According to its build sheet, a copy of which is included in the file, V-16 Cadillac number 702636 was one of 85 all-weather phaetons built, and a consignment order for the main Cadillac dealership in Detroit, finished in two-tone Mountain Brown Light and Mountain Brown Dark, striped in Persian Red and with Wiese broadcloth interior—an unusual choice, perhaps intended for a car never to be used with the top down. It was diverted later to Dayton, Ohio, where it presumably found its original owner.

The Cadillac later received its original restoration from early V-16 aficionado Dick Terhune of Virginia, who in the early 1960s sold it to Illinois businessman Vernon Jarvis for his Early American Museum in the tourist town of Silver Springs, Florida. The Jarvis collection included outstanding examples of Cord, Duesenberg, Delahaye, Hispano-Suiza, and other great marques, and for some two decades was one of the United States’ finest. In 1986 the Early American Museum’s contents were acquired in their entirety by the renowned collector Bob Bahre, who already owned an excellent all-weather phaeton and thus soon passed the V-16 on to a new caretaker. In February 1989 it was acquired by Elliott Klein, a well-remembered Cadillac devotee from Arizona, and was kept in his ownership until his passing in 2015.

The V-16 was acquired from Mr. Klein’s collection by noted restorer Mark Clayton of Castle Rock, Colorado, who proceeded to restore it fully for his personal enjoyment, in a rich deep cherry hue. With the work beautifully completed to a high standard, the car was sold in 2019 to Clive and Janet Cussler, who rightfully considered it one of the stars of their collection and enjoyed bringing it to several concours and other events over the years—most prominently, the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in 2019.

Still in excellent, concours-ready condition throughout, this special V-16 of superb provenance and fine quality is one of the best extant examples of its elegant body design.