National Auto Museum, Reno - Al Jolson's 1933 Cadillac Phaeton
Cadillac
Motor Car Company’s first V-type engine design was introduced in
October 1914, as the Cadillac V-8 Model 51. In its quest for higher
engine performance, Cadillac experimented for more than three years with
a V-16 engine design. The V-16 was designed, engineered, prototypes
handbuilt, and hundred of thousands of miles of testing were
accomplished without public knowledge. But when it was formally
announced in December 1929, orders poured in from eager would-be owners
who had not even seen one. The new 16-cylinder Cadillac made its first
public appearance in the form of a majestic Imperial Landau Sedan with
Fleetwood coachwork at the 1930 New York Automobile Show. In an era of
fours, sixes, and straight-eights, the public was dazzled by the very
notion of a 16-cylinder powerplant.
Despite the
technological innovations and high quality custom coachwork, Cadillac
sales dropped yearly as the Depression continued to devastate the luxury
car market. Cadillac’s worst year was 1933, and it was announced that
only a limited number of V-16’s would be produced. Serial numbers would
range from 1 to 400, and the owner’s name and the car’s serial number
would be engraved on a special plate attached as an integral part of the
car. Al Jolson, a famous singer and movie star in the 1920’s and
1930’s, ordered the five-passenger All-Weather Phaeton displayed here.
It was Cadillac’s most expensive model for 1933, priced at $8,000. Of
an anticipated 400 V-16’s, only 126 were produced in 1933, and Al
Jolson’s car was number 56.
The Museum's placard for this car reads:
1933 CADILLAC
Model: Series 452C, All-Weather Phaeton
Built by: Cadillac Motor Car Co., Detroit, Michigan
Body by: Fleetwood
Price: $8,000
Engine: OHV V-16 cylinder, 165 H.P.
Bore: 3 in.
Stroke: 4 in.
Displacement: 452.4 cu. in.
Donated by: Harrah’s Hotels & Casinos
Adopted by: Gary & Roy Goodlett Family (E)
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