Cadillac’s V-16 cars were legendary in refinement, quality, and excess in an era when a lot of people didn’t know where their next meal was coming from. You knew that you were something if you could afford one in the early-1930s, but if you could afford one you knew that anyway. Far more customers bought Cadillac’s V-12 cars such as this gorgeous 1931 Cadillac V-12 370-A Convertible Coupe. This example is a survivor and it will be auctioned by Gooding & Co. at Pebble Beach this August in Monterey, California. All images copyright and courtesy of Gooding & Company. Photos by Brian Henniker.
I would personally be very careful to leave as much of this car as it is now. They have a pre-auction estimate of between $75,000 and $100,000 listed for this auction so it isn’t inexpensive to buy one even now, but you knew that already. The 370-A V-12 came out in the fall of 1930 for the 1931 model year and they were expensive but not fall on the ground expensive, starting at around $3,800 which is only around $62,000 today. You can easily pay that much for a pickup truck today which is sad in more ways than one. For the record, a V-16 of the same vintage would have been around $2,000 more expensive in 1931.
The interior is about the only area where decades of wear are overtly apparent, as a V-12 Cadillac owner may have said in 1931. There are many more photos on the Gooding & Co. website so you can see the passenger side and the whole car in all its glory and glorious it is. Coachwork on this car is by Fleetwood and it’s a rumble seat convertible. It doesn’t get much more “Hollywood golden era” than this.
This car was reportedly delivered to a dealer in Los Angeles and we don’t know if he was the first owner or what that timeline was, but in the late-1950s or early-1960s, it went to a gentleman in San Diego and it still retains its 1963 California black plates. It was rarely driven and was stored in a collection of cars. Other than the deterioration of the seats as shown in the photos, and a few other aged areas, this is one amazing car.
Cadillac’s 368 cubic-inch V-12 was built to the same quality standards as the V-16 was and they had 135 horsepower. A three-speed manual floor shifter changes gears and we assume that it’s in running condition but that isn’t mentioned. Would you restore this V-12 Cadillac convertible or preserve it?
Restore, bring her back to all its glory.
Make if run and drive, have the front seat redone with aged leather and enjoy it.
Well it cannot be comfortably driven as is. But a partial repair will certainly draw the crowds. I cannot believe how much I like it.
This is one I’d love to see brought back to it’s full glory. It has such character and deserves to be shown that way.
This is the most exciting car I’ve viewed on BF. I love any car with a golf club door. I’m in the camp of refurbish while keeping as much original as possible. Call it driver-quality.
Throw a blanket over the seat and drive!!!
With a good scrubbing and a thorough servicing this car could be the talk of the town!
“It’s the stuff dreams are made of.”
She needs to be brought back to her glory: anything else is a Capital Sin.
Preserve…and enjoy it as often as you like for years to come. Or drain your portfolio and restore it…then trailer it to a select few overly snobbish shows while you wait for its value to exceed what you spent on it, ’cause you’ll never drive it again! :(
This engine is a beautiful piece of art. Have you ever noticed how much it and the V16 look like two Buick inline engines that have been meshed together. The starter on these engines were mounted from the rear of the engine which is rare.
Love it, but too rich for me..
Low rider? LOL. Beautiful car.