VERY RARE 1988 Concept Car for 1989 Debut of Cadillac STS

Cadillac STS 1988 Description

Very Rare 1988 Concept Car for 1989 Debut of the Cadillac STS

"The first 1988 STS's were custom built in June 1988 by Cars and Concepts and announced at the 1988 Detroit Grand Prix. These were available to VIP's within General Motors, the Cadillac Division, some major shareholders and a short list of dignitaries.

"As of 2014, the survivability rate of this 1989 model is at about 3% (approximately 57 remaining) per the NHTSA and Broxterman Auto Survivability Rate Chart - BASRC).

These were produced prior to December 1988 for the 1989 production year and are very rare."

- Wikipedia (search: Cadillac_Seville)

Here is a very rare, modern automobile that is destined to grow in value year-by-year. Built in 1988 to promote the 1989 debut of Cadillac's STS line, this example is noted in Wikipedia (see link below) to be one of only 57 estimated to remain in existence. Some forums count the remaining number as low as 16, though this particular car was not included in that count.

This sale is for an original condition, unrestored 1988 (registered as 1989) Cadillac STS built by GM and then customized in 1988 by Cars and Concepts and presented for sale here on Ebay by its first owner (after the dealer, Dick Gidron, received it as a promotional delivery and drove its first 84 miles). There are less than 96, 00 original miles on the odometer.

* Color: White Diamond

* Full coverage, hand-stitched, Beechwood Leather seats, (still soft, no tears, some wear on driver's seat and steering wheel)

* Genuine burled elm wood interior trim (the trim enhances the side doors. Most of it has noticeable cracks in the otherwise high-gloss, transparent lacquer coating. None is pealing or loose, but it might be advisable to refinish professionally.

* Full functional 12-way power front bucket seats, including functional compressed air lumbar supports

* Touring suspension, styled 15" aluminum wheels (need professional buffing)

* Body side moldings have been replaced with best-match after market, painted to match

* 4.5 Liter V8 DFI engine with 4-speed auto overdrive

* Electronic climate control, AC has been converted from Freon, blows cold

* Delco Bose AM/FM sound system with audio cassette (one channel needs some work)

* Car comes with its original brochure, gold key, Gold Key audio cassette with unbroken plastic seal, Delco Bose audio demonstration and head cleaning cassette, third party product literature, original dealer invoice, original window sticker (never applied),

With the exception of some very small paint damages, a tiny ding here and there (easily removed by a Dent Doctor), and typical weathering, the bodywork is excellent. The rear trunk lid had to be repainted due to an unusual case of paint crazing that appeared only on the trunk lid. Only one body repair in lifetime, due to a scraped driver-front fender. The passenger mirror escutcheon is a bit banged up (mirror caught garage door once).

Note: Car has been sitting idle for 12 months and may need a good tune-up. Seller may do this before showing or sell as-is depending on timing and circumstances of sale. Driver's may take car for short ride with proof of insurance coverage. Car is not currently insured, but it is inspected.

Excerpt from Wikipedia entry:

The big news for 1988 was the introduction of the Seville Touring Sedan which came equipped with GM's FE2 Touring Suspension. It featured special 15 inch alloy wheels, special springs, rear sway bar, and a special 15.6:1 steering ratio for enhanced handling, a grille mounted Cadillac emblem, special cloisonné trunk lock cover, and a unique four-place interior. 1988 Seville Touring Sedan production totaled 1, 99 units. The first 1988 STS's were custom built in June 1988 by Cars and Concepts and announced at the 1988 Detroit Grand Prix. These were available to VIP's within General Motors, the Cadillac Division, some major shareholders and a short list of dignitaries. A special label was affixed to the lower corner of the driver-side front door by Cars and Concepts identifying it as one of the original STS's. 2014 Survivability rate*: 14% (210 remaining).

For 1989, the first "production" STS's were sold to the public as a "Limited Edition" with an option code of YP6. Features from the initial concept 1988 model were carried over to the 1989 LE production model year with the addition of a retuned European-feel suspension package for more precise steering control and firmer feel of the road. The features of the STS over the standard Seville included hand-stitched beechwood ultrasoft leather seats, anti-lock braking, touring suspension, a 3.3:1 drive ratio; 15-inch cast aluminum alloy wheels and Goodyear Eagle GT4 blackwall tires. Additional STS features: Grille with flush-mounted wreath-and-crest, modified driver's front fender with the cornering light moved to the front fascia and headlight monitors removed, matching body color front lower airdam and bodyside moldings, matte black export license pocket with bright bead, matte black front bumper impact pads and rear bumper guard vertical inserts, matching body color outside rearview mirrors with black patch, modified (from Eldorado) rear reflexes (moved to the bumper), modified export tail lamps with three-color European-style lenses, STS nameplate on the deck lid and an STS exclusive cloisonné deck lid lock cover. The STS interior had a 12-way power front seat, manual articulating front seat headrests, center front armrest with cassette and coin/cup storage console trimmed in ultrasoft leather, net-type map pockets, rear bucket seats with integral headrests, center rear console and rear storage compartment, leather-wrapped front and rear door trim panels, door pull straps and overhead pull straps, high-gloss elm burl real wood appliqués on door trim panels and switch plates, horn pad and bar, instrument panel and front and rear consoles, Beechwood Thaxton floor carpet and a decklid liner in Tara material with STS logo. Other standard STS features (these were options on the standard Seville) were: automatic door locks, illuminated driver and passenger side visor vanity mirrors, illuminated entry system, rear window defogger, theft-deterrent system and trunk mat. Only 4 exterior colors were available for the STS this year: White Diamond; Sable Black; Black Sapphire; or Carmine Red. 1, 93 Seville Touring Sedans (STS) were produced for the 1989 model year. The first 1989 STS's were leftovers from the Cars & Concepts run of the 1988 production year and had the special sticker located on the lower part on the inside of the driver's door. These were produced prior to December 1988 for the 1989 production year and are very rare. The last 6 digits of these VIN numbers would be below 808000. As with the 1988 model, a special 3.25" x 2" black/silver chrome label was affixed to the lower inside area of the driver-side front door by Cars and Concepts identifying it as one of the original STS's{ref 7} As of 2014, the survivability rate* of this 1989 model is at about 3% (approximately 57 remaining) per the NHTSA and Broxterman Auto Survivability Rate Chart - BASRC).

Another example: search: Cadillac Country Club: 1980 Cadillac : 1988 Cadillac STS

Notes on Brochure: autosofinterest.com: 2013/05/04/marketing-material-1988-cadillac-seville-sts-brochure/