Quiz Archive

About Quiz # 211 1917 Model T.... <br>... Interstate <br> various UPDATES

No Dodge. No Apperson. No Stutz. No Studebaker. No Haynes. Lots of different names came in and only two competitors coughed up the right "Interstate". Well done Tony Prebensen and Peter Ransom. Peter Ransom was more accurate by expressing his doubt the car being a 1916 or 1917 and that aside he gave a good condensed report: "It's an Interstate Model T 2-passenger Roadster, inexpensive at $850 in 1916 or $950 in 1917-18, with a 110" wheelbase and 4-cylinder Beaver 19.6hp engine. Built in Muncie, Indiana, in 1916-18 (no Roadster in 1915) after manufacturer F.C. Ball had bought out the bankrupt Inter-State Automobile Company. Ball thrives today in the packaging industry. One source suggests Interstate suspended auto manufacture for the duration of the war, but they sold new cars throughout. Nevertheless, there was no car manufacture after 1918 and the plant was sold to GM. Ball Corp's website says Inter-State, before the buy-out, Interstate after." Congratulations Peter! (photos by Mark Fiedrich who is greatly interested in leanrning more about the history of this rare-rare-rare American make). Can you help with more than Georgano or the Standard Catalogue have to offer? Contact Us
UPDATES see for a wealth on info Read More Update by Phil Brooks (22-2-2010): "Sandra Paxton Chaney is incorrect on several points about the Interstate Car Company. The Interstate Car Company filed bankrupcy & closed after converting to make trucks for WWI & the war ended before many were sold to the US Gov. Billy Durant came to Muncie in 1918 to look at the closed plant at the request of Thomas Warner (developer of the syncro transmission & founder of Borg Warner). Warner was making auto parts for the Interstate with over 500 employes that became unemployed with the closing of the Interstate plant & he was the largest owner of GM stock in Indiana & knew Durant. He asked Durant to come to Muncie & look at his syncro trans & look at the closed Interstate plant. After a $2 million change over to trucks by Interstate ended up in bankrupcy Billy offered them $250,000 for the plant promising to employ all the former employes plus many more! They sold it to him & he put $7 million into it to make the Sheridan & give Muncie, Indiana "The most modern car assembly plant in the world!" He was kicked out of GM for the last time in 1920 in a stock ownership war that he lost to the Duponts costing him millions. At the SAME time he was converting the Interstate plant to the Sheridan plant he was building the Chevrolet plant near it. The orginal blueprints were saved by me & given to Ball State University Library & say right on them "Chevrolet-Muncie plant" in 1919. The smokestack said "Chevrolet" on it from day one BUT the plant opened as Muncie Products,Division of GM because Billy wanted Warner's Synco-Mesh transmissions to go into other GM cars besides just the Chevrolet. It was not officially called "Chevrolet-Muncie" until 1935. Billy came back to Muncie in 1921 & bought the Sheridan plant back from GM for $5 million & all of a sudden the Sheridan became the Durant. I worked at the Chevrolet-Muncie plant from 1965 until it was finally closed in 2007 & bulldozed down in 2008. We were named many things to survive over the years. Many more stories than space allows. The Interstate Car plant became the Sheridan plant & then the Durant plant & then finally the Delco Battery plant. Delco Battery built a new plant south of Muncie & closed the original plant. The original Interstate/Delco Battery plant was torn down years ago & Chevrolet used some of the Delco Battery out buildings for used machine storage for many years."

Update by Sandra Paxton Chaney (12-6-2008):"...The car belonged to my father, Albert Lee Paxton, before he gave it to me. Before that, it belonged to American Finance Co, which was formerly Interstate Finance Co. The Inter-State was used for publicity purposes."

UPDATE by Kit Foster:"The former Interstate plant had a long life in manufacturing transmissions, but I doubt that it ever produced synchronized transmissions for the Sheridan (not Sheraton). Sheridan was one of the brands that Billy Durant added to his GM enterprise before his final ouster. Sheridans were built in the old Interstate plant in Muncie, but the make died before synchro transmissions were developed.

After the Sheridan was discontinued, GM kept the plant and went into transmission manufacture, and Chevrolet manual 'boxes were made there for decades. "Muncie close-ratio" is a term often applied to the 4-speeds in muscle cars of the 1960s.

At some point, it was spun off from GM as Manual Transmissions of Muncie LLC, part of the New Venture Gear company, a joint venture with Chrysler started in 1990. It's part of the outsourcing trend that's ravaging the auto industry. According to a press release I found on line, it was slated to close this month, to be replaced by a new factory outside of town run by a company called "Magna Drivetrain."

