Part of the more expensive Fleetwood-built 4300 series of bodies for the V-16 chassis, the style number 4376 two-passenger coupes were produced at the original Fleetwood factory in the Pennsylvania town of the same name. The design was not an official member of the famous Madame X line of V-16 Cadillac bodies by Fleetwood but shared some of their beautiful styling details, such as the delicate chrome reveal moldings around the side windows, along with such typical 4300-series touches as the beautiful two-tone color scheme divided by Duesenberg-style “sweep panels” through the hoodline. Combined with a crisp painted metal roofline and the famous “Pennsylvania” split windshield, the result was an exceptionally dramatic and sporty coupe, in grand scale.

Few people in the world could afford such a fabulously impractical two-passenger car in the early 1930s, and accordingly, only 98 examples were built to this design.

The survival of the car offered today is all the more remarkable when one considers its time spent as a demolition derby competitor in the early 1950s. It was rescued from that unfortunate life by the late Karl Kahlberg, an early enthusiast from the Chicago area, in whose ownership it showed plenty of damage to its front fenders but otherwise remained remarkably intact—a testament to the solidity of the V-16’s original design! Importantly, the car retains the original Fleetwood-bodied “v-windshield” body, built in the Fleetwood factory.

The car was eventually sold by Mr. Kahlberg to Grover C. Philips, of Chillicothe, Missouri. After Mr. Philips’s death, it made its way to Kansas City, Kansas, and was restored there by “Sonny” Elliott and Jeff Pearson of Pearson Restorations. Shortly after the car was completed, it was acquired by its present owner, who further sorted the restoration and improved its details.

Finished in a spectacular, period-correct combination of black and lightly metallic pewter, the car is presently equipped with engine number 701540, a likely result of its years as a demolition derby racer. The owner claims that the wire wheels are original, and they are dressed in new wide whitewall tires. The interior boasts custom tan Torino leather. The owner believes that the 95,000 miles recorded on the odometer are original.

With its restoration at last complete, the V-16 was brought to the 2013 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, where it completed the Tour d’Elegance and achieved 2nd in Class amidst a tough field! Its unique history and splendid restoration were also documented in Chris Cummings’s recent work, Cadillac V-16s Lost and Found.

Undoubtedly ready for continued show appearances, it is a dramatic example of one of the most desirable V-16 body styles and would be a standout in any collection of “Sixteens.”