Concepts That Didn’t Make It: Cadillac Sixteen

by Wallace Wyss –

I’ve been covering the auto industry for, oh, 55 years or so and missed the grand era of the ’30s. I saw a picture of the 2003 Cadillac Sixteen concept car recently and realized how much I miss outsize characters like Bob Lutz, who directed General Motors Design to create it.

I like Lutz for a lot of reasons. He was outspoken. Whatever company he worked at, he pushed performance. He was born in Switzerland but became a Marine fighter pilot (later owned his own private fighter jet). He was a big presence at Pebble Beach. He’s retired now but still fires off pertinent articles.

2003 Cadillac Sixteen Concept – photo by General Motors

Now back to the Cadillac Sixteen. Back in 2003 when this show car appeared, it was the first Cadillac V16 in 62 years was a 90-degree 13.6 liter 830 cid all aluminum pushrod engine with 16-8-4 cylinder deactivation. It was rated at 1,000 hp. a high number then but soon electric cars will have that in premium models. Body was aluminum and the chassis was aluminum and steel.

Styling featured a very slanted A-pillar that would probably not meet whatever rules there are. Surprisingly its automatic had only four speeds whereas today it would have at least nine speeds. It also boasted four wheel steering, a feature called Quadrasteer which gives it a sharper turning radius at lower speeds. At higher speeds the front and rear tires turn in the same direction.

It’s easy to assume they just welded two V8s together but no, a firm called Katech designed and cast the engine for them.

The first Cadillac V16 debuted just three months after the 1929 stock market crash, which is a problem whenever you introduce a creme de la creme car, what happens if the economy takes a dip? Still back before the war, Caddy sold 2,000 of them.

But I’m thinking with the automatics with 9 speeds and the cylinder deactivation now available, it’s not as impractical as it looks if you have these updates. This car could be brought back. And Cadillacs do sell in China. Maybe just 5,000 of them sold in China would fund selling them to potentates all over the world. When you think about it, Rolls Royce and Bentley haven’t innovated lately and just want to tell you about their stars on the ceiling or some such. This might put the hurt on them, and I for one would like Cadillac to again have a car where they could revive their old slogan: “Standard of the World”.

What we have been missing all these years – “Standard of the World”.

1934 Cadillac Sixteen Custom Roadster – photo compliments of RM Sotheby’s

1930 Cadillac V-16 Convertible Berline by Saoutchik – photo compliments of RM Sotheby’s

1937 Cadillac Sixteen Custom Phaeton – photo compliments of RM Sotheby’s

Let us know what you think in the Comments.

 

THE AUTHOR: Wallace Wyss is co-host of Autotalk, broadcast from KUCR FM each week in Riverside, CA.
 
 
 

Summary

Article Name

Concepts That Didn't Make It: Cadillac Sixteen

Description

I for one would like Cadillac to again have a car where they could revive their old slogan: "Standard of the World" - maybe the Cadillac Sixteen would do the trick?

Author

Wallace Wyss