If you have a good memory, you might recall back in 2007 when rapper Snoop Dogg rode around in a 1966 Cadillac Deville Convertible for his tour as well as on the stage of that year’s MTV Music Awards. Lovingly called the Snoopdeville with airbrushed graphics on the quarter panels declaring it as such, the classic is a bit of a legend.
A sheriff’s office just bought a 1981 Camaro to use as a patrol car.
Imagine the surprise when car YouTuber Hard Up Garage found the classic Caddie recently in a field with crash damage and all kinds of patina. Normally, he might pass up such a ride as it would require more work than it’s worth, although not everyone would feel that way.
But, when you take into account the celebrity connection and how this classic was featured prominently, that was enough to motivate a full restoration.
The goal has been to present the restored ’66 Deville to Snoop Dogg in Paris during the Olympics. But as you might know from restoring cars yourself, once you get into a big project like this there are always hiccups.
As can be expected of a car that’s sat in the field, exposed to the elements for years, and is of this vintage, there are rust issues. They have to remove sections of the Caddie, ordering replacement parts from the US (they’re in the UK) and fabricating some components.
The interior is absolutely disgusting, with mold or something similar to it growing on the seats. Cleaning it up presents challenges.
As they tear further into the ride, they find more problems. The engine won’t fire up. The hydraulics won’t function. Then an electric fault causes a fire as they’re scrambling to get the vehicle ready to take a ferry to France. It’s pretty much a nightmare situation with everything coming down to the wire.
On top of it all, there’s been some debate about whether or not this specific Caddie was in fact used by Snoop Dogg. This sort of thing is common when it comes to establishing the veracity of celebrity-owned classics, but it added to the stress of the restoration process.
In the video, it stops short of their getting the Cadillac on the ferry, so you don’t find out yet if the mission was even a success. But there’s plenty of drama. Hopefully Snoop Dogg gets to behold his old ride and approves of the results.
Image via Hard up garage/YouTube
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