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Cadillac V16 Classic Cars for Sale

The Cadillac V-16 is a sixteen-cylinder luxury car produced between 1930 and 1940. It is notable for having been made at a loss for the Cadillac company for much of its run. Its design focused on engineering excellence rather than pure profitability, and today the Cadillac V-16 enjoys a coveted CCCA Full Classic rating from the Classic Car Club of America.

History of the Cadillac V-16

From its conception, the Cadillac V-16 was an ambitious design. Sixteen cylinders amounted to double the usual number found in cars at the time, and was thought to be excessive by many other automakers, but it was considered a necessity by Cadillac due to customer demands for powerful performance that could move a larger car with more interior space in the same swift, smooth way as a compact car. To that end, Cadillac forged ahead with the design, and the car managed to garner plenty of excitement despite being announced within only weeks of the 1929 stock market crash. The Cadillac V-16 was the premier luxury car for a few months following its release, although it never recovered that momentum in the following years. The model was built with slight improvements over time, from all-steel roofs to hydraulic brakes, before making a more drastic change by swapping the Series 452 engine for the quieter new Series 90 engine. This was the last significant change before the Cadillac V-16 ended its production run in 1940.

Legacy of the Cadillac V-16

The Cadillac V-16 was considered a masterpiece even in its day, but the Cadillac company always struggled to translate that acclaim into monetary revenue. Every Cadillac V-16 was custom-built to order with a large variety of parts to choose from. Almost everything could be customized, right down to the inclusion of needlepoint designs on the seat cushions. This resulted in a stellar finished product that felt unique despite its uniformly excellent performance, but also incurred very high production costs. The vehicles sold for substantial amounts of money (the precise figure varied based on the options ordered, but was often comparable to the price of a house), but even those high prices were insufficient to recoup the gigantic outlay of money required to make these cars. When the 1930s were winding down and the car still had not become profitable again, production was discontinued. Nevertheless, the Cadillac V-16 was never considered a failure, and remains a celebrated part of Cadillac’s history. In 2003, Cadillac released the Cadillac Sixteen, an upscale concept car using the same type of V-16 engine that debuted in the Cadillac V-16. The new car also incorporated many small design details of the original V-16 into its modern styling, making it a sort of updated tribute to the beloved retired model.

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