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As a child in the late 1940s,
identifying cars from the back seat of our family
car was a favorite pastime during trips with my
parents. The war was over and new cars, in general,
did not differ much from the early 1940s models.
Cadillac stood out from the rest with their massive
chrome grilles and fins.
In 1950 my parents moved across town to an upscale
area of Newport News, Virginia, adjacent to the
"Gold Coast", beach front property along
the James River. It was where Newport News Shipbuilding
and Drydock Company executives and wealthy businessmen
lived. Their cars naturally reflected affluence
and Cadillacs were plentiful.
Tommy Wessells, a childhood friend from kindergarten
through high school, lived on the edge of the
Coast and his father bought new Cadillacs every
couple of years. Proud of his Cadillacs, they
were always parked out front and I admired the
cars — especially their elegant interiors.
His wife dressed up very smartly just to drive
to the grocery store. Ahhh... life in the 50s!
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It wasn't until the early 1970s
that my interest in Cadillacs re-surfaced. I had
just purchased an old sports car and now sought
a prewar classic. A Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost was
my ultimate goal, but they were out of my price
range. A Vintage Bentley would come later, but
that, too, was beyond my grasp at the time. A
Lincoln L or KA/KB had great appeal, as did V-12/V-16
Cadillacs and 810/812 Cords. The sedans were priced
within my budget, so my search began locally and
in "Hemmings Motor News".
1929 |
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1932 |
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The closest I came to buying
a Cadillac was at a Houston, Texas, auction. Although
I frequented auctions, I swore that they were
not for me. I wanted to thoroughly evaluate any
car before I purchased it. Then there it was —
the unexpected! This very original V-16 Cadillac
Limousine, black with blue interior, well used
but well maintained. The only thing non-original
was the 20+ year old paint job. The fabric interior
was extremely well preserved with minimal wear.
Although the engine smoked as it was driven up
to the auction podium, it sounded good. As a non-registered
bidder I really missed out on an opportunity.
It went for $12,000 and, even in the early 70s,
that was a good buy for a V-16. Had it been purchased
by a dealer I might have had a chance to do a
quick deal, but the buyer was a well known local
collecter who, I am told, re-bodied it as a roadster.
I later bought an 812 Cord Supercharged Westchester
which made up for this loss.
Today we see more interest in 1960s through 1970s
Cadillacs. Even the more recent ones. Cadillac
remains the pride of General Motors and maybe
the V-16 will one day return. After all, they
did produce a V-16 concept car in 2003.
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