Barn Finder Lucks Into Factory-Fresh '59 Cadillac After 20 Years On Blocks

There is little else more evocative for a gearhead than stumbling across a true, untouched for years barn find. That's exactly what happened to Sarah, though, who spent weeks finalising the deal on her dream car earlier this year. Not happy to settle for any old '59 Caddy, she had been waiting for the correct example to present itself, and when this factory black Coupe De Ville was spotted up for sale, she knew the right one had been found.

It's a family-owned new car, offered for sale by the granddaughter of the original owner. The good news doesn't stop there either, as it's also been residing in California its whole life, and that dry climate has helped preserve the Caddy's metalwork perfectly over the years. When the second owner, the original owner's son, passed around 20 years ago, the Coupe DeVille was stashed away on blocks, hidden from the elements in a large, dry barn. While it's great to see that this storage has kept the '59 Cadillac safe, it really deserves to be put back on the road and given a new lease of life. Fortunately, that's exactly what the new owner plans to do, and recommissioning work has already begun.

As of now, the finned icon has barely been in its new home for a week, but the first stages of revival have already begun. The 390ci V8 under the hood has rumbled back into life, albeit briefly and with an eyebrow-singeing backfire, plus some of the sleeping Caddy's electrical systems have also been awakened. Reviving an all-original car like this is not something to rush into; after all, they're only original once. It certainly looks as if this '59 has found the right custodian to coax it back into life, though. 

In the 1950s, owning a Cadillac really meant something. The automaker sat right at the top of GM's ladder of brands, and the Coupe DeVille was just about the finest model offered at the time. Under the hood of Sarah's example sits a 390ci V8 lump, capable of churning out 325 horsepower and 430 pound-feet of torque, although some TLC is required before those horses will be free of their stables just yet.

Regardless of how powerful the 66-year-old engine is, the really impressive feature of this Coupe DeVille is the way it looks. It's one of our favorite Cadillac land yachts of all time, sitting at a whopping 225 inches in length, sports those striking rear fins, bullet-style rear lamps, and that oh-so-imposing chrome front grille. It's a cliché, but they sure don't build them like this anymore. In total, just 21,924 were built, and far fewer survive to this day.

That can make getting hold of one, particularly a well-preserved all-original example like Sarah's, quite a tricky task in 2025, and the prices commanded reflect this. Hagerty pegs pristine examples at just shy of $60,000, while more potent 345-HP models will fetch closer to $70,000. Sure, that's enough to head out and buy a brand-new Cadillac, but that's not really the point. Cadillac isn't making any more '59 Coupe DeVilles, and being presented with the challenge of reviving and preserving a beautiful example like this is no doubt countless times more rewarding than simply splashing out on a new model for Sarah. The journey of returning this American jewel to the roads will no doubt be a long one, but an experience to treasure nonetheless.