Tag Archives: 1920

Gray-Dort Touring

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1920 Gray-Dort Model 15 Touring

Offered by Worldwide Auctioneers | Auburn, Indiana | August 31, 2019

Photo – Worldwide Auctioneers

William Gray founded a carriage-building company in Chatham, Ontario in 1856. In 1915, his company began selling American-made Dort cars under license in Canada. By 1916, they were building the cars themselves and fitting them with luxurious and innovative features. The first reverse light was installed on a Gray-Dort.

This Model 15 touring car is powered by a 21 horsepower, 3.2-liter Lycoming inline-four. The cars were popular in Canada, outselling Chevrolet there for a period of time. And Canadians took notice – the Canadian Parliament named Gray-Dort a national treasure. The Bricklin didn’t get that honor.

About 26,000 cars were built through 1925, which is when Dort closed down. Gray-Dort searched for another manufacturer to hook up with, attempting deals with Nash and Hudson before trying the American company Gray. But Gray closed down in 1926 and Gray-Dort was gone. Only 30 examples of their work remain, and this one will sell at no reserve. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $6,600.

Haynes & Apperson

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1912 Haynes Model 19 Runabout

Offered by Bonhams | Tupelo, Mississippi | April 27, 2019

Photo – Bonhams

Elwood Haynes teamed up with Elmer and Edgar Apperson in 1894 to build one of America’s first gasoline-powered automobiles. They began selling their cars in 1898, and the Apperson brothers left the company in 1904 to form their own venture.

Haynes soldiered on under his own name through 1925. Two possibilities exist with this car: A. It is a 1910 Model 19, the only model offered by Haynes that year. B. It is a 1912 Model 20 Roadster. It is powered by a 4.6-liter inline-four that would’ve made 36 horsepower in 1910 and 30 horsepower in 1912, the latter of which is listed in the catalog. Who knows? We’ll go with the combo of facts stated in the catalog.

Either way it, bizarrely, carries a wicker body. So it would be right at home in your grandmother’s living room. It’s certainly unique in that regard, and it is also a nice piece of American history. It should bring between $30,000-$50,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Bonhams.

Update: Sold $40,320.

1920 Apperson Model 8-20 Anniversary Tourster

Offered by Bonhams | Tupelo, Mississippi | April 27, 2019

Photo – Bonhams

When the Apperson brothers parted ways with Elwood Haynes in 1904, they remained in Kokomo, Indiana and built their own cars through 1926. The fun thing about Apperson was that they were one of the first American car companies to apply “names” to their cars other than “Model X, Y, and Z.” The Jack-Rabbit put them on the map.

They were also early adopters of the V8, selling their first such example in 1915. The Anniversary model was sold in 1919 in celebration of the company’s 15th anniversary. It became a mode unto itself in 1920, and the Tourster variant was again available in 1921.

Power is from a 60 horsepower, 5.4-liter V8. Apperson built a lot of cars back in the 20s, but it’s through that less than 25 remain. This one, with its body-color disc wheels that really sell the whole Jazz Age look, should sell for between $25,000-$40,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $47,040.

Apperson V8 Tourster

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1920 Apperson Model 8-20 Anniversary Tourster

Offered by Bonhams | Tupelo, Mississippi | April 27, 2019

Photo – Bonhams

When the Apperson brothers parted ways with Elwood Haynes in 1904, they remained in Kokomo, Indiana and built their own cars through 1926. The fun thing about Apperson was that they were one of the first American car companies to apply “names” to their cars other than “Model X, Y, and Z.” The Jack-Rabbit put them on the map.

They were also early adopters of the V8, selling their first such example in 1915. The Anniversary model was sold in 1919 in celebration of the company’s 15th anniversary. It became a mode unto itself in 1920, and the Tourster variant was again available in 1921.

Power is from a 60 horsepower, 5.4-liter V8. Apperson built a lot of cars back in the 20s, but it’s through that less than 25 remain. This one, with its body-color disc wheels that really sell the whole Jazz Age look, should sell for between $25,000-$40,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $47,040.

