peerless motor company
peerless custom 8 was a car produced by peerless motor company... . more on wikipedia
peerless series 69 was a car produced by peerless motor company... . more on wikipedia
peerless series 67 was a car produced by peerless motor company... . more on wikipedia
peerless deluxe custom 8 was a car produced by peerless motor company... . more on wikipedia
peerless was an american automobile produced by the peerless motor company of cleveland, ohio. the company was known for building high - quality, precision luxury automobiles .
peerless motor car co. , cleveland, oh. peerless motor cars 1910, 1909, man driving car and woman sitting on porch .
national museum of american history library, nmah library, peerless cars, peerless motor car co. ,
peerless motor car co. , cleveland, oh. peerless motor cars 1910, 1909, tool box with receptacle for prest - o - lite tank and seat covers for peerless cars (car driving in city) .
the peerless motor car company began in 1869 as the peerless wringer and manufacturing company. it became the peerless manufacturing company in 1891 when it added bicycles to its line of wringer washing machines. the plant on lisbon street, adjacent to the cleveland and pittsburgh railroad tracks, had a rectangular, two - story office. the cleveland rubber company, whose general manager l. k. mcclymonds presided over the peerless manufacturing company, stood next door .
ford motor company, cleveland branch assembly plant, euclid avenue & east 116th street, cleveland, cuyahoga county, ...
peerless motor car co. | encyclopedia of cleveland history | case western reserve university | case western reserve university
soon automobiles came along, and in 1902, the company became peerless motor car co. at first, peerless manufactured racing cars, notably the green dragon driven by barney oldfield, but then went on to build luxury cars. the last car built on the assembly line by peerless motor car co. was in 1931 .
like many american automobile manufacturers, the great depression proved to be too much of a challenge to the peerless motor vehicle company. the company built its last cars in june 1931, although some of these cars were sold as new models in 1932 .
in 1925 a new company peerless trading was set up in the uk to build british peerless trucks from spare parts and locally sourced components .
peerless was a united states automobile produced by the peerless motor car company of cleveland, ohio, usa. the company was known for building high - quality, precision luxury automobiles. peerless' factory was located at 9400 quincy avenue in cleveland, ohio. [ 1 ] the company also built heavy trucks from 1911 to 1918, with a large number being shipped to the uk during world war one .
established in 1869 in cincinnati to build clothes wringers, the peerless manufacturing company relocated to cleveland in the 1880s and began to build bicycles in 1891, then switched to cars around the turn of the century. peerless soon found a pretty good niche in automobiles, building some of america’s most prestigious luxury cars, and found enough success at it to warrant changing the company name to peerless motor car company in 1905 .
this 1932 peerless, with a complete aluminum body and engine, was one of only 3 built by the peerless motor car co. crawford auto - aviation museum, wrhs .
along with pierce - arrow and packard, peerless was one of the “three ps” known for making cars. but peerless did not always manufacture cars. before the company was peerless motor car co. , it was known as peerless manufacturing co. their products included clothes wringers, bicycles, and eventually horseless single - cylinder * buggies called motorettes .
peerless roots dates back to 1874 in cincinnati, ohio as a manufacturer of clothes wringers, clothespins, and washboards. from the beginning, the peerless company was successful and within a short fifteen years, had outgrown their facilities and were searching for new space. the company formed with the mercantile manufacturing company in cleveland and the new organization became the peerless manufacturing company. the cleveland location offered several advantages over cincinnati, mainly better access to shipping .
the peerless motor car company remains something of an enigma in the cleveland automobile industry. while the peerless car ranked among the nation' s most expensive, its production outlasted moat of cleveland' s medium - priced automobiles. while the peerless factory
foreshadowed the best in modern architectural trends ,
the plant' s manufacturing methods were twenty years behind the times when the company folded in 1931 .
and find catalogs by automobile manufacturers. let’s take a look at one of these catalogs, a catalog describing the 1910 car models for peerless motor car co .
historic american engineering record, creator, et al. peerless motor car company, east ninety - third street & quincy avenue, cleveland, cuyahoga county, oh. documentation compiled after. photograph. retrieved from the library of congress, < urltoken > .
in 1902, the company reorganized as the peerless motor car company with a capitalization of $ 600, 000. the company maintained l. k. mcclyraonds as president and appointed lewis h. kittredge as its general manager and lewis d. mooers as its mechanical engineer. mooers
designed a range of cars which were very advanced for their time ,
with shaft drive, bevel gears, and pressed steel - frame construction .
