Was Al Capone's 1928 Cadillac the World's First Civilian Armored Car?

Al Capone, the boss of the Chicago Outfit, is arguably the most iconic gangster of the Prohibition era. He was American's biggest mobster for seven years, and that meant two things for him. He had a lot of power, but he was also a target for several assassination attempts from gangster rivals.

Capone wasn't hauling moonshine himself, but he spent a lot of time in his car getting business sorted out or getting rid of his rivals. Following a 10-car drive-by ambush, Capone realized that he needed better protection against automatic weapons, so he commissioned what could be the world's first civilian armored car. I'm obviously talking about his highly modified Cadillac Series 341, which was offered for $1 million back in January 2021.

Built at the local parts shop

Armored cars weren't commercially available in the 1920s. Although many automakers had developed armored vehicles before and during World War I, they weren't available to civilians.

Capone had to take the matter into his own hand, so he took his 1928 Cadillac Series 341, which was part of the company's famous V8 line, to a local auto shop to have it prepped for Chicago's then-common street wars.

Much like a moonshine hauler, Capone's Caddy looked almost identical to the stock car once the shop was done with it. But in reality, it was a very different car thanks to heavy armor plating mounted into the doors and one-inch (25-mm) thick bulletproof glass all around.

It's believed that the plating and the bulletproof glass weighed around 3,000 pounds (about 1,360 kg), some 30% more than the curb weight of the Cadillac itself.

Evading from an attack would have been obviously tricky in a car that tipped the scales at more than 5,000 pounds (2,268 kg), so the big 5.6-liter V8 was modified too.

It's not clear whether the beefed-up engine delivered notably more than the stock 90 horsepower, but Capone's Cadillac was reportedly fast enough to reach 110 mph (177 kph), higher than any American sedan of the era.

But Capone wanted more than a big sedan that could survive a drive-by shooting. He wanted his men to be able to fight back, so the Caddy was fitted with side windows that could be cranked up to create a two-inch (50-mm) gap at the base, just enough for the barrel of a Thompson machine gun.

Likewise, the rear window opened as well, allowing Capone's gunmen to shoot at pursuing vehicles. Finally, Capone had the four-door refinished in green, a color that made it indistinguishable from Chicago police cars of the era, many of which were also Cadillacs.

The police siren and the flashing lights mounted behind the grille also helped Capone disguise himself in track. The police radio hidden in the glove compartment kept the mobster informed of law enforcement activities.

Capone bought a second Cadillac in 1930, this time around a Series 452 fitted with the then-new 7.4-liter V16 engine.

The Imperial Sedan was modified in a similar fashion but also fitted with slit cuts into the floor so that oil and tire-puncturing tacks could be dropped to obstruct pursuers.

Capone reportedly spent a whopping $30,000 to upgrade this car. That would be almost $500,000 in 2021.

The world's first civilian armored car?

Armored cars are believed to have surfaced for the first time in 1902 when Vickers, Sons & Maxim of Barrow finished a prototype designed by Simms using a Daimler chassis. By 1920, both Rolls-Royce and Peugeot had built their own armored cars. However, all of them were destined for military use and not offered to civilians.

By 1928, when Capone had his first Cadillac modified, Mercedes-Benz and other carmakers were also offering armored cars, but only to state leaders, government, and military personnel.

With no proof of armored vehicles commissioned for or built specifically for civilian use, it's safe to say that Capone's 1928 Cadillac was the world's first such car.

What happened to Al Capone's armored Cadillacs?

Both cars are known to exist today and have been sold recently. The Series 341 model was left with a Chicago auto dealer when Capone went to prison in 1931, but it was eventually sold to a promoter who shipped it to London to serve as an attraction at an amusement park.

The car spent some 40 years abroad before returning to U.S. soil in 1975 to help promote Steve Carver's biographical crime film "Capone." The Cadillac was auctioned off for $341,000 in 2013 and then listed for $1 million in January 2021.

The V16 sedan, which Capone didn't get to drive much before serving his federal sentence, was impounded initially by the FBI. It remained in U.S. custody for several years before being sold a few times privately. It made one final public appearance in 2009 when it was auctioned off for $309,000.