If it’s true that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then our Pick of the Day could be considered most unusual because it can be seen as one brand imitating another within the same manufacturer. Who does that? In this case, the guilty was not General Motors but a third-party company based in Detroit. This 1957 Chevrolet El Morocco four-door hardtop is listed for sale on ClassicCars.com by a private seller in Newtown, Iowa.
The Chinese have been taken to task for building automobiles that imitate the most famous the world has to offer. Your first thought may be a counterfeit bag you’d buy on Houston Street, but an alternative take is that they’re products of shanzai culture, which tends to lean into imitating high-end products but may also adapt, remix, and improve existing designs to the point of social acceptability.
Truth be told, we Americans have a penchant for making a car appear fancier than it is — who can forget those Volkswagen Beetles with a Rolls-Royce grille, or the similarly inspired Chevrolet Monte Carlo Custom Cloud? We even have trickle-down moments within American auto manufacturers: the 1941 Chevrolet bears a striking resemblance to the 1940 Buick, and Mercury touted its 1965 series as being “now in the Lincoln Continental tradition.” It’s even been said the 1955 Chevrolet featured a Cadillac influence, owing to its success. However, one businessman from Detroit felt Chevrolet did not go far enough.
Reuben Allender was the name and entrepreneurship was his game. As a guy who dealt with surplus supplies, he had a penchant for finding a way to make a dollar. Noting the slight resemblance of the Bow Tie to the Standard of the World, Allender hired Creative Industries to design a prototype. With fiberglass and lead, a 1956 Bel Air was transformed into a quasi-Eldorado. From the rear, it looked like an Eldo, while the front looked like a Chevy with a pair of Dagmars. Allender even managed to get the name changed to be its own brand: El Morocco, a popular NYC nightclub with a name that somewhat resembled “Eldorado.” Supply came from dealer Don McCoullagh, and work was done at one of Allender’s warehouses.
The ’57 Chevy bore even more of a resemblance to a Cadillac, so the transition was arguably more successful. Notable was how the El Morocco evolved into resembling the all-new Eldorado Brougham, though no one would ever confuse the $3,175 El with the $13,074 El. Alas, the endeavor simply wasn’t meant to be, and Allender discontinued the effort early in the 1957 calendar year. It is believed financing and pressure from Chevrolet put the final nail in the coffin.
According to the seller of this 1957 El Morocco four-door hardtop (note this time I treated it as its own brand), anywhere between 10 and 40 were built in 1957, with four in this body style currently known to exist. What is certain is that the El Morocco is an interesting footnote in the world of American cars, a regional idea that received national exposure but never was truly able to get off the ground. This vehicle has received a complete body-off restoration, with “the chassis and underbody … finished as nicely as the top side,” says the seller. “I purchased this car from a collector in South Carolina in 1998, [then] had restored to correct Chevrolet and El Morocco specs. I sold the car to another collector in 2020, then after his demise repurchased from the estate in 2025.”
Painted Matador Red and powered by a 283ci four-barrel connected to a Powerglide automatic, this $129,000 (OBO) creation is a flattering reminder that you can have your cake (Chevrolet) and eat it too (Cadillac).
Click here to view this Pick of the Day on ClassicCars.com