the peerless motor car company produced 90 automobiles in 1902, raising that total to 400 in 1903. the company manufactured many of its own components, becoming one of the first cleveland automobile plants to achieve a degree of self - sufficiency. that self - sufficiency did not lower the cost of the company' s automobiles. ranging in price from $ 2, 800 to $ 11, 000, the peerless was, in 1903 ,
the most costly touring car built in america .
the peerless motor vehicle company was located in cleveland, ohio. the peerless company originally built clothes wringers and bicycles but in 1900 began producing its first automobiles. in its early years, peerless was known for its innovation in automobile design. it was the first american automobile manufacturer to mount the engine in the front, using it to power the rear wheels through a solid drive shaft. this design dominated the american automobile industry throughout most of the twentieth century .
peerless motor cars 1910 is located in the trade literature collection at the national museum of american history library. take a look at galaxy of images to see more pages from this catalog .
the peerless motor car co. , noted for its luxury automobiles, was established in cleveland in 1889 as the peerless wringer & mfg. co. , located on the city' s east side at the junction of the cleveland & pittsburgh and the new york, chicago & st. louis railroads. by 1892 it had become the peerless mfg. co. originally a producer of washing - machine wringers, peerless moved to 2654 lisbon st. in 1895 and began making bicycles in the late 1890s. the company was manufacturing automobiles and parts in 1901 and was renamed the peerless motor car co. 2 years later. the company' s factory, built in 1906 at 9400 quincy ave. , was designed by architect j. milton dyer .
in the early part of 1900, the peerless manufacturing company became a parts supplier for the dedion - bouton matoretta, a french automobile manufactured in brooklyn, new york. when that company ceased production late in 1900, peerless began manufacturing its own motorette automobile as well as offering general machining and brass foundry services .
in 1930 - 31, peerless commissioned murphy body works of pasadena, california, to design what the company envisioned as its 1933 model. the task was assigned to a young frank hershey. hershey' s design for peerless was a remarkably clean, elegant vehicle, powered by the company' s planned v16 engine .
company director ron ham. it was set back to 2 litre form sometime in the 70’s or 80’s .
below is a list of all peerless cars & models that have come out so far. this peerless vehicle model list includes photos of peerless vehicles along with release dates and body types of each car. did you used to drive one of the old peerless cars on this list? the company has had hits and misses, but definitely have put out some great cars. this poll features items like peerless series 67 and peerless custom 8 this list of car models made by peerless is a great way to see how peerless has evolved over the years. peerless types also have car class information available if you click on their names and go to their dedicated page .
historic american engineering record, creator, j milton dyer, john mcgeorge, j c schultz, ernest mcgeorge, and l k mcclymonds. peerless motor car company, east ninety - third street & quincy avenue, cleveland, cuyahoga county, oh. cleveland cuyahoga county ohio, 1968. documentation compiled after. photograph. urltoken
whatever the rationale, peerless converted its factory at 9400 quincy avenue in cleveland from auto plant to beer brewery. hendry noted that peerless officially changed its name to the peerless corporation in 1934, but just about every other source refers to post - automotive peerless as the brewing corporation of america, and we’ve found no reference to the peerless name being used afterward. carling’s black label beer proved its most popular product, and the company grew rapidly during the mid - 1950s, changing its name once again in 1954 to carling brewing company .
during the first world war, the company supplied trucks and military automobile chassis in support of the war effort .
the peerless manufacturing company of cleveland, ohio became the world leader in laundry equipment and continued to find new business in licensing its designs and name to manufacturers outside north america .
the body was designed and built by murphy body co. of california. while work was underway on a coupe body murphy received word from the peerless company to stop the project; all automobile manufacturing was being ended. the sedan was driven back to cleveland and stored in the old peerless plant - which had been taken over by the carling brewing company .
to promote the company and its products, the company hired a famous race car driver, barry oldfield, to drive one of its cars. the car soon earned the nickname the
green dragon .
oldfield set a number of speed records in the green dragon, making peerless a respected name in automobile manufacturing. over time, a number of
green dragons
were built to advertise the company .
wonderful writing and photo, dan! i found a peerless once with a 6 - digit patent number which proved to go back to 1869. the company goes back to 1865 .
unfortunately, production was halted before the coupe versions could be completed. the decision was made to switch to beer production. the peerless sedan would be the final vehicle produced by the company .
the company survived for many years, struggling through the great depression era, and after completing one v - 16 prototype the company shut down in mid - 1932. when the volstead act was repealed, ending prohibition, the peerless applied for a license to brew carling' s black label beer and red cap ale. the company prospered and by the 1960' s had twenty - three breweries in the us. , canada, and overseas .
