Car Stuff: Random Sightings #13 & 14

Sometimes I'm able to get only one picture of a car, so for today I thought I'd combine two of those into one post.

There are a lot of old Cadillacs being used as daily drivers around here. Some of them belong to seniors and have been babied since new; others have been used hard. They are easy to overlook, but also easy to notice if you're looking for them. These two cars are only a few years apart, but they look quite different.

I spotted this early-'90s Sedan DeVille at the Wellington T station one day as I was boarding a bus. I got this picture from my seat, and tried to get a shot of the front end as the bus drove past, but that one didn't come out well enough to use. From where it was parked, I think it may belong to an MBTA official.

These DeVilles were somewhat unpopular when they appeared for 1985, because General Motors switched them (along with platform cousins, full-size Buicks and Oldsmobiles) to front-wheel-drive. They were roomier inside and rode better, but buyers disdained them because they looked small. The Cadillacs got a wheelbase stretch for 1989 that made them look somewhat more Cadillac-like. Based on the exterior trim details and wheel covers, this one is probably a '91 or '92. While I think it's a nice-looking car, the squared-off, upright styling is very '80s and already looked dated by the time this car was sold.

For contrast, this DeVille is from a little later in the '90s. It's definitely less dated-looking, but not necessarily more attractive. To my eyes it looks bloated, and the closed rear fender openings don't help. This was another styling cue shared with big Oldsmobiles of the same period, as well as the Chevrolet Caprice. It was used from 1994 to '96, which is as precise as I can get.

I'm sure you noticed this car is parked in a handicap spot. I look for older cars like this in the spaces closest to the entrances of supermarkets and other stores. (This one was at the Market Basket in Chelsea.) Years ago I found two 1980s-era Dodges parked next to each other outside my local Stop & Shop. I took pictures, but then mistakenly erased the memory card they were on, and I'm still bummed about it.