One-of-none Caddy wagon to be auctioned

Of course, Cadillac never made a wagon, but that hasn't stopped a number of individuals and companies creating load-lugger versions of the prestige GM brand. Few rodders, however, have gone down the path of creating a rodded Caddy wagon. Jim 'Bones' Noteboom is the exception.

The Californian has a hot rodding pedigree going back to the late 1950s, and has gained some fame for his custom wagon creations, having previously built one-of-none wagon rods based on '37 Ford, '39 Lincoln Zephyr and '50 Buick platforms.

Noteboom has created other, more conventional, rods, too, but the striking custom wagon you see here was considered the exclamation point on a long and successful career for the Grand National Roadster Show Hall of Fame member.

Using the 1949 Cadillac Coupe de Ville as a base, Noteboom added the grille, front and rear bumpers from a 1955 Pontiac, with 1956 Oldsmobile headlights added to the guards. A 1954 Chevrolet station wagon donated its roof, which Noteboom blended into the Caddy's rear body by massaging the area between the rear fenders and the rear side window frames, which he hand-fabricated along with the rear door for an impressively clean look.

A pioneer of air suspension when he was still a teenager, Noteboom installed a Fatman front clip and air bags at all four corners on the Caddy, finishing the rolling stock with Tru-Spoke chromed wires and Coker wide whitewall tyres.

Under the bonnet is a vintage, but fully detailed Cadillac 390ci Big Block V8, mated to a HydraMatic auto, and capped with gorgeously-sculpted air cleaner and radiator covers.

The striking paint is House of Kolor 'Copper Penny' metallic, with the inside trimmed in complementary Pearl White tuck-and-roll leather upholstery with Copper accent piping, including on the headliner, and white wool carpeting.

The quality of Noteboom's talent saw the Cadillac awarded First Place at the 2013 Grand National Roadster Show and Detroit Autorama in the 'Radical Custom Wagon' class, along with Best Engineered at the Sacramento Autorama and Coolest Custom at GoodGuys Del Mar.

Mecum's Anaheim auction is scheduled to take place November 21-23, with the Grasshopper to be auctioned on the 23rd. For more information, visit Mecum.com.

Images: courtesy of Mecum Auctions