as with all peerless cars, this prototype is built largely of lightweight aluminum to a design by murphy. peerless was one of the very few companies to use a v - 16 engine, and the 465 - cubic - inch v - 16 in this prototype offered 173 bhp, enabling the car to cruise at speeds around 100 mph in great comfort. due to the economic climate at the time, the company decided that luxury cars were not the way to go. peerless ended car production entirely in 1932, and redirected its efforts into the far more lucrative brewing business. as such, this car is the very last car produced by the pioneering peerless motor car company. the prototype was later purchased by the crawford auto - aviation museum .
by 1960, peerless cars ltd. were in considerable financial difficulty and they were soon forced into liquidation. despite this, the enthusiasm of the directors continued, and rather than sell off the large quantities of spares and equipment for next to nothing, it was decided that they should form a new company and restart production on a more modest scale. the phase 2 peerless had (in company press releases) been describe
a sixty - horsepower four - cylinder peerless was created by mooers by 1904. it was used by the company' s new driver, eli' barney' oldfield for use in competition. the car was given the nickname, the' peerless green dragon' and would become a pillar in defining peerless' s reputation for high performance coupled with quality and durability .
established in cleveland in 1900, peerless motors began producing de dion' machines' under license from the french company. at the time, cleveland was the thriving center of automotive production in the united states. peerless employed barney oldfield as a driver of its green dragon racecar; in early speed races peerless proved the durability of the product and setting world speed records .
soon, peerless began to promote its automobiles as luxury cars. the company' s slogan became
all that the name implies .
advertising for the car described
an interior resembling a cozy and luxuriously furnished drawing room .
the focus on luxury meant that only wealthy americans could afford to own a peerless. unfortunately, although peerless had been known for its technical innovations in automotive design in the early years, it began to stagnate by the 1910s and 1920s. eventually, peerless no longer focused on the luxury market and began to manufacture automobiles for mainstream markets. the company changed its slogan to
now there' s a peerless for everyone .
but let’s go back to 1910 when the company was busy making cars. peerless motor cars 1910 illustrates two models for that year. model 27 is a four - cylinder thirty horsepower car and model 28 is a six - cylinder fifty horsepower car. the catalog begins with a description of both models including improvements for the 1910 models. one improvement was “a larger gasoline tank, holding about 22 gallons. ”
established in cleveland in 1900, peerless motors began producing de dion - bouton
machines
under license from the french company. at the time, cleveland was the thriving center of automotive production in the united states. peerless employed barney oldfield as a driver of its green dragon racecar; in early speed races peerless proved the durability of the product and setting world speed records. peerless was noted for its use of flat - plane crankshafts in its engine designs .
carling itself remained in business afterward, merging with national brewing company in 1975 before being bought out by g. heileman brewing in 1979. stroh then bought out g. heileman in 1996 and pabst in turn bought the carling brand from stroh in 1999. pabst continues to market carling black label in the united states today, while carling products overseas continue to be marketed by the descendant company of the original canadian carling company .
my grandfather rh collins and his associates purchased peerless motor car company in may of 1922. prior to that he was the president of cadillac. he left gm in 1922 along with his friend billy durant. he met durant in 1908 when he was general sales manager of john deere. he also was a general manager at buick and a vice president at gm exports sales prior to joining cadillac as president in 1918. i think that he left peerless in about 1926 and retired in pasadens, ca. his son wilbur collins and son - in - law frank miller were on the board at peerless also. .
historic american engineering record, c. , dyer, j. m. , mcgeorge, j. , schultz, j. c. , mcgeorge, e. & mcclymonds, l. k. (1968) peerless motor car company, east ninety - third street & quincy avenue, cleveland, cuyahoga county, oh. cleveland cuyahoga county ohio, 1968. documentation compiled after. [ photograph ] retrieved from the library of congress, urltoken
you can take todays peerless for a drive, you might get in trouble if caught .
peerless' downfall was in its quality. [ citation (source) needed ] in the 1920s, the company was producing conservatively - styled vehicles that would last for ten or more years. current peerless owners held onto their cars, which ran very well; new money buyers of luxury cars were attracted to lasalle, packard and the studebaker president series .
this article is about the american automobile. for other uses, see peerless (disambiguation) .
the peerless la type was a 7 - tonner of forward control layout fitted with a gardner engine .
two years after moving to cleveland, the company embarked on new business ventures; bicycle building had become popular and peerless followed the boom, entering the business around 1891. success again followed, but the business of bicycle making was short - lived, as auto production soon surpassed bicycles. peerless decided to follow the trend, and entered the new and uncharted world of automobile production .
