Read Maxine & Roy Boone's Bio.
Read Maxine & Roy Boone's Bio.
Roy feels like he was born into the NorthStar Cadillac LaSalle club, so to speak. See, Roy’s Grandmother & Zona Steeman’s Mother were, sisters. Then, because Roy was “BORN MARRIED” to Maxine (they’ve been a couple since childhood) she is biologically connected to the club too. Besides that, Roy’s father, Mel, was not only a life long car nut, but, had multiple LaSalles throughout Roy’s childhood, including and un-restored original 1940 LaSalle convertible Roy learned to drive & drag in by his mom, Marge. (M&M Boone)
Later in life, Mel was convinced Roy should have a Cadillac despite Roy had devoted most of his adult years to Corvettes and various other forms of Hot Rods. Mel bought a ’78 Fleetwood with the intent of giving it to Roy. It was BUTT ugly and the gesture was never really embraced. The next Cadillac in Mel’s life, and the first one in Roy’s after Mel’s passing, was an ’82 Seville.
Roy embraced this unit after some years of being stored with his Brother Ron in Colorado. Roy flew out there, spent a thousand or so on top of the thousands Mel & Ron had spent on it over a half dozen years, to get it road worthy and drove it home. Sleeping only once for a few hours in the front seat, a rain storm proving what happens to wiper blades after years of non-use and storage and a near miss with the accuracy of the fuel monitoring system, coasting into a gas station in Nebraska the “trip was GREAT!”
Roy acquired two more Seville’s, an exact twin just two serial numbers apart from the first one, and an ’80 that had the original Diesel replaced with a gasoline version of the 350 CID Olds and real wire wheels. The ‘80 became a parts donator to the other two which both ended up with Olds 350 V8’s in them. Of course, lowered suspension & duel exhaust (side mounts like the 60’s Corvettes had) were among numerous other modifications were made to personalize two ‘82’s.
A life long desire for a 40’s - 50’s “FAT FENDERED” pick-up Street Rod lead to the sale of both Seville’s and many spare parts. During a long and extensive search for the Street Rod an unforeseen opportunity jumped up and bit. A Black on Black ’80 Eldorado showed up FOR SALE in the club newsletter, The Herald. As fate would have it, before Maxine had even heard of this latest twist, while viewing the hundreds of cars at a big Cruise Night in Arizona, they came across a ’79 Eldorado, black on black. The second time by the nearly identical car to the one For Sale back in Minnesota, Roy conjured up the nerve to ask Maxine – “what-a-you think of this”. She said, “ya that’s nice” and we were off to meet with fate. A few calls back to MN and their son, Todd, bought the Eldo and hauled it home where it sat in the garage awaiting Roy and Maxine’s return to MN in the spring.
After 4 years, and more than 40 modifications, PERSONALIZING this one has become “THE RAVEN”. A Cadillac 6.0 Liter (383 CID) motor slightly updated, LOUD dual exhaust, lowered stance, wire wheels, Vogue tires, “Touring Sedan” suspension, gearing and logo’s along with Gold emblems adorn this survivor. “It’s FUN!”
Not to forget the original dream, a 1948 Ford F-3 (FAT FENDERED) pick-up was acquired from Millie Johnson of our club + a 1949 Ford F-1 and a 1990 Cadillac Brougham joined the mix. The intent is to build that long desired Street Rod using the Cadillac drive train & creature comforts with the nostalgic sheet metal of the Fords. This will make the resulting vehicle a “FORDILLAC”.
Also joining the stable is a ’92 Cadillac Sedan DeVille. An Arizona car with a 300 CID (4.9 liter) V8 and modified with nice sounding dual exhaust and lowered suspension. A real nice looking, riding and driving grocery getter, great for shuttling folks to and from the airport and sight seeing trips. This one’s “fun to drive” too.
The most recent addition is a ’72 Eldorado Convertible. This is a survivor too, as is the ’80 Eldo. The classic large/huge car at 19’7 ¼” long, 8” wider than the DeVille, 5,000# weight, 8.2 Liter (500 CID) motor is Coronation Red w/Red Leather interior and a white top. The previous owner was a Shrinner and used the car for parades only. It shows just over 66,000 miles on the odometer. Of course Roy had dual exhaust added and the front end lowered as-soon-as he got the car. Roy & Maxine intend to have this car join the ’92 in Arizona for use in parades and other club events with the Desert Kustoms.