Arizona 2020
1935 Cadillac V-12 Two-Passenger Coupe by Fleetwood
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$175,000 - $225,000 USD | Not Sold
| Phoenix, Arizona
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- Offered from a prominent private collector
- Formerly of the noted Thomas Cadillac Collection
- One of just two known surviving examples of a beautiful design
- Chairman’s Choice at the 2019 Greenwich Concours d’Elegance
- Offered with a copy of its original build sheet
- Classic Car Club of America (CCCA) Full Classic
The coupe offered here is one of only two known survivors of this design, style number 5776, on Cadillac’s impressive 146-inch-wheelbase 370A Twelve chassis. It is strictly a two-passenger car, with room for a snug couple and a large trunk, a wonderful example of “Classic Era logic,” impressive in its vast scale and imposing yet sporty proportions.
The car’s build sheet, a copy of which is included on file, identifies the Cadillac as having been originally delivered to the Cleveland branch, tagged for VIP delivery directly to a “Mr. Prentis” with delivery promised by 31 December 1934. It was finished entirely in black, including the chassis, wheel discs, and apparently even the tires, with a Goddess mascot and antifreeze. Given the locale and the delivery directly to an owner, without a dealer, the original owner may well have been the Cleveland industrialist and philanthropist Francis Fleury Prentiss, whose name was regularly alternatively spelled “Prentis.”
Revered California Cadillac dealer LaRue Thomas maintained the coupe in his famous private collection for many years, after which it was sold when the collection was dispersed in 1993. In 2007 the car was acquired by well-known enthusiast David Kane as a nearly finished restoration, which he completed beautifully, including the paintwork and extensive mechanical rebuilding, including the generator, starter, water pump, and fuel pump. The mufflers and exhaust were properly installed and the radiator cleaned and repaired with new hoses and clamps.
The Cadillac was then sold to the former caretakers, with whom it was well-maintained in their wonderful collection until being acquired by the current owner several years ago. After some mild cosmetic freshening, the V-12 coupe was shown to great acclaim at the 2019 Greenwich Concours d’Elegance where it was recognized with the Chairman’s Choice award.
Beautifully presented in every regard, this two-passenger coupe remains one of the most dramatic Cadillacs of its era and is sure to become a favorite in its next owner’s fleet of Full Classics.