the disagreement also resulted in peerless motors losing its franchise, which meant it eventually fell back into receivership. there had been an urgent need to find another project to keep the company afloat and john gordon managed to persuade jim keeble to join him as chief designer and (the only) engineer to help him develop a chassis for use with the corvette engine and gearbox. this car became know as the gordon gt. the new company (the gordon automobile company) approached many people in an endeavour to find strong financial backing without success and eventually, with only the prototype built, john gordon and jim keeble parted company. as it happens the project was resurrected at a later date and premises were established at eastleigh (hampshire) where' gordon keeble ltd' was founded. a total of 99 gordon keebles were built and many still survive to this day .
so it’s a bit of a fallacy to think that all automakers live and die by the car alone. as companies, they often have multiple streams of revenue and multiple paths to continued survival that frequently have nothing to do with cars. and sometimes, those non - automotive ventures keep the carmakers’ names – or even certain components, like engines – around long after auto production ceases, long after the official end dates given in the encyclopedias. no less, some of them make for good stories, as is the case with the peerless motor car company .
so in a way, you can still buy a peerless product. just don’t take it for a drive .
just as the car was ready to be shipped back to cleveland, the board of directors pulled peerless out of the automotive business and reoriented the company to brew beer under the carling black label brand. hershey' s prototype was walled up in a room at the peerless factory where it sat until the end of world war ii. hershey' s prototype is now owned by the crawford auto - aviation museum in cleveland .
peerless was the first company to successfully use a flyball governor to maintain speeds. they were the first to use a hinged steering wheel which allowed easier access into the cockpits for the driver. another first was the use of aluminum in their side - entrance tonneau along with being the first closed formal body in american production .
i have a lot of car pictures, including 2 of the 3 p’s packard & pierce arrow, but peerless has escaped me so far. metal recycling drives for war production were especially hard on peerless cars because of their high aluminum content .
of documentation regarding the factory. their documentation addresses the history of the structure and of the peerless operations in cleveland in detail .
around 1971, i found 17 peerless automobiles sitting in sheds on a farm in illinois, along with about 200 packards. the peerless cars were very large and beautifully appointed on the inside. there used to be a saying: the three p’s, packard, peerless, pierce arrow. i visited that farm nearly 40 years later and most of the cars on that farm had rotted into the ground .
throughout the catalog are images of several peerless cars. one of these is the peerless limousine. “planned and built on attractive lines calculated to please the most refined tastes, ” the peerless limousine seated five people. passengers had the luxury of electric reading lights, armrests, and a speaking tube to communicate with the driver. other cars illustrated in the catalog include the touring car, roadster, and landaulet .
the following peerless vehicles are deemed
classic cars
by the classic car club of america (ccca): 1925 series 67; 1926 — 1928 series 69; 1930 - 1 custom 8 and the 1932 deluxe custom 8. however, all peerless vehicles are considered collectible .
peerless' downfall was in its quality. in the 1920s, the company was producing conservatively styled vehicles that would last for ten or more years. current peerless owners held onto their cars, which ran very well; new buyers of luxury cars were attracted to lasalle, packard and the studebaker president series. the great depression made it difficult for many to afford these high - priced vehicles. the small group of individuals who could afford one slowly diminished and the competition from other builders decreased the number of potential buyers .
were published in march / april 1961 by autosport, the motor and the autocar. although
the motor
considered that there was a little understeer or oversteer, with the handling remaining well balanced at all times, john bolster, writing for
autosport
, thought that the handling was not as sure as the peerless he had previously tested. he initially believed that the warwick had a tendency to bounce on bumpy corners, whereas his colleague in the passenger seat had been very impressed with the roadholding, so he discounted his first assessment. meanwhile, stuart bladon of
the motor
tested the same car and criticised the roadholding and suspension, suggesting that the combination of tr front suspension and the de dion rear end did not work, with the matching springs not being ideal. little roll was reported and although remaining stable and following the chosen line, he believed there was a tendency to understeer. for some unaccountable reason the car was at its best on right hand bends! steering was noted to be heavier than the tr but redeemed itself at speed. lack of ground clearance and ineffectiveness of the handbrake were common complaints. the tr handbrake fitted to the peerless was excellent, however the warwick had an umbrella type pull handle located under the dashboard which lacked sufficient leverage .
a wonderful boost to sales followed and it was apparent that the available space at peerless motors was becoming insufficient to set up full production. fortunately a newly vacated factory became available on the farnham road (slough), it was large shabby and neglected but ultimately cheap. peerless cars ltd was then set up with the production facilities while' peerless motors' continued to handle the sales. although not eligible for the 1958 london motor show, they were allocated a stand at earls court the following year. here they displayed a red model with steel wheels and a stripped lhd chassis with wire wheels. the display formed part of a select group of moulded plastic bodied vehicles which attracted much attention. the peerless was highly acclaimed by the press for is standard of finish and the simple layout of the de dion rear suspension, considered by some to be the most technically interesting feature of the show .
