workshop and fit a Chevrolet 454ci (7.4-litre) engine in its place. He was initially concerned about the fuel consumption, but he needn’t have worried, because the high gearing in the differential resulted in reasonable economy, much the same as his old petrol-powered Mazda B2600 ute. 

The Cadillac’s restoration has taken about three years of hard labour, according to Bruce. He’s actually lost count of the hours taken to hammer out the swage lines down the side of the car. Fortunately, there wasn’t a lot of rust to contend with, which would have made the restoration non viable for Bruce, as he was doing all the repairs himself. Choosing the colour was quite a time-consuming process, but eventually he chose a custom-made gold from Sikkens that doesn’t look mustard or green from different angles.

The final result is a comfortable car that Bruce enjoys driving — and it performs surprisingly well for a car almost 6m long. 

Luxury by design

15 January, 2026

How do you define luxury? To some it is being blinded with all manner of technological wizardry, from massaging heated seats to being able to activate everything with your voice, be it the driver’s side window or the next track on Spotify. To others, the most exorbitant price tag will dictate how luxurious a car is.
For me, true automotive luxury comes from being transported in unparalleled comfort, refinement, and smoothness of power under complete control. Forget millions of technological toys; if one can be transported here and there without the sensation of moving at all, that is luxury — something that is perfectly encapsulated by the original Lexus LS400. It was the first truly global luxury car from Toyota, and one that made the big luxury brands take notice.

NZ Classic Car magazine, January/February 2026 issue 403, on sale now

15 December, 2025

Morris’ ground-breaking, world-beating, Minor
It was Britain’s biggest small car, and it got Britain mobile again.       Morris Motors celebrated its millionth Minor in December 1960, a car that defined the British motor industry, and was in production for 10 years alongside the iconic Mini of 1959.
Whakatane dentist John Twaddle has a passion for Morris Minors going back to 1982, and he still has his first example. There are now three ‘Morries’ in his garage. One, however, is quite special, a rare ‘Minor-Million’. 
One of just 350 made commemorating the millionth Morris Minor produced, the first British car to hit a million units, the well-rounded little Brit’ would end production in 1971with a tally of over 1.6 million units.
John finished his Minor Million six years ago, resplendent in lilac, its official factory colour. He calls it his ‘Minor Resurrection’, and it has won numerous awards.
This summer edition also comes with our annual FREE classic car calendar, a must for every garage wall.
Every issue comes with our FREE huge wall poster; this issue, our poster is of a couple of garage mates, a 1957 Ford Ranchero and a 1968 Lincoln Continental.