In 1933 Cadillac took a bold step forward in automotive design with another Fleetwood model, the Aero-Dynamic Coupe. The original car was designed for the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair & Century of Progress and featured an advanced streamlined body, pontoon fenders and a fastback roofline that would influence American and international car design for decades. Packard and Mercedes-Benz, among other automakers, copied this fastback design for future models.

As discussed on this site, the Chicago World’s fair was a major event for automakers. At the same event, the Duesenberg “Twenty Grand,” the Pierce Arrow “Silver Arrow,” and the Packard Dietrich “Car of the Dome” were also introduced. Each of those cars was a milestone for the company in design – and today each of those cars is eminently collectable and valuable.

Although the Cadillac V-16 Aero-Dynamic Coupe was designed to be a one-off built especially for the World’s Fair, ue to consumer demmand, Cadillac decided to build additional Aero-Dynamic Coupes to fit on their V-8, V-12, and V-16 chassis.

Fleetwood produced 20 additional ultralight streamlined five-passenger Aero-Dynamic Coupe bodies through 1937. Of those cars, only eight were built on the V-16 chassis. The V16 models, of which this is one, were built on a massive 154-inch wheelbase, the longest ever used on a Cadillac production car.

This car is the final example made and the only V-16 Aero-Dynamic Coupe made in 1937. She currently resides in the Nethercutt Automobile Museum in Sylmar, CA.