in 1931 peerless closed its business, unable to find a market for luxury cars during the depression. the business was reorganized and eventually became the
louis p. mooers had some experience in building automobiles, and he was tasked with leading the peerless company in this new direction. peerless licensed dedion bouton designs, building both four - wheeled motorettes and three - wheeled tricycles from the single cylinder dedion engines. mooers first design for peerless used a two - cylinder engine with a single - throw crankshaft in which both pistons moved in he same direction. the engine layout followed the panhard system design which had the engine in the front and drive taken through to transmission and on to the rear axle by a driveshaft. this two - cylinder vehicle was elegant, built of high quality, and suitable to traverse the continually evolving roadways .
the slough (berkshire, england) built peerless gt believe it or not, derives its name from the premises at which it was originally manufactured more than 50 years ago. these premises had long had the association with the peerless marque, though not for anything as exotic as 2 + 2 sports cars. the peerless works had derived its name from the world war 1 american army lorries that it once prepared for re - sale .
jim is correct in noting that the peerless prototype is in the crawford collection. the main gallery has just undergone a multi - million dollar renovation. the peerless is part of the fantastic “setting the world in motion” exhibit which highlights the cleveland area’s historic contribution to the transportation industry. definitely worth a visit .
in 1931 a new updated range was introduced as the peerless 90 series and heavy duty 12 - tonner model on a six wheel chassis with shaft drive .
a very unusual and technically advanced aspect of the design was the cambered rear axle which was positioned at a three - degree positive angle in each rear wheel and required a complete rear axle to cope. according to the peerless company, the benefit of this design was higher ground clearance for the differential and strong wood - spoke wheels. in modern terms, it would be similar in design to the' positive offset rims.'
not withstanding all the criticism, even
the motor
considered that although the warwick may have seemed unacceptably rough, noisy and imperfect in some departments, at the basic price of £1666 it offered a distinctive combination of size, price and performance unique amongst british sportscars. at 105 mph, it was faster than any other closed four seater in it' s price range .
following the armistice of 1918, many lorries that had seen active service on the' western front' were brought back to a vehicle storage depot in slough (berkshire england) in order that they may be sold off as government surplus. a large majority of the lorries were american and a good proportion of these, were originally from the peerless lorry company in cleveland, ohio (u. s. a .). sales continued well in to the roaring twenties but gradually what remained of the lorries required considerable re - conditioning. slough lorries and components ltd were set up to recondition these ex - wd (war dept .) lorries and as time progressed they began to incorporate more and more british material into them. eventually they were making most parts of the vehicles themselves and indeed the british firm outlasted the original american company (as a lorry manufacturer) by several years. as a point of interest, the american company transferred it' s efforts to brewing alcoholic beverages !
throughout its history, peerless lagged behind in sales to cadillac and pierce - arrows, but it endured through many internal problems and management changes. in 1921 the company was sold to richard collins, the former president and general manager of cadillac. many of cadillac’s top level executives came with him. peerless assests were $ 14, 000, 000. 00 and all looked well. sales soared where other companies were stumbling along. even with this success, troubles continued and collins and his team were out. this team would make the 1926 pontiac. the peerless continued in business with different models until 1931, when it was decided that brewing a keg of carling black label beer would be more profitable. rh collins retired to pasadena, ca in about 1926 .
yet, peerless automobiles sold well. by 1906, the company had outgrown its lisbon street facility. it purchased, as a site for a new plant, a former farm at the corner of quincy avenue and oakdale street (e. 93rd street) abutting the new york and st. louis railroad tracks. that same year, 1906, lewis kittredge became president; edwin parkhurst, vice - president; and charles schmidt, chief engineer .
i have always respected peerless, and this car. it was designed by frank hershey, a renown walter m. murphy co. , coachbuilder (pasadena) designer. frank once told me that designing the peerless was his “proudest moment. ” i’ve seen it at the crawford museum (cleveland) and then drove by where the peerless plant “use” to be located. my understanding is that after the owner paid a huge amount for the car, that he didn’t keep it very long .
as the peerless evolved, it along with makes packard and pierce - arrow, became known as the' three - p' s' of premium vehicles in the united states .
my grandmother was james bohannon’s personal secretary and she would often mention the ‘peerless 16 cylinder all aluminum’. i think i saw that car at bohannon’s estate ‘greystone’ when she would visit him .
as the peerless evolved, it, along with makes packard and pierce - arrow, became known as the
three - ps of motordom
( premium vehicles) in the united states .
