This Ultra-Rare 1957 Chevrolet El Morocco Convertible Is Heading to Auction
The car is a modified Chevy Bel Air and inspired by a 1955 Cadillac Eldorado, built in 1957 by Canadian millionaire Ruben Allender, who wanted a Cadillac but smaller. In total, 34 El Moroccos were built, according to MotorTrend, though sources vary on how many were the 1956 model year and how many were the 1957 model year. Just 10 are known to still exist, according to Mecum's auction listing.
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This example was completely restored to Concours-level quality, and since then just 78 miles have been driven on it. It is powered by a 283-cubic inch V-8 making in the realm of 220 horsepower, though the El Morocco isn't intended for speed of any sort but cruising, and likely only cruising to your local Concours event. The El Morocco can also simply be admired with the engine shut off in a garage. The transmission is a two-speed Powerglide automatic.
This El Morocco was part of the Marv Seisel Collection in California, and was rescued by Seisel after a long search for El Moroccos that began in 1971. The owner of a meat store in San Diego, Seisel spent more than a decade looking for El Moroccos, at one point becoming convinced that none of the original 34 survived, according to MT. But then he found one—a hardtop version—in Columbus, Ohio, in 1983, and another, a convertible, in Columbus in 1990. Seisel found a third El Morocco—another convertible—in Texas in 1999. It is the first convertible Seisel found in Columbus that is up for auction now.
All three of Seisel's El Moroccos were restored by Tel Pawney at D'Elegance in Fallbrook, California. El Morocco convertibles when new were $3,650, or about $42,200 in today's money accounting for inflation. The price now of several multiples of that reflects its rarity and condition.
Click for more photos of the 1957 Chevrolet El Morocco convertible.
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- Yahoo
Monterey Car Week 2025: 3 things to watch
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Read the First Drive review of the 2013 Shelby GT500 Super Snake 2. 2024 Ford Mustang Mach-E Rally - 11.9 seconds at 115.2 mph It might shock you to find out that there are only two factory-spec Mustangs to slip under the 12.0-second mark in all our years of testing at MotorTrend — and one of them is electric. The Ford Mustang Mach-E Rally is a contentious model among brand purists, especially given its tall-riding SUV stature and four doors, but that doesn't change the fact that it turned in a time slip of 11.9 seconds at 115.2 mph during our quarter-mile testing. As that trap speed might indicate, the Mach-E Rally is all about hooking up and making the most of its instant-on electric torque, which comes courtesy of two motors churning out a heady 700 lb-ft. With no gear shifts to worry about, the EV Mustang just hooks up and goes, melting your face like the climactic scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark in the process. Read the First Test of the 2024 Ford Mustang Mach-E Rally 1. 2020 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 (Carbon Fiber Track Package) - 11.3 seconds at 131.6 mph Here it is: the fastest Mustang we've ever tested, and one that combines huge horsepower with the traction-grabbing certainty and lightning-quick shifts of an automatic gearbox. The Mustang Shelby GT500 lassos its 760 horses and 625 lb-ft of torque with a seven-speed dual-clutch autobox that features not just the Drag Mode found with the 10-speed automatic but also an actual launch control. All that electronic overwatch, and this pony is still a bear to launch. Our best result, after an afternoon of learning the ins and outs of maximizing the Mustang's traction, was 11.3 seconds at 131.6 mph. Our second-best time was just two-tenths off that figure. That's exceptional for a street car, especially one that, like the GT350R, is intended to lap the competition rather than pound dragstrip asphalt into submission. Read the First Test of the 2020 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 A couple more Mustangs, just for fun 2003 Ford Mustang SVT Cobra - 13.12 seconds at 109.6 mph The SVT Cobra was the first super Mustang for the masses. It was a car that punched well above its weight with a supercharged V-8 remarkably amenable to power-boosting modifications. Of course, if you stuck with the stock 390 ponies and 390 lb-ft of torque, you certainly weren't complaining, as those were monster numbers at the time for any car, let alone an affordable Ford. When we took a convertible version of the Ford Mustang SVT Cobra to the dragstrip, we managed a quarter-mile time of 13.12 seconds at 109.6 mph. That's a few ticks slower than the coupe, but you get to hear that 4.6-liter motor at full gallop, unfettered by a sheetmetal cocoon. It's no wonder the SVT Cobra quickly earned the nickname 'Terminator.' 2000 Ford Mustang SVT Cobra R - 12.9 seconds at 110.8 mph The Cobra R was a low-production project intended to build the nastiest Mustang that had ever seen the inside of a showroom. With no back seat, a huge rigid wing affixed to the trunk, a track-ready suspension and brake setup, and a 5.4-liter naturally aspirated engine under the hood, this was the most focused version of Ford's muscle coupe to have ever emerged from the factory. The Cobra R was able to nearly match the Terminator under the hood, where it produced 385 horsepower and 385 lb-ft of torque. Combined with its weight savings, that was enough for a 12.9-second quarter mile with a 110.8 mph trap speed in our testing. Photo by MotorTrend, illustrations by Ryan Lugo
