Jerry O’Connell isn’t interested in keeping up with Hollywood’s expensive car culture. While other celebrities collect Ferraris and exotic supercars, the actor drives a 1979 Cadillac Seville that he bought on Craigslist for $12,000. It’s his everyday car, and he plans to keep driving it until it stops working.
The Cadillac has already survived something most classic car owners would dread. Someone stole it from O’Connell’s driveway, took it onto Pacific Coast Highway, and reportedly drove it at nearly 90 mph before sheriff’s deputies stopped the car in Malibu.
O’Connell brought the Seville to Jay Leno’s Garage in an episode published October 26, 2026. The two discussed the unusual purchase, the car’s mechanical problems, and the reason O’Connell prefers decades-old American luxury cars over newer vehicles.
Leno was impressed with the Cadillac’s comfortable ride, but he had questions about its maintenance. Between the dusty engine compartment, soft brakes, and a cracked coolant reservoir, the visit became an unexpected inspection of a Hollywood actor’s budget classic.
A Craigslist Cadillac
Embedded media follows; please allow a moment to load.
O’Connell told Leno that he buys used cars almost exclusively through Craigslist. He limits his search to vehicles within roughly 50 or 60 miles of his home and generally looks for model years between 1960 and 1991. His wife, actress Rebecca Romijn, accompanies him when he meets sellers.
His wife also has a theory about his unusual taste in cars. According to O’Connell, she believes he only buys vehicles that wealthy people owned when he was growing up.
The Cadillac fits that description. The seller originally wanted $16,000, but O’Connell negotiated the price down to $12,000. The previous owner was an older gentleman, and the car became O’Connell’s daily transportation around Los Angeles.
The Seville was one of Cadillac’s most expensive offerings in 1979, excluding factory limousines. It came with an Oldsmobile 350-cubic-inch V8, fuel injection, cruise control, leather upholstery, and a rear window defogger. It also has small lights mounted on the front fenders that indicate when the turn signals are operating.
O’Connell was particularly excited about those lights, telling Leno that they made him feel like an astronaut.
Stolen From His Driveway
The most unusual part of the Cadillac’s history came after O’Connell purchased it. He admitted that he had developed a habit of leaving the keys inside the center console while the car was parked at home.
Someone eventually found them.
O’Connell believes the person was looking through the vehicle for money when he discovered the keys and decided to drive away. The actor said the person then took the Cadillac onto Pacific Coast Highway.
According to O’Connell, deputies from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s Lost Hills Station stopped the car in Malibu for speeding. He said the driver reportedly traveled close to 90 mph.
The driver reportedly told deputies that the Cadillac belonged to him and produced registration paperwork from the glove compartment. Deputies checked the registration, contacted O’Connell, and asked whether he had given the person permission to drive his car.
He hadn’t.
O’Connell recovered the Cadillac but had to pay for three days of impound storage. He even showed Leno yellow chalk markings on the rear window that were left by the impound facility.
The actor acknowledged that leaving the keys inside the car had been a mistake. He also joked that discovering the Cadillac had survived such a fast drive made him less afraid to push the aging V8 himself.
Leno Finds Problems
While examining the Cadillac, Leno noticed several things that needed attention. O’Connell had warned him that the brakes felt unusually soft, which led to a discussion about brake fluid maintenance.
Leno recommended changing brake fluid regularly, explaining that it absorbs moisture over time. A soft brake pedal can also indicate other problems, including air in the hydraulic system, so it should not simply be dismissed as a characteristic of an older vehicle.
Opening the hood produced another memorable moment. Leno called it the dustiest engine compartment he had ever seen. O’Connell explained that he regularly checked the oil, although cleaning under the hood apparently wasn’t a priority.
The Cadillac had also needed repairs. O’Connell said his mechanic replaced damaged engine freeze plugs and patched a cracked coolant reservoir after finding a replacement part proved difficult.
Despite those issues, O’Connell said the Cadillac had been reliable enough for daily use. Its working air conditioning was especially important because he regularly drives through Southern California’s intense summer heat.
He also admitted that he had been closing the hood incorrectly. Leno demonstrated how to lower it from a reasonable height rather than dropping it from several feet above the engine compartment.
A California Smog Problem
Another challenge involved getting the Cadillac through California’s emissions inspection process. O’Connell expressed frustration that a car approaching 50 years old still needed to pass a smog check.
The conversation turned to legislation supported by Leno that would allow certain older collector vehicles to avoid routine emissions inspections.
That legislation has already become law. California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 1392, known as Jay Leno’s Law, on September 16, 2026.
The law establishes a phased-in smog inspection exemption for qualifying collector vehicles manufactured between 1976 and 1985. However, it is not a blanket exemption for every vehicle from those years. Eligibility depends on collector-use requirements, including qualifying insurance or limited annual mileage.
That distinction matters for O’Connell because he uses his Seville as everyday transportation. Although its model year falls within the law’s range, frequent daily driving could prevent it from meeting the requirements.
Keeping It Forever
O’Connell’s attachment to big Cadillacs goes back to his childhood. His father immigrated to the United States from England in the 1950s, and the family eventually owned a 1974 Cadillac DeVille. O’Connell learned to drive in that car and has appreciated large American sedans ever since.
He previously owned an Oldsmobile Delta 88 with a 455-cubic-inch V8, which he also purchased through an unusual Craigslist transaction. The seller, he told Leno, was preparing to go to prison and needed to get rid of the vehicle.
That Oldsmobile eventually developed serious mechanical problems and broke down on California’s 210 Freeway. O’Connell said he typically donates his old cars to public television when repair costs become too expensive.
For now, the Seville remains part of his family’s routine. His teenage daughters occasionally drive it, and he said they enjoy having an older car in an area where many young drivers have expensive luxury vehicles. Unlike modern cars, the Cadillac doesn’t have a backup camera, forcing them to practice looking behind the vehicle while reversing.
After taking the Cadillac on the road, Leno praised its smooth ride, quiet interior, and comfortable suspension. He was also impressed that O’Connell wasn’t interested in buying a car simply to impress other people.
O’Connell said he intends to keep driving the Cadillac for as long as it continues running. At the end of the drive, Leno described its suspension as a classic boulevard ride, noting that the car had been built around one basic driving setting: comfort.