interest generated from the paris motor show alone had suggested that the sales potential could be at least 1500 cars a year. one american distributor had asked for 80 a month, rising to 150. the first three production peerless models came off the line toward the end of may 1958 and were displayed to the worldwide motoring correspondents early in june. press releases throughout the world acclaimed the peerless as the
sports car for the family man
. no longer was it a case of
either - or
for the young man who wanted a wife, a family and a sports car. another publicity stunt soon emerged as by far the most daring, in the form of an entry in the most demanding test of durability imaginable, le mans. what better publicity could there be than to enter the 1958 24 hour race (please see the le mans page for the full story). they managed to get two entries, one confirmed and one reserve. the result of this race surpassed all expectation. after 24 hours of almost continuous rain, the peerless finished 16th, winning it' s class .
unfortunately, at about this time trouble was brewing for the two peerless companies. it was proposed by another director that a further member, robert thornton, be brought onto the board. john gordon had reasons to disapprove of this move, but after a stormy meeting of the peerless cars directors, the entry of thornton was approved by a vote of three to two. john gordon and sam rostron promptly resigned. the resignation of this, the driving force behind the company caused some unease within the component supply companies and confidence was soon lost in the project. the last recorded factory built phase 2 peerless on record is chassis number gt2 / 00296, although gt2 / 00294 was registered at a later date. so it would appear that only about 50 phase 2s were ever built. (we do know that some were later assembled by various companies and registered following the demise of the even more short lived warwick project, built from spares left over but easily identified by their odd chassis numbers .
oldfield and mooers both left peerless in 1905 to join a st. louis business called moon. charles schmidt was given mooers position; schmidt was the former chief engineer for packard and an experienced high speed driver .
in regard to the last line, back in my younger (and stupider) days i took many peerless products for a drive, and i grounded my kids for months when i caught them doing the same thing .
peerless was one of the first companies to use electric lighting. they used a gray & davis system as early as 1910 and then upgrading in 1913 to a single voltage gray & davis system which now included an electric starter .
howell, james w. and hershey, hershey franklin q. franklin q. hershey' s murphy - bodied peerless v - 16 prototype collectible automobile, volume 12, number 4, december 1995. pp. 56 - 63 .
that ’32 peerless prototype is indeed a gorgeous car. i can easily understand why, among all the terrific designs frank hershey created at murphy (and of course elsewhere later), this was his “proudest moment. ” but in general i’m not very fond of peerless cars of the classic era. for some reason they usually had slab - flat sides, a look that (to me) suffered in comparison to the somewhat more rounded contours of the big packards and other contemporary classics .
with john gordon now firmly' on board', a second alloy bodied four - seater prototype was built and exhibited at the 1957 paris motor show where it was subjected to close scrutiny by some of the standard triumph board. needless to say, words of encouragement were expressed. on returning to england, the car was driven to the triumph factory were lyndon mills, harry webster, martin tustin and alick dick (of the triumph board of directors) made the proper congratulatory remarks. the object of that visit was achieved, standard triumph agreed to supply all the components needed to start full production .
as much as we auto enthusiasts hyperfocus and sometimes glorify the carmakers that brought us our favorite four - wheeled finery, at the end of the day, they’re simply businesses doing what they can to make a buck. sure, car guys oftentimes took the helm and cranked out some magnificent machinery, but they wouldn’t do so unless somehow, some way, they were sure that what they were doing would benefit the company in the long run .
in the 1912 peerless catalog were the 415 cubic - inch engine rated at 38 horsepower, a 578 cubic - inch unit with nearly 50 horsepower available, and a massive 825 cubic - inch engine that produced an astonishing 60 horsepower. these horsepower figures were really about half of what the engine truly produced. peerless did not bother giving horsepower figures; their patrons did not car for these details. the 825 cid engine still holds the guinness record as the largest engine ever cataloged and built for consumer use .
a good friend owns a 1931 peerless custom 8 club sedan that is under restoration. i have followed the progress on the car over the past several years and it is a magnificent looking machine with really excellent styling and attention to details such as curved door bottoms and splash pan that repeats that curve etc. there is a peerless club and they held a meet at the gilmore / ccca museum site this past summer. i hope one of the members writes in and lets us know how they can be contacted .
in 1930 a british 8 - tonner was introduced with a 4 - cylinder gardner diesel and optional pneumatic tyres based on a strengthened chassis of the earlier model. this was then followed by the peerless trader a new 8 - tonner with a meadows 6 - cylinder engine .
