{"id":30687,"date":"2022-09-02T12:03:58","date_gmt":"2022-09-02T16:03:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/autosector.com\/?p=30687"},"modified":"2022-09-02T12:03:58","modified_gmt":"2022-09-02T16:03:58","slug":"1136973_1930-cadillac-v-16-thunders-into-jay-leno-s-garage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/autosector.com\/?p=30687","title":{"rendered":"1930 Cadillac V-16 thunders into Jay Leno’s Garage"},"content":{"rendered":"

Long before Bugatti made 16 cylinders its calling card, Cadillac launched V-16-powered cars in a bid to outdo other luxury automakers. A prime example is this 1930 Cadillac V-16 452A, which recently appeared on an episode of “Jay Leno’s Garage.” The car comes from California’s Nethercutt Collection<\/a>, and is presented here by Cameron Richards, the collection’s vice president.<\/p>\n

To keep the V-16 secret, Cadillac initially let slip that it was developing a V-12 to match Packard. So it must have been quite a surprise when the General Motors luxury division unleashed this massive engine on the public. Still, Marmon actually beat Cadillac to the punch, launching its own 16-cylinder engine a few weeks before Cadillac, Leno says in the episode.<\/p>\n

The overhead-valve engine displaces 7.4 liters but only develops about 180 hp. While that didn’t match the high-end Duesenbergs, it was still a very respectable figure for the time because there really was no replacement for displacement. The car’s massive torque allowed it to pull away in any of its three gears, according to Leno, though the big engine needs a “firehose” to supply all the fuel it needs.<\/p>\n

This specific car has the earlier body style, thought to be from 1928 to 1929, married to the 1930 Cadillac chassis and engine. The customer wanted a V-16 Cadillac with a dual-cowl phaeton body as quickly as possible, and the new body wasn’t ready yet.<\/p>\n