Most American luxury car manufacturers that survived the Great Depression did so with the careful development of a slightly lower-cost model, which incorporated the same quality engineering and solid construction as their usual offerings, but at a more palatable price point. Cadillac’s offering was the Series 60, which debuted for 1936 at the urging of the division’s General Manager, Nicholas Dreystadt. It rode on a 121-inch-wheelbase chassis with Bendix dual-servo brakes, was powered by the newly designed “monobloc” V-8, and carried attractive Fisher bodies, including the svelte Convertible Coupe with its jaunty rumble seat—a beautiful automobile in which to take on the future.

The Series 60 Convertible Coupe offered here is recorded on its build sheet with engine number 6015598 and body number 352, just as it retains today. It was ordered with the basic equipment group “X,” as well as the “A” accessory group features of a clock, passenger-side sun visor, and wheel trim rings. Final delivery was made to the longstanding Eierman Cadillac distributorship in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

In previous ownership, the car received a high-quality restoration, finished in a rich deep Regency Red accentuated by a red leather interior and black fabric top with red piping. Notable features include dual side-mounted spares, full metal wheel covers, beauty rings, and a factory radio. For several years, it was owned by the well-known enthusiast Tedd Zamjahn of Greendale, Wisconsin, from whom Michael Leith acquired it in the spring of 2014. Since then it has remained a favorite in the collection for well over a decade, upkept to the usual high Leith standards. It remains incredibly attractive cosmetically and in fine mechanical condition.

One of the nicest examples of a seldom-found model, this Cadillac has much to recommend it to connoisseurs of the “Standard of the World.”