prior to it being displayed at the paris motor show, john bolster had tested the prototype for auto sport magazine, and the following year he carried out a more comprehensive test of a production car. the general finish had (by then) improved but some details needed more work. although heavier than the triumph and morgan two - seaters with the same power unit, the peerless was quicker off the mark. this was no doubt due to the de dion axle, which virtually eliminated wheelspin. also, the peerless accelerated better at the top end of the scale because of the more streamlined body which also gave the impressive top speed of 107 mph on test. the car ran straight and true at the high speeds it was capable of, and was surprisingly quiet when cruising in overdrive, but he felt that the engine could be heard and felt excessively at other times. the wheelbase in this new car was six inches longer and the track five inches wider that the equivalent triumph, giving a surprising improvement to the ride with virtually no roll, the de dion axle providing better wheel adhesion than the conventional rear end. this increase of track and wheelbase fulfilled the designer' s intention of making this a comfortable four - seater coupe with the strength and reliability of the tr mechanical components .
peerless continued to promote their product through endurance challenges and racing. they faired rather well in the early glidden tours, with perfect scores achieved in 1906 - 1908. they set a 1, 000 - mile endurance record and the fastest time ever in the mt. washington hillclimb in new hampshire .
by the early 1910s the company was producing nearly every important component in their cleveland factory for their automobiles. in 1912 a new line of t - head six - cylinder models were introduced, each featuring seven main bearings and dual ignition. also in their engine line up was the tried - and - true four - cylinder t - head unit which was rated at about 25 horsepower. the companies products were durable, effective, and built to last. their methods employed advanced manufacturing processes and use of the finest materials available .
this vehicle was once in the possession of mr. barney pollard, a legendary collector who had a vast collection of exquisite cars. it was featured in the automobile quarterly article on peerless by maurice d. hendry in 1937. it was restored sometime in the 1960s and again at a later point in history .
this example shown here represents a valiant attempt by james bohannon, the president of the company, to create a technically advanced vehicle with superb styling that could revitalize sales. the body is constructed of aluminum which was provided by alcoa. the engine is a massive 464. 6 cubic - inch v - 16 engine capable of producing nearly 175 horsepower. peerless was one of the few marques to ever use a 16 - cylinder engine in one of their automobiles, and joined the ranks of cadillac and marmon. the coachwork was the result of the famous builder, murphy. the main designer on the project was the 22 - year old franklin hershey. the result was a four - door, five - passenger sedan sitting atop a 145 inch wheelbase. designs in other bodystyles, such as coupe, roadster, and convertible were also created giving bohannon a selection to chose .
in a little over 12 months since jimmy byrnes and bernie rodgers had first sought the opinion of john gordon, they managed to build a thriving company that was so overwhelmed by demand for their product, they could barely keep up. in fact production was lagging five weeks behind orders, which was mainly attributable to the meagre output of five cars a week. simon hill (the sales manager) is reported to have said that he never actually had to sell the cars, anyone that was interested got a quick ride up the road in the demonstrator (if they were lucky), paid the deposit and mearly joined the growing waiting list. the fact that orders still came flooding in was made all the more astonishing when you discover that the list price of a peerless in 1958 was £990 + £500 purchase tax, yet a triumph tr3 could be bought for less than £1000 (including tax) .
precisely how many 2 and 3. 5 litre warwicks were ever made is not known as records are simply not available, the normally accepted figure however is about 40, although even that may be an exaggeration. if only to confuse matters even further, peerless and warwick registrations continued well into the 1960' s, made possibly by the liquidation sale of the remaining components after the closure of the factory. even up until june 1964 a magazine was advertising a
final consignment of new peerless phase 2' s at £895 - 0 - 0d (including purchase tax) prepared by lawrencetune of acton and sold by d. a. mullard ltd. , of middlesex .
the company started building tucks during 1911 fitted with their own 4 - cylinder gasoline engine in the 3 to 6 ton class. these early designs were of the bonnedted layout with a chain drive transmission. [ 2 ] in 1916 they launched a 2 - tonner with a shaft - drive. a large number were shipped to the uk following world war one to meet demand for trucks after large numbers were lost in france during the war and the military place orders with us supliers. when the war ended the military started to sell them off to the civilian market through distributor slough lorries and components ltd .
it’s kind of tragic to see a fine automaker discontinue cars and switch to something else, but in the 30s survival was everything and those willing to make radical changes were the ones that pulled through. of course we are plagued with a lot of what - ifs, in wondering what kind of car peerless would produce if it were still in business today .
this page uses some content from wikipedia. the original article was at peerless. the list of authors can be seen in the page history. as with tractor & construction plant wiki, the text of wikipedia is available under the creative commons by attribution license and / or gnu free documentation license. please check page history for when the original article was copied to wikia
for jimmy byrnes, it had been a natural choice to consider using triumph tr mechanical components, as more or less the entire management board of standard triumph were regular customers at his new restaurant, the saxon mill at warwick. in fact, lyndon mills (one of the triumph board of directors) was to become one of the strongest supporters of the peerless venture .
