I just acquired a 1973 Cadillac Eldorado with only 42000 original miles on
its original GM 501 c.i. engine.  The car was originally owned by my
Grandmother who never drove it, it was inherited by my father who never
drove it, and now has been passed on to me.  I think the poor thing has
spent the majority of its existence as "yard art" getting driven just enough
to relocate every 6 years or so.  As far as I can tell the only problems
with this car are ones arising from neglect.  I've had it for about 3 weeks
now and have been doing just minor repairs, (vacuum hoses, alternator, fuel
pump, tune-up etc.)  and already the engine has gone from sounding like it
was running on 5 cylinders to purring like a kitten.  Brakes work, air blows
cold & she cruises down the freeway at 70 mph+  without strain.  The car is
going to need a lot of TLC to the paint and interior but mechanically it is
sound.  Unfortunately there isn't much happing on the Cadillac news group so
I'm probably going to be coming here when I need some help.  I still have
the 88GT vert, which is rapidly closing on a quarter of a million miles but
the Cad is probably going to be the focus of my car projects for the next
few months.