1950 Cadillac Series 61 Le Monstre Le Mans Racer

The 1950 Cadillac Series 61 Le Monstre is an individual competition car with a body that makes its purpose immediately visible. Its low, broad, angular exterior bears little resemblance to the luxury coupe entered beside it at Le Mans. This archive profile concerns the documented original racer, serial 506112964, and keeps that one-chassis scope separate from Series 61 production.

History, identity and design

The modern racing-event photograph makes the unconventional body especially clear. A flat, low bonnet stretches across a wide front, with round lamps placed near the outer edges. The wheels are largely enclosed by body surfaces, and the open driving compartment rises only slightly above them. White paint and bold competition markings emphasize the car’s breadth. As visual interpretation, the shape appears organized around reducing interruption to the airflow, rather than preserving the ornamental identity of a Cadillac road car. That reading is consistent with the museum’s explanation of its rebodying purpose.

Revs Institute identifies the original Le Monstre through its serial and competition history. The museum describes Briggs Cunningham’s two-car approach: one Cadillac retained its recognizable production body, while the other was rebodied to pursue an aerodynamic advantage. That creates a useful paired story without making the two vehicles one interchangeable entry. Le Monstre and Petit Pataud have distinct serials, distinct bodies and separate records. The workbook’s broader two-car Le Mans row overlaps them and is held rather than imported as a third physical vehicle.

The museum records the Cadillac V-8 foundation and the Le Mans result, with Cunningham and Phil Walters associated with this car. Those facts belong to the documented racer. The photograph is a later view at the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion, not an image of the 1950 race itself. Its date and setting are retained in the caption. An archive can connect those two kinds of evidence without pretending that a modern paddock scene is a period event photograph or that a commemorative modern Cadillac is the same chassis.

For a collector or curator, the most useful comparison is with Petit Pataud. The cars share the historic project but express very different body solutions. One carries the recognizability of a Cadillac coupe; the other turns the body into an experimental racing surface. A one-chassis archive should preserve that individuality through serial, body history and exhibition documentation. Its rarity statement is therefore simple and scoped: one identified original vehicle. It does not claim that the Series 61 was produced in a one-car run or add replicas and later tribute editions to this record.

Specifications and production scope

Keeping the collector record useful

A useful Series 61 file separates the model story from the life of an individual vehicle. Record the body or edition designation exactly as it appears in matching documents, then keep clear front, side, rear and cabin photographs with the dates attached. Changes made during restoration deserve their own entries, including the reason for the work and the evidence used. That approach lets future readers compare the physical car with this profile without confusing a present appearance, an original factory specification and an attractive historical association.

Documentary photograph

The historic 1950 Cadillac Le Monstre at the 2022 Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion; a later documentary view, not a 1950 race photograph. The source image was checked for the pictured body or physical project and its file-specific reuse terms. The visible photograph caption links the photographer, original file and licence so the illustration can be traced independently of the article.

Frequently asked questions

What is the identity of the original Le Monstre?

Revs Institute records serial 506112964 for the 1950 Cadillac-based Le Mans car. This is the individual chassis scope of the profile, separate from the wider Series 61 model population and from modern tribute editions.

Is the photo from the 1950 Le Mans race?

It is a credited 2022 Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion photograph of the documented historic car. The caption preserves that later setting. Period race history and modern exhibition evidence are kept distinct.

What production scope applies to the 1950 Series 61 Le Monstre Le Mans Racer?

One identified original competition chassis: 506112964. The figure is an individual archive identity, not Series 61 manufacturing output.

What should a collector document on an individual example?

Keep the vehicle’s identification, body or edition evidence, dated photographs and restoration records together. This Series 61 profile explains the model subject; ownership, original finish and present condition require records that match the individual car being considered.

Does this profile provide a complete original specification?

The specification table records the supported identity and engineering context for this year. An exterior photograph cannot establish every optional feature or later component change. Preserve any matching build record before adding more precise equipment claims to the Series 61 Le Monstre Le Mans Racer file.

Who took the photograph and how may it be reused?

The bundled image is credited to Prova MO, under CC BY-SA 4.0 on its individual Commons file page. Keep the visible named credit and licence link. The supplied source version has no local image edits; background signage and photographer marks remain where present.

Sources

• Primary museum, manufacturer, event or contemporary source
• Primary museum, manufacturer, event or contemporary source
• Photograph: Cadillac Le Monstre at RMMR 2022 front.jpg

Related Cadillac profiles

Compare the body forms and clearly scoped identities in 1950 Cadillac Series 61 Petit Pataud Le Mans Racer and 1941 Cadillac Series 62 Convertible Coupe. Each profile keeps its own year, photograph and rarity scope.