this vehicle, as with many other peerless automobiles, has cast aluminum body panels. it has the highly desirable electric starter and correct gary & davis electric headlights and sidelights. it is upholstered in maroon leather with a black cloth top and leatherette top boot. there are swivel - mounted jump seats in the rear which affords additional passenger room, bringing the total to seven .
the peerless model 36 - six, also known as the model k, was outfitted with the 578 cid engine and powered the elegant body which rested on a wheelbase that measured 137 - inches. the engine was inline with three pairs of cast - iron cylinders bolted to a large aluminum crankcase. it had a seven main bearing crankshaft made of imported steel and drove through a unique internally - expanding clutch to the four - speed transmission. the transmission was separately mounted to the frame. peerless used an open driveshaft and a separate arm between the transmission and the rear axle to help absorb the torque from the rear axle. the suspension was comprised of a live axle setup in both front and rear, with semi - elliptical leaf springs in the front and platform suspension in the rear .
the western development museum in saskatoon, saskatchewan, canada has a peerless model 36 right hand drive on display. it has only 100 miles on it. the wikipedia entry has a picture of it. apparently the family that ordered it never took possesion of it and it was parked until donated to the museum. it is displayed next to a pierce arrow. two beautiful limousines back to back from different eras .
james byrnes was an avid motor racing enthusiast who decided that he wanted a racing car built to his own specification. the car was to be for his own use on the racetrack, with a view to possibly supplying fellow club racers, if the project proved to be a success. with all this in mind, james byrnes (known to many as jimmy) approached bernie rodger (an experienced racing engine tuner and
special
builder who was always referred to a bernie) with a proposition to build such a car. mr rodger had an excellent pedigree, which not only included bodywork design and race engine tuning, but also the well acclaimed beart - rodger race car project (francis beart being a meticulous norton expert). however, it wasn' t long before the idea of a pure racing car had been set aside in favour of a more commercial venture. byrnes and rodger had decided that money could be made in the low volume production of a readily available low cost sports gt .
it may have also helped that cleveland was familiar ground for carling. founded in 1840 in london, ontario, carling’s first foray into the u. s. market came in 1880 when it bought out a cleveland brewery and sold carling beer either itself or through licensees in the united states until 1911. and as hendry noted, peerless still had cash, facilities, and organizational capabilities; it just needed a new product .
in 2008, this model 36 peerless was brought to monterey, california where it was offered for sale by rm auctions as part of their' sports & classics of monterey' auction. it carried an estimated value of $ 600, 000 - $ 700, 000 and was offered without reserve. a high bid of just $ 368, 500 including buyer' s premium was enough to secure new ownership. the lot was sold .
owing to the increased speed of the new manufacturing process, it was expected that 25 bodies and thus 25 cars could be produced each week. meanwhile, the first two lhd phase 2 cars were shipped to the usa prior to john gordon visiting john posselius in detroit and dorothy dean in los angeles to promote the new model, on his return the future looked particularly bright. shortly afterwards a request was made by jim keeble, he wanted to know if peerless would sell him a chassis. his intention was to install a chevrolet corvette engine and gearbox for an enthusiastic customer of his, rick nielson. this was a remarkable coincidence, for at that moment john posselius (of detroit) was shipping two corvette engines to slough for a similar project. john gordon agreed, but only if the conversion was done in the peerless motors workshop. this was a wise move as someone else was thereby funding the necessary development work.
peerless motor company was an american automobile manufacturer that produced the peerless brand of motorcars in cleveland , ohio , from 1900 to 1931 . one of the " three ps " - packard , peerless , and pierce-arrow-the company was known for building high-quality , luxury automobiles . peerless popularized a number of vehicle innovations that later became standard equipment , including drum brakes and the first enclosed-body production cars . 
peerless motor company was an american automobile manufacturer that produced the peerless brand of motorcars in cleveland, ohio, from 1900 to 1931. one of the " three ps " - packard, peerless, and pierce-arrow-the company was known for building high-quality, luxury automobiles. peerless popularized a number of vehicle innovations that later became standard equipment, including drum brakes and the first enclosed-body production cars.
peerless motor company was an american automobile manufacturer that produced the peerless brand of motorcars in cleveland, ohio, from 1900 to 1931. one of the " three ps " - packard, peerless, and pierce-arrow-the company was known for building high-quality, luxury automobiles. peerless popularized a number of vehicle innovations that later became standard equipment, including drum brakes and the first enclosed-body production cars.