1912 Crane Model 3 Four-Passenger Sport Landau

Offered by Bonhams | Amelia Island, Florida | March 2, 2023

The Crane & Whitman Company, founded by engineers Henry Crane and Allen Whitman, sprang up in 1906 and was known for their engines. Speedboat work came in 1907, when Crane developed a 200-horsepower V8 that would help set a motorboat speed record.

The Crane Motor Car Company was set up in 1909, and their first model, the Model 3, was ready for 1912. They were powered by a 110-horsepower, 9.2-liter inline-six. They were “premium” cars at a premium price: $9,000 for a bare chassis that you had to have bodied elsewhere. This one was bodied by a small coachbuilder called F.R. Wood in New York.

Less than 60 cars were produced by Crane through 1914, when they were acquired by Simplex. This is one of two survivors of what was one of America’s finest pre-WWI automobiles. The estimate is $180,000-$220,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Not sold.