Largest Passenger Cars: The 1974-76 Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham Was Huuuuuge!

You get a really great appreciation of just how big these cars were by helping your friend, the amateur body man, re-install and align the hood.

My sister Shannon inherited our great-aunt Ruth’s 1975 Cadillac Fleetwood. It had beautiful thick red leather seats. It drove so smooth!

Adam, the whole family was returning home from an early 1976 Bicentennial event held at the Naval Air Station. I talked dad into stopping by the Cadillac dealership so I could collect the large coffee table sized showroom brochure. On display was the most beautiful 1976 Fleetwood Brougham D'Elegance I've ever seen. Crystal Blue Firemist Metallic with Midnight Blue Metallic vinyl roof and a Midnight Blue Velour interior. Optional Wire Wheel Covers and Wide Whitewall Tires complemented the Brougham. All it needed was an American Flag on the antenna.

The "B" pillar looks so right on this. Wouldn't want it any other way.

I own a 1976 Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham. The best riding car ever built. There are lights in the tailfins that illuminate when the lights are turned on. It's a shame that America no longer makes a long-distance highway cruiser. I love mine! The rear footrests are especially nice if the driver has to make a sudden stop. The rear passenger can use the footrest to keep from sliding forward. About the trunk. I can fit a 10-speed bike in the back of mine and close the lid. We won't mention gas mileage. We just won't go there. OMG! LOLOL

My aunt rented the upstairs of a two family house from 73 to 81. The home owner, a lady about 70 lived downstairs. As a little kid, I didn't know what was in the garage until one day, I was visiting and heard the automatic garage door opening. I looked out the window to see a huge white Cadillac with it's sunroof open, pulling up the driveway into the garage. I ran downstairs as the trunk was opened and offered to help bring in the groceries. I studied and admired that magnificent automobile which turned out to be a 76 Fleetwood Talisman, bright gleaming white with that amazingly plush interior in black. Car had everything, a moonroof, a rotary dial dealer installed telephone, airbags and fuel injection. She still had it when my aunt moved and bought her own house in 81. I never forgot that Cadillac Masterpiece, it was still clean and on the road when the lady quit driving in the early 90s, she must have been pushing 90 herself. I would suspect it still survives out there somewhere. I regret not trying to buy it.

Some drivers don't appreciate the "Sound of Power" associated with opening the secondaries on a 4-barrel carb.

My 1974 Fleetwood Brougham d'Elegance was the smoothest-riding, most refined car I will probably ever own. Fun note: the large spring-loaded hood ornament would actually lean back noticeably at speeds approaching three digits. Clarifications: The rear vertical element does contain a bulb visible from both outboard (for the required side marker) and inboard. The Calais/de Ville wheelbase was 130.0. The 500 was Eldorado-only until 1975. And - purely conjecture - I believe the panel between the front and back doors for 1971-72 was to allow the front doors to be a common part across all the four-door models.

Great memories! My mom had a 1976 Brougham, yellow and white with a white leather interior. it was her daily commuter for several years, 200 miles a day, 5 days a week. It was a great highway car.

A friend’s father had a ‘76 Fleetwood Brougham when we were growing up. What a beauty and a beast!

Oh man, I remember these from when I was a teenager and they were massive. That's where I got my love for these boats from.

I have always loved big cars and therefore have always felt the mid to late 70’s was the epitome of the automobile! There were so many attractive and BIG vehicles to choose from and uncompromising comfort was king unlike todays modern vehicles. I was born in 1984 and so wish I had been driving during this era!

Wish these would make a comeback as an alternative to SUVs. The lower slung look is a lot more stylish

Adam, you are a madman…lol…I love seeing a new video drop so regularly, keep em coming! The recent oddball engines were especially cool

What a beautiful color and interior on this car! Very '70s. And it is equipped with just so many unique features that made it a Cadillac.

My elderly in-laws owned the Talisman version. Not able to see well at night, they let me do all of the driving as if it were my own. But, I much preferred the back seat which was a nice place to be. It was superlative. Solid, stately, the Cadillac drove as it was rails, and the engine had plenty of power. Handling wasn't bad for a car its size. The only thing I worried about was the auto headlight dimmer switch would get very hot, but also on all of the Cadillacs that had the option.

Now this is a real car! Big and beautiful. Having done a video on the Seville, have you thought about one on the Lincoln Granada, err I mean Versailles? That would be interesting to see.

133" wheelbase ain't that bad compared to 4 door pick up trucks. Not a Cadillac guy, but love this piece. It probably has everything I need in a passenger car. I would drive it regularly.

I don't remember my 73 fleetwood being that much "shorter", but loved the curved rear bumper and proper tail lamps

The purpose of that smaller tube coming down from the air cleaner was to pull in air that was heated by the exhaust manifold. There was a metal plate over the manifold, air came in from underneath, passed over the hot manifold then up to the cleaner and into the carb. This helped the car warm up faster I think as the choke was able to slowly close and it would help the mpg. This system included a door in the air cleaner that would shut off the outside air completely and only take in this warm air till it warmed up. They called it "auto thermac" Lots of GMs had this. My 74 Delta 88 that I drove in high school had it but many mechanics didn't think it was important and would lose it or leave it off when putting things together after service so it went missing on many cars. The car still ran ok but took longer to warm up since it was sucking in cold air from the front.