Bellanger Torpedo

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1920 Bellanger Type A Series 1 17CV Torpedo

Offered by Bonhams | Paris, France | February 7, 2019

Photo – Bonhams

Bellanger was founded just outside of Paris in 1912 by Robert Bellanger and his brothers. The company only lasted until 1925, when Robert entered politics and sold the factory to Peugeot, who later sold it to Rosengart.

Early Bellanger cars used sleeve-valve engines, but the Type A is powered by a 3.2-liter straight-four rated at 17 taxable horsepower in the day. A four-door Torpedo touring body is fitted.

This particular example is coming out of a collection that Bonhams began liquidating last year. It’s full of rare French and Belgian marques from this era. A recommissioning is recommended as the car has not been used in recent years. When was the last time you saw one? It should sell for between $30,000-$35,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.

Lone Star Touring

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1920 Lone Star Beauty Four 5-Passenger Touring

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Phoenix, Arizona | January 17-18, 2019

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Lone Star was a short-lived brand of automobile that was, in one very specific way, ahead of its time. Sold by the Lone Star Motor Truck and Tractor Association of San Antonio, Texas, the Lone Star was actually just a Piedmont (built in Virginia) with a different badge. You know, kind of like how the Chevy Tahoe and GMC Yukon are the exact same truck with different badges and marketing?

The Lone Star was sold from 1919 through 1922, and it’s thought that only 12 examples were produced (maybe shoppers in 1920 were able to see through the “buy Texas-made stuff” B.S. that people today so readily jump at?).

The Beauty Four is powered by a Lycoming inline-four making 35 horsepower. The 5-Passenger Tourer was the only body style offered. Restored, this is the only Lone Star thought to survive. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $44,800.

Four Cars From RM in Auburn

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Four Cars From RM in Auburn

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Auburn, Indiana | August 30-September 2, 2018

1913 Maxwell Model 25 Touring

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Maxwell was founded in 1905 by Jonathan Dixon Maxwell and Benjamin Briscoe in Tarrytown, New York. It was the only surviving marque of Briscoe’s disastrous United States Motor Company conglomerate and would become known as Chrysler in 1925.

The Model 25 was actually sold in 1914 through 1924 but this car is apparently titled as a 1913. Power came from a 21 horsepower straight-four backed by a 3-speed manual transmission. This car is unrestored and would make a great driver. It should bring between $20,000-$30,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $13,200.

1914 White Model Thirty G.A.H. Touring

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

The White Motor Company was around for 80 years, but only produced passenger cars for the first 18 of those. And the earliest examples were powered by steam before they focused on gasoline power (and ultimately diesel trucks).

White had a very strange model naming system going from about 1910 through 1916. Take for instance, this Model G.E.D. Touring. The 1914 model range consisted of the Model Thirty, the Model Forty, and Model Sixty. The Model Thirty was broken down as the G.A.F. Touring, Roadster, and Coupe. G.A.H. cars were actually built in 1916 so it’s hard telling why this is titled as a 1914. At any rate, it should bring between $45,000-$65,000 and you can read more here.

Update: Sold $29,700.

1919 Cole Aero Eight Sportster

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

The Cole Motor Car Company was founded by Joseph Cole in Indianapolis in 1909. Their claim to fame was that they were one of the first companies to offer a V8 engine in their cars. It debuted in 1915 for the 1916 model year and would last through the end of Cole production in 1925.

1919 Coles were dubbed the Series 870 and featured a 39 horsepower version of the company’s V8. In 1920, the “Aero Eight” moniker was introduced and the $2,750 4-passenger Sportster would’ve featured an upgraded 80 horsepower version of the engine. If this is a true Sportster, it’s going to have the big engine. It should bring between $20,000-$30,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $28,600.

1920 Buick Model K Roadster

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Buick only offered six-cylinder cars between 1919 and 1921. 1919’s Model H would become 1920’s Model K. For 1921 Buick moved to the Series 21 and would continue with numerical sequencing through 1924.

A 4.0-liter straight-six created 27 horsepower in the Model K and this 2-door, 3-passenger Roadster was the cheapest model offered at $1,495. About 19,000 of them were made in 1920 and this one should bring between $15,000-$25,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $14,300.

