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“There is no power plant in any motor car so smooth,
so quiet, so flexible.” Cadillac’s bold attempt to
“out-cylinder” the competition commenced in January
1930 with the introduction of its magnificent 452cu
(7.4 litre) V-16 overhead valve engine. The Cadillac
V16 was the world’s first production sixteen
cylinder passenger car, beating the rival Marmon by
ten months.
Conceived in the Roaring Twenties, these Leviathans
made little sense in the post-Wall Street Crash
Depression years of the 1930’s, although Cadillac
was able to sell in excess of 15,000 of them before
the decade’s end. Harley Earl and his team used the
opportunity afforded by the new V16 chassis to
create some of the most sublimely beautiful
automobile bodies of the period. More than 50 body
styles were offered, the vast majority being
“catalogue customs” by Fleetwood.
Body details unique to the V-16 or introduced with
the V-16 and seen on the full 1931 line include:
Single bar bumpers, dual horns, concave monogram
bar, radiator screen. 13 inch Guide "Tiltray"
headlights, dual rear lights matching the
headlights, triple molding on dust shield panels of
straight sill styles, five doors in the hood, single
matching door in the side of the cowl.
Only 20 percent of the total V16
production of approximately 4,380 was bodied in open
or convertible form, the example here being one of
just 250 all-weather phaetons built.
The 5,690 pound car was no
challenge for the colossal V6 engine. It had the
capacity to reach speeds of up to 100 mph, with a
synchromesh transmission and vacuum assisted brakes.
This 1931 Cadillac had a base price of $7,350. |
