Two Cars in Hershey

1914 Jeffrey Six Model 96 Five-Passenger Touring

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Hershey, Pennsylvania | October 10-11, 2019

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

The Jeffrey was kind of an important marque. It was founded by Thomas B. Jeffrey and his son Charles. They started by building the Rambler, but after Thomas died, Charles changed the name to Jeffrey. In 1917, the company was sold to Charles Nash (after Charles survived the Lusitania sinking), and the name changed again. Nash eventually merged into AMC, which is now part of Chrysler… which is now part of Fiat. So this is just like an old Fiat.

Jeffrey cars were only sold between 1914 and 1917. Three models were offered in 1914 and the Six was the largest. It is powered by a 48 horsepower inline-six. Over 10,000 Jeffreys were sold in 1914, and this one should bring between $30,000-$50,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $52,250.


1909 Enger Model B High-Wheel Runabout

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Hershey, Pennsylvania | October 10-11, 2019

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Frank J. Enger set up shop in Cincinnati in 1909 to build high-wheelers. More traditional touring cars followed in 1910, but the company folded in 1917 after Frank’s suicide in his office. This high-wheeler is from the first year of production.

The Enger high-wheeler was actually a normal car but with big wheels. It’s pretty much the original donk. Three models were offered that year, and the Model B was the least expensive at $1,600. It’s powered by a 14 horsepower flat-twin. This one should bring between $15,000-$25,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale. Also, I really want this car.

Update: Sold $45,100.

Galloway Wagon

1908 Galloway Dual Purpose Vehicle

Offered by Bonhams | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | October 3, 2016

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

The Galloway was an American automobile built by the William Galloway Company of Waterloo, Iowa, between 1908 and 1911. The lone product of the company between 1908 and 1910 was this so-called Dual Purpose Vehicle, named because it was meant to “drive to church on Sunday and be put to work on Monday.”

Having been built in Iowa, the Highwheeler design was probably apt, as it could be used by country folk to get around on the rough, unpaved roads of the day. The engine is a 14 horsepower flat-twin and the tires are solid.

Costing $570 when new, this extremely rare example is expected to bring between $10,000-$20,000 at auction. This wagon is almost all-original (except for a very old repaint) and has been in the same ownership since the 1930s(!). It’s not running now but has in recent years and can probably be made streetable with relative ease. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $26,400.

Dart Highwheeler

1909 Dart

Offered by Auctions America | Auburn, Indiana | September 4, 2016

Photo - Auctions America

Photo – Auctions America

The Dart Manufacturing Company was a very short-lived automobile marque from Anderson, Indiana. And by short-lived, we mean short: the Dart was available for about a year between 1909 and 1910.

Not only that, but the company didn’t actually sell complete cars. The specialized in building gasoline engines, but because every other company on earth was getting into the car business, they tried their hand at it too. A running chassis/engine combo was available to the public, but the owners had to find their own body. In this case, a Highwheeler-type carriage was mounted to the chassis. The 10 horsepower engine sports two cylinders and drives the rear wheels via twin chains.

It looks identical to many other highwheelers of the era and carries an older restoration that isn’t perfect, but good enough that you can both show and drive it. It may be the only remaining Dart in existence and it should bring between $15,000-$25,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Auctions America.

Update: Sold $14,300.

Victor Electric Highwheeler

1907 Victor Electric Runabout

Offered by Coys | London, U.K. | December 3, 2013

1907 Victor High Wheel Electric Runabout

There is some confusion as to the origin of this car, but one thing is certain: it is called Victor. It has electric power and it is also a highwheeler of American origin. There was a company in St. Louis which operated from 1907 to 1911 called the Victor Automobile Manufacturing Company and they specialized in highwheelers for the first two years of their existence.

Coys mentions that this is the only Victor ever produced (there is even a tacky homemade plaque on the side of the car proclaiming this “fact”). They mention that the car could’ve been a one-off built in Nebraska, but that there isn’t any proof.

I offer a third possibility: Victor of St. Louis built highwheelers in 1907 that used a two-stroke engine. Perhaps they experimented with an electric drivetrain on one? Who knows. At any rate, the electric system has been completely redone lately and this thing will do about 70 miles on a charge and tops out around 30 mph.

It’s in the U.K. now, but it is available for purchase. It should sell for between $61,000-$88,500. Click here for more info and here for more from Coys in London.

Update: Not sold.

Update II: Sold, Historics at Brooklands, June 2016, $54,145.

A Pair of 1910 Sears Motorcars

1910 Sears Model G Runabout

Offered by Bonhams | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | October 7, 2013

1910 Sears Model G Runabout

Mail-order automobiles might seem like a ludicrous idea – but think about eBay. People buy cars, sight unseen, every minute online. So maybe Sears was just way ahead of the game. Between 1906 and 1911, you could order a variety of cars from Sears, Roebuck & Company catalogs.

They were built in Chicago (where this car has spent a large part of its life in the Museum of Science and Industry) and this model is a high-wheeler. The increased ride height was great news for rural Americans whose roads were rugged. Buying from a catalog was probably their best bet as well – as they bought just about everything else from Sears too.

The most this car has going for it is that it is an original Sears chassis. The engine is missing, as is the transmission, and the body is described as “not an accurate recreation.” That doesn’t make it that much less interesting. It could still command between $15,000-$20,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $3,850.

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1910 Sears Model P Four-Passenger Motorbuggy

Offered by Bonhams | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | October 7, 2013

1910 Sears Model P Four Passenger Motorbuggy

Here’s another Sears automobile – and this one’s a runner. It’s also a little more practical as it has a roof, four seats and a more traditional layout. But where’s the engine? It’s under the seats. It’s a 1.8-liter flat-twin making 14 horsepower. You’d think, with automakers chasing perfect weight distribution, that someone would try to mount a flat engine underneath the passenger compartment today – but “necessities” like air conditioning make that unlikely, and this car obviously didn’t have to worry about air conditioning.

It’s chain-driven, has solid rubber tires and tiller steering. This was the largest car Sears built (and is the rarest today). They cost between $325-$485 out of the catalog. Every car they sold was sold at a loss – a solid business plan that might explain why only 3,500 Sears-branded motorcars were built in the five short years they were available.

This car entered Chicago’s Museum of Science and Industry in 1972 and was sold from there by Bonhams in 2008. It’s actually a pretty cool car for as basic as it appears. It should sell for between $25,000-$35,000. Click here for more info and here for the rest of Bonhams’ awesome lineup at the Simeone Foundation.

Update: Sold $38,500.

Columbia Highwheeler

1899 Columbia Motor Buggy

Offered by Bonhams | Oxford, U.K. | June 15, 2013

1899 Columbia Highwheeler

I’ll start by saying that this is listed as a “circa 1899” so I’m just going with 1899. The Columbia Automobile Company was founded as a joint venture between the Pope Manufacturing Company and the Electric Vehicle Company in 1899. They offered electric and gasoline powered cars. In 1904, Columbia offered 37 different electric cars and two gas-powered ones. By 1911, there were only two electrics while gasoline cars offered had risen to 10.

In 1911, Columbia came under the control of the United States Motor Company – one of the first major “automotive conglomerates.” It over-expanded and failed in 1912, taking Columbia, one of America’s first manufacturers, down with it.

This car is possibly from the launch-year of manufacture. It is powered by a 616cc two-stroke vertical twin-cylinder. It hasn’t run since 1986 but it’s still early and interesting. There aren’t many of them left and this is the only one in the U.K. It should sell for between $23,000-$27,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Bonhams’ Banbury Run sale.

Update: Sold $17,966.