To Be OFFERED AT AUCTION WITHOUT RESERVE at RM Sothebys' Arizona
event, 17 - 18 January 2019.
Estimate:
$750,000 - $900,000
- Offered from the Richard L. Burdick Collection
- One of 18 survivors of 85 Sport Phaetons built
- Previously in the Robert Chamberlain, Philip Wichard, and David
Kane collections
- Award-winning Stone Barn restoration
- Classic Car Club of America (CCCA) Full Classic
Please note that this lot is titled as a 1931.
On 4 January 1930, New Yorkers were treated to an engineering tour
de force. At the opening of the National Automobile Show at the
Grand Central Palace, Cadillac unveiled the world's first
production V-16 automobile engine. The late historian Griffith
Borgeson explained it elegantly: "It really made history and it
made Cadillac, beyond all discussion, the absolute world leader in
motoring magnificence . . . . It was the super engine that set the
whole exercise apart."
The creative genius behind this powerplant was Owen Nacker, an
industry veteran who had worked on Howard Marmon's long-simmering
V-16 project. His first project for Cadillac was the LaSalle V-8 in
1927; shortly thereafter, he was working on Cadillac's own
V-16.
Nacker flouted a lot of Cadillac tradition. The new engine was
designed with overhead valves, which the division had never used.
Overhead valves were noisy, but Nacker adopted a new hydraulic
lifter setup developed by GM engineering that effectively provided
zero-lash operation. With overhead valves, the exhaust manifolds
could now move to the outside, important because the narrow
45-degree vee left little room for manifold clutter.
The large aluminum crankcase held five main bearings, the
crankshaft counterweighted and fitted with a vibration dampener.
The timing chain also drove the generator. The two cylinder blocks
had cast nickel-iron liners extending down into the crankcase.
Heads were of cast iron. The central camshaft, with roller-type
followers, actuated tubular pushrods, which in turn worked short
rocker arms. With the new zero-lash hydraulic lifters it was all
very silent.
The V-16 was, in effect, two engines in one, sharing a crankcase
and crankshaft. Each block had a complete fuel system, including
carburetor and vacuum tank, and its own exhaust. There was one
distributor but two coils, which were recessed into the radiator's
header tank. The engine's power pulses overlapped to produce
smoothness, since they occurred every 45 degrees of rotation.
Developed brake horsepower was initially 160; eventually it rose to
185, and torque it had aplenty: 300 foot-pounds at idle.
Aesthetically it was a work of art, said to be the first powerplant
that was truly styled. Wood and clay models were made of the engine
as development progressed, and studied for simplicity and
appearance, as well as serviceability. All wiring and hoses were
concealed to the extent possible, hidden behind covers or in
raceways. Viewed from outside the engine compartment, there was no
clutter whatsoever.
The engine, of course, was of little use without a body, and there
were lots to choose from. There were 54 in the catalogue, roadster
to town car, all from Fleetwood. Some were built in Fleetwood's
original facility in Pennsylvania, others from the new Detroit
plant. Many of them did triple duty, available also as V-12 or V-8,
for nine months later the sixteen had a twelve-cylinder brother,
created by removing the end cylinders on each bank. The wheelbase
was a whopping 148 in.; by 1934 it would grow to 154, the longest
of any American car. A few chassis were bodied by outside
coachbuilders, such as Murphy, but not many.
After the V-16 had made the circuit tour of U.S. shows, a trio of
cars was sent abroad to Europe, where they were enthusiastically
received. This was also true at home, and 2,887 found customers by
the end of the year.
This 1930 Cadillac Sixteen Sport Phaeton was shipped on 9 July 1930
to the factory Philadelphia Branch. Before it could be sold, it was
diverted on a Special Order to New York. The first owner is not
recorded. By 1972, it was in the collection of Robert Chamberlain
of Princess Ann, Maryland. Alan Merkel, historian of V-16
Cadillacs, viewed the car and reported on its fine original
condition. In 1981, Chamberlain sold it to Philip Wichard of
Happauge on New York's Long Island.
Wichard, whose 1995 New York Times obituary recounted that he
"developed his passion for cars as a 10-year-old junkyard scout who
was allowed to steer junkers being towed for scrap," was known as a
shrewd and discriminating collector. He bought his first car at age
10, and soon turned a $5 profit. Once he began collecting and
restoring in earnest, he seldom sold anything; indeed his
collection was sold at auction only months before his passing.
Wichard had Stone Barn Automobile Restoration in New Jersey
comprehensively restore this Cadillac Sixteen. Completed in 1990,
it quickly won National First awards from both the Antique
Automobile Club of America (AACA) and CCCA. Since that time it has
passed through four subsequent owners, among them New Jersey
collector Dave Kane. Prominent features include the factory dual
side-mounts with metal covers, Pilot Ray driving lights, and the
rare and correct "Lo-boy" trunk fitted to open cars. Accompanied by
a copy of the 1930 build sheet, it is one of 18 survivors among the
85 Sport Phaetons, style no. 4260, originally sold and one of the
finest extant.To view this car and others currently consigned to
this auction, please visit the RM website at
rmsothebys.com/en/auctions/az19.