At $8,000, Could This 1977 Cadillac Seville Milan Get You To Go Short?

Custom-built by Millan Coach Builders of Simi Valley, California, today's Nice Price or No Dice Cadillac Milan is one of around 500 converted and truncated two-seaters. Let's see if its price will make short business of securing a sale.

For nearly a decade and a half in the 1980s and '90s, Chrysler's K-Car served as the basis for over three-quarters of the company's automotive output. During that span, the humble FWD platform spawned nearly fifty different models, encompassing family cars, wagons, sports cars, limos, and Chrysler's savior minivans.

We looked at an amazingly clean example of one of those models last Friday: a 1986 Chrysler LeBaron Town & Country with fewer than 4,000 miles. It was a total throwback, and in beautiful shape. Still, nice as it was, few of you wanted to step into that time machine, especially at its $18,900 asking price. Ultimately, the comments dunned the LeBaron as just a crappy K Car, with the voting going likewise in an 82% 'No Dice' loss.

Read more: How Fast Were The Fastest Muscle Cars, Really? A Look At 5 Top Speeds From The 1960s

Who likes short shorts?

In antiquity, Milan, Italy, then known as Mediolanum , served as the capital of the Western Roman Empire. Today it serves as the locus of both Italy's automotive and fashion industries. With all that history, it's surprising that today's 1977 Cadillac Seville Milan isn't named for the Lombardy capital.

Instead, both the car and the company, Milan Coach Builders, were named for the car's designer and company founder, Milan Daniels. Built in small numbers (reportedly fewer than 500), the Milan was not sanctioned by Cadillac or GM. 

Private parties would bring their already-purchased Sevilles to Milan's shop, where the cars were cut in half, shrunk from a 114-inch wheelbase to 96 inches, and fitted with a convertible top. Lost in the process were the roof, rear doors, and the back seat. At the time, the idea was to create an American analog to the Mercedes SL, a model that the Milan's dimensions purposely aped. Optionally, Milan Coach Builders also offered a fiberglass hood with a central bump, and an accompanying Rolls-style Parthenon grille.

Jimothy the raccoon

The result looks less like a Mercedes SL and more like Internet sensation and beloved role model for overcoming adversity, Seattle's Jimothy the Raccoon. That's not a bad association, and considering that upwards of 500 people sent their then-very-expensive Cadillacs to go under the knife, it's obvious these cars have some appeal. 

The conversion was only offered on the first-generation Sevilles, and Milan Coach Builders shuttered in the early 1980s after that model ceased production. This one, in white over a white leather interior and charcoal canvas top, is claimed to be in decent condition. 

According to the ad's description, it also has had a 6.2-liter Chevy LS3 V8 professionally installed, just 108 miles ago. Overall, the car reportedly has 30,906 miles on the clock. That engine, the seller assures us, provides the car with both a "massive power upgrade and turn key reliability." The seller also boasts that "The shortened wheelbase makes this incredibly nimble compared to a standard Seville," and says that "it is a blast to drive." Aside from the modern Chevy mill, this Milan seems to otherwise maintain its '70s groove.

Meticulously cared for

Aesthetically, the seller comments that the car is in great condition, has been "meticulously cared for and shows beautifully." That's interesting, since the photos in the ad, which appear to have been taken with a pinhole camera by a distracted three-year-old, show several discrepancies. In one shot of the car with the top down—arguably its most flattering pose—a rub strip spans the passenger door, and a bumper gap filler sits at the rear. In another photo showing the car with the top up, both the strip and the filler are absent. That bumper gap filler (made of urethane) is also absent in the trunk shot, as are the trunk lock and Cadillac wreath.

It's hard to say which of those photos represents the car in its current state, although the seller claims the Caddy "shows beautifully," so perhaps the photos showing missing parts are from a previous state, and the car is now in its final, intact form. One thing we do know, from the ad, is that this Milan comes with a clean title.

Dropping like a stone

It's always smart to hedge your bets, and the seller of this Milan has done just that by listing the car on both Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace . The Craigslist ad has been up for about three weeks, which isn't unreasonable for such a unique vehicle seeking an appreciative buyer. The Facebook Marketplace ad, however, has been up for 32 weeks, which shows what a backwater the Meta classifieds can sometimes be. The main discrepancy between the ads, and the likely reason that the seller managed no bites on Facebook, is that there the car is priced at $16,000, while on Craigslist it's asking half that: $8,000. We're going with the Craigslist price, so it's time to weigh in and vote on whether that's a good deal.

What's your take on this Milan and that $8,000 asking price? Does that feel fair given the car's unique history and presentation? Or, even at that lower-than-Facebook price, does this custom Caddy come up short?

You decide!

San Francisco Bay Area, California, Craigslist , or go here if the ad disappears.

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