1931 Cadillac V-16
Roadster - Scale 1-32

Cadillac Introduces World's First Production Car With 16-Cylinder Engine

Most Valuable Cadillac Ever!

Cadillac were always pioneers - in 1914 they'd produced the first 8-cylinder engine in America, and in 1930 they again broke new ground with the V-16.

The new 16-cylinder engine was actually two straight-eight engines mounted at a 45 degree angle, sharing a common crankshaft.

Separate ignition and fuel systems fed each bank of cylinders, but the overhead valves were driven by a common camshaft which lay in the V between the banks, while hydraulic valve adjusters made for exceptionally silent running.

It is rumoured that a listening test for the V-16 engine specified that, at idling speed, nothing more than the spark of the contact points should be audible.

Unusually for a luxury car at that time, the V-16, or, as it was known at Cadillac, Model 452, was listed with a complete range of bodies.

These were the work of Harley Earl, General Motors' legendary director of design. They were built by the Fleetwood Metal Body Company, at that time owned by General Motors.

The 15 different body styles offered ranged from a two-passenger Roadster at $5,350 up to a town brougham for the grand sum of $9,500.

Considering this was the depression era, sales of the Model 452 were remarkably high, topping 3,250 for the first two years. This later dropped down to ca. 500 per year.

The Model 452 was produced until 1937, when it was replaced by a new V-16 design with a shorter-stroke engine.

Cadillac’s decision to make V-16 powered cars in the depths of the Depression has sparked controversy for over 70 years.

Never thought of as a profit center, these smooth, silent and sophisticated V-16 cars firmly planted Cadillac as the number 1 luxury car maker in America, surpassing Packard and Pierce-Arrow.

At $5,350 the 1931 Roadster this diecast model is based on, was the least expensive V-16, although it still cost more than 13 times as much as a Ford. Today, however, it has appreciated to almost $400,000, making it the most valuable Cadillac ever made.

Model Features

• Opening Doors
• Opening Hood
• Opening Rumble Seat
• Precision DieCast Replica
• 1:32 Scale Model
• 7 Inches Long