A very good article on Inter-State/Interstate by Mike Worthington- Williams appeared in The Automobile some time in the spring or summer of 2006.

Rick Jorgensen:"In 1920, Mr. D.A. Burke of General Motors was instructed by Billy Durant to build the new Sheridan Motor Car at the old Interstate Factory in Muncie. The Sheridan was a high quality Four Cylinder car and there was also a very limited number of Sheridan Eights. Production started in late 1920 and after Billy Durant's resignation from GM in December of 1920, he attempted to purchase the factory and the rights to the Sheridan from GM. The deal was finally completed in May of 1921 but GM held the rights to manufacture the Sheridan until August 1, 1921. According to Eddie Rickenbacker, General Manager of Sheridan Motor Car Company of California, it was during the summer of 1921 that a prototype Sheridan Six was built and plans were made to produce the sixes starting in December 1921. That would have given the Sheridan a complete line of Fours, Sixes and Eights. Billy Durant was to give Eddie Rickenbacker the presidency of Sheridan Motor Car Company in Muncie to continue the production of the Sheridan, but for some reason the deal fell through in late July. On August 1, Billy Durant took full control of Sheridan and production continued until about the first of September as Durant assembled the last of the Sheridans By September the Sheridan/Interstate factory was being re-equipped to manufacture the Durant B40 series six cylinder cars using the Ansted engine. The first Durant sixes were built in Muncie. It is said that 700 Sheridans were sold in California. Sincerely, Rick A. JorgensenIn 1920, Mr. D.A. Burke of General Motors was instructed by Billy Durant to build the new Sheridan Motor Car at the old Interstate Factory in Muncie. The Sheridan was a high quality Four Cylinder car and there was also a very limited number of Sheridan Eights. Production started in late 1920 and after Billy Durant's resignation from GM in December of 1920, he attempted to purchase the factory and the rights to the Sheridan from GM. The deal was finally completed in May of 1921 but GM held the rights to manufacture the Sheridan until August 1, 1921. According to Eddie Rickenbacker, General Manager of Sheridan Motor Car Company of California, it was during the summer of 1921 that a prototype Sheridan Six was built and plans were made to produce the sixes starting in December 1921. That would have given the Sheridan a complete line of Fours, Sixes and Eights. Billy Durant was to give Eddie Rickenbacker the presidency of Sheridan Motor Car Company in Muncie to continue the production of the Sheridan, but for some reason the deal fell through in late July. On August 1, Billy Durant took full control of Sheridan and production continued until about the first of September as Durant assembled the last of the Sheridans By September the Sheridan/Interstate factory was being re-equipped to manufacture the Durant B40 series six cylinder cars using the Ansted engine. The first Durant sixes were built in Muncie. It is said that 700 Sheridans were sold in California. Sincerely, Rick A. Jorgensen

Tony Prebenson, NZ: "A bit more info on Interstate. In the local car club magazine there is an article www.hbvintagecarclub.co.nz download the magazine pdf and scroll through to page 20. Colin Campbell is a retired mechanic with a keen interest in old cars and he has the actual letter from Interstate Motor Co to a potential customer in Taihape. Who knows if they were successful in selling one? Prewarcar is an amazing forum. Thanks for providing it Regards Tony Prebensen

Mark Friedrich offered the following info:
"I was wondering if you know of or had any information on the Interstate Automobile Company out of Muncie Indiana? My father-in-law owns a 1917 Interstate Roadster, but finding any information about it is very difficult. Here is what I've been told, that maybe you can either confirm or add to.I was wondering if you know of or had any information on the Interstate Automobile Company out of Muncie Indiana? My father-in-law owns a 1917 Interstate Roadster in mint condition, but finding any information about it is very difficult. Here is what I've been told, that maybe you can either confirm or add to.

Inter-State Automobile Company established in 1908 and sold to Ball Manufacturing in 1914.

Frank C. Ball was listed as President in 1915 and dropped the hyphen changing the name to Interstate Automobiles.

Frank took the car to the 1915 New York Auto Show where 3,000 cars were ordered.

The four cylinder cars cost $1,000 new (price dropped to $850 in July 1915).

The Interstate Automobile company closed in 1917 when the US entered WWI.

The plant was converted to build military trucks and tanks for the war effort (6 tanks were built before the war ended in 1918 and employed over 400 workers) The company was then sold in 1919 for $250,000 to Billy Durant and the factory was converted to build synchronized transmissions used in GM's Sheraton automobile.

From 1920-1932 the company was named Muncie Products and in 1935 changed to Muncie Chevrolet.

The car my father-in-law owns is supposed to be the only (2) door roadster ever build. He says there are only 6 documented Interstates still in existence.

True or not?

Friday, 21 September 2007