Well, what do we have here? At first glance it appears that a rather large in-bed camper or maybe a fifth-wheel trailer of some kind was bashed together with the front third of a 1966 Buick Wildcat. It’s the kind of thing that makes many people start spouting off Jeff Foxworthy-style redneck jokes and Breaking Bad cracks. But what you are seeing here isn’t quite the normal backyard hackjob…this is a real-deal creation that came out of Denver, Colorado, one of possibly fifty-six made between 1960 and 1966. It’s known as a Great Dale House Car, and the story of the car is almost as interesting as the vehicle itself is.

In 1960, Dale Wasinger was an auto body repairman whose only assistant was his wife. He was the kind of guy who would buy two wrecked cars and sell one good one out of what was left after he was done. He had come across a 1961 Cadillac that had been smashed in the rear and had an epiphany. He removed all of the body save the front clip, and after being shut down by a trailer and camper manufacturer, built his own camper body on the Cadillac frame. The second one was a 1962 Oldsmobile that had taken a side hit. And with the exception of the Cadillac and Oldsmobile, every other Great Dale has the same build package: the chassis of the car is cut behind the driver’s seat mounting point and the rear two-thirds of a 3/4 ton Chevrolet truck was welded in. Channel iron was ran from the frame to the upper living quarters as support, and the body was wood frame with aluminum siding. The total package wouldn’t weigh in much more than the standard car when completed. Ford, GM, Chrysler products were all converted, but not one American Motors vehicle went under the knife. There were no mechanical modifications past the chassis graft, so no coolers, no strengthening, no nada. They could be basic or they could have showers, refrigerators, air conditioning and all the creature comforts. 

So what’s the story with this Buick? Well, the truth is, the listing is really for the 425 V8 that has been recently rebuilt. Or you can buy the whole car and be done with it. Or, if you pay the full asking price of $4,500, the seller will replace the tires and get the car roadworthy. Considering that the House Cars were reputed to be decent handlers for the time, we’d love to see this one restored: the Buick part cleaned up and repainted, the RV section kitted out and useable for road trips. This car is too unique to have it’s heartbeat yanked out for a song.

Craigslist Link: 1966 Buick Wildcat-based Great Dale House Car