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Originally Posted by 2strokebloke
Well then. I believe Peerless built a single V16 in 1932, at least I think it was 1932.
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Correct. Peerless was the ONLY other American automaker to build a V16 roadcar in 1932. The Peerless V16 was unique for a few reasons:
1) It was gorgeous and glamorous, with a sleek design and a luxurious interior
2) It was powerful, with its 464 ci engine putting out plenty of smooth power and torque
3) This was the most important part, the entire car, engine, chassis, body, was made of aluminum
Peerless teamed up with Alcoa, the aluminum company to build a car that would feature the then rarely used (in cars, at least) metal. The aluminum work was incredible, with the weight being kept down significantly (Duesenberg also employed generous amounts of aluminum in the J, with the heads, firewall, radiator and a few other parts cast of aluminum. If you look at the pictures on the sites link here, you'll notice a silver rim around the fenders. It looks simple, just a piece of metal fitted on the outside, but this is actualy part of the fender, rolled aluminum made to look like it was added afterwards! Having seen this car in person, I will say, it is a beautiful car to behold, too bad there is so little out there on it.
Pictures:
http://perso.wanadoo.fr/trombinoscar...rless3201.html
Info on the museum it is currently housed at:
http://www.wrhs.org/crawford/default.asp
Also, as far as the fate of Peerless. After making the V16, the board at the company sat down to discuss its future. The depression was in full swing, and market such an extravagant car was sure to be a failure, so the higher ups decided to just pull the plug on ALL of Peerless's auto operations, and turn the company into a brewing company. It is still around today as a brewing company.
OK, 2-stroke, back to you!