1920 Buick Model K

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1920 Buick Model K Roadster

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Auburn, Indiana | August 30-September 2, 2018

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Buick only offered six-cylinder cars between 1919 and 1921. 1919’s Model H would become 1920’s Model K. For 1921 Buick moved to the Series 21 and would continue with numerical sequencing through 1924.

A 4.0-liter straight-six created 27 horsepower in the Model K and this 2-door, 3-passenger Roadster was the cheapest model offered at $1,495. About 19,000 of them were made in 1920 and this one should bring between $15,000-$25,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $14,300.

1920 Stearns-Knight

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1920 Stearns-Knight L4 Touring

Offered by Bonhams | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | October 2, 2017

Photo – Bonhams

F.B. Stearns and Company set up shop in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1898 (when Frank Stearns was only 19 years old). Production really got under way in 1901 and their cars were like most others of the time. In 1912 the company began using Knight sleeve-valve engines in their cars. It was from this point, until new corporate overlord Willys-Overland dissolved the marque 1930, that the company would be part of a handful of Knight-suffixed marques.

The L4 (or SKL4) was introduced in 1918 as a model name and it lasted through 1923. For 1920, it was the only Stearns-Knight offered and it could be had in eight different body styles. It would appear that this is a five-passenger touring, the slightly smaller alternative to the $225-more-expensive seven-passenger touring that was also offered. The engine is a 23 horsepower, 4.1-liter straight-four.

This well-patina’d and all-original example was discovered in a barn in 2003 in West Virginia. It is believed to be the only surviving 1920 Stearns-Knight Touring car out of a total 1920 production run of 3,850. It still runs and drives, having covered only 23,934 miles in the last nearly 100 years. This is a fantastic chance to get behind the wheel just like someone did 97 years ago. It should bring between $25,000-$35,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.

ReVere Touring

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1920 ReVere Model A Four-Passenger Touring

Offered by Bonhams | Amelia Island, Florida | March 9, 2017

Photo – Bonhams

Named for Paul Revere, the ReVere Motor Car Corporation of Logansport, Indiana, was founded in 1918. It sprung up with a lot of fanfare and its chassis engineer was none other than Gil Andersen, the Norwegian-born pole sitter for the second running of the Indianapolis 500.

The first ReVere models were built in 1919 and the 1920 models were exactly the same. The Model A featured a marvelous engine from Duesenberg. It’s a 5.9-liter straight-four making 106 horsepower. It is touted as the most powerful American car of its day. The body is aluminium – it was made to go fast. And why wouldn’t it? It had three keys of speed going for it: an engine designed by the Duesenberg brothers, a factory within an hours drive of Indianapolis, and two race car drivers on the development payroll. Demonstration runs in the cars were performed by Cannonball Baker.

Unfortunately, the people at the top of the managerial heap at ReVere were more interested in robbing investors. The company was more or less a front to sell stock and rip people off. It worked and they raised a lot of money – but only built a few cars. The company was shut down in 1922 and one of the early founders (Adolph Monsen) tried to relaunch it, but ReVere was gone for good after 1926.

It is believed that only six ReVere automobiles exist today. Despite being run by con artists, the company managed to build great cars. This one is mostly original and does run and drive. It should bring between $125,000-$175,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Bonhams.

Update: Sold $137,500.

1920 Detroit Electric

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1920 Detroit Electric Model 82 Brougham

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Plymouth, Michigan | July 30, 2016

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby's

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Some things come back around and right now, thanks to Tesla, electric cars are hot. But back in the early days of the automobile, when different propulsion systems were fighting for supremacy, electric cars were fairly popular as well.

Part of the reason for their popularity was the ease with which one could operate such a car. There was no crank, no warming up. You just got in and went. This car is powered by a 4.3 horsepower electric motor.

Only 95 of this type were made, making it quite rare today. Remarkably, this example has known ownership history from new and was originally purchased in Canada. Today, it should bring between $60,000-$80,000. Click here for more info and here for more from RM Sotheby’s.

Update: Sold $66,000.