Chalmers / Chalmers-Detroit

US, 1908 – 1924

Chalmers Motor Car Co, Detroit, Mich.

The Chalmers was one of the most popular automobiles made in the United States for more than a decade. The Chalmers was the successor to the Thomas-Detroit which was built by a company which had been founded in 1906 by E.R. Thomas (builder of the Thomas car in Buffalo, N.Y.), Roy D. Chapin and Howard Earle Coffin; the two latter had previously served at Oldsmobile. The Thomas-Detroit of which some 500 were sold during the first year of production, was marketed through the parent firm in Buffalo which manufactured a larger line of cars under the Thomas emblem. The Thomas-Detroit was a medium priced four-cylinder car which had been designed by Coffin. In 1907, Hugh Chalmers, vice president of the National Cash Register Co and a noted salesman, entered the firm. Shortly after, he bought a half of E.R. Thomas’ stock and became president of the company which became the Chalmers-Detroit Motor Company. The Thomas-Detroit became the Chalmers-Detroit in 1908 and in 1910, the Chalmers. Open and closed Chalmers models in two lines comprised the Chalmers four-cylinder cars, with self-starters appearing in 1912. Chalmers (as Chalmers-Detroit) had distinguished itself in road races as early as 1908 when W.R. Burns won the Motor Parkway Sweekstakes at Jericho, N.Y., averaging 48.7mph in the six-lap 140.76 mile run.

In 1913, the Chalmers brought out its first 6-cylinder model, as well as the four and apart from small mechanical and design changes, continued both until 1914. The Chalmers four was dropped from the 1915 line, however, and sixes were to be used exclusively in Chalmers until the ending of manufacture. By 1915, some 20.000 Chalmers cars per year were coming off the Chalmers production line and would even exceed that figure before the advent of World War 1. In 1917, an L-head motor replaced the earlier overhead-valve type and on August 4th, Chalmers again headed racing news when Joe Dawson won the 24-hour stock Car Endurance Run at Sheepshead Bay, N.Y. Sales flagged following the end of the war and Hugh Chalmers, always the salesman, and with the realization that a competitor, Maxwell, wasn’t faring well either, arranged to lease his Chalmers plants to Maxwell, using his salesmanship to promote the two concerns and getting the benefit of Maxwell tooling and manufacturing equipment. By the early 1920s, however, many makes of cars were in financial difficulties due to over-expansion and recession, and Walter P. Chrysler was called in to try and reorganize Maxwell. Chrysler was at this time planning his own corporation and in 1922 Chalmers was taken over by Maxwell which had become a Chrysler subsidiary. The last Chalmer cars for sale were equipped with Lockheed hydraulic brakes but 1923 was the last year of Chalmers production with some 9000 units leaving the factories. The Maxwell survived until 1925 when it became the Chrysler Four.

Source: Georgano, encyclopedia of motorcar; KM
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Hupmobile

US, 1908 – 1940

Hupp Motor Car Corp., Detroit, Mich.; Cleveland, Ohio

Robert and Louis Hupp, the founders of the Hupmobile company, started with a 2.8-litre 4-cylinder light runabout, with two bucket seats and a bolster tank, distinguished by a 2-speed sliding-type gearbox. This Hupmobile car sold for $750 and was joined in 1911 by a Hupmobile touring car with 3 forward speeds and a longer wheelbase of 9ft 2in, listed at only $900. Hupmobile, like Dodge and Chevrolet, adhered to the 4-cylinder sv unit for many years and made nothing else until 1924, though the Hupmobile cars acquired electric lighting and starting in 1914. A Hupmobile car with a 10ft 6in wheelbase was made available for seven-seater bodywork in 1916. Sales were good: 12.000 Hupmobile cars in 1913, and climbing up to 38.000 by 1923. By 1918 a rounded cowl and bonnet line had replaced the original angular configuration and fuel feed was by vacuum from a tank at the rear. Open Hupmobile car models were listed at $1.250. Aluminium pistons were featured in 1924 and balloon tyres on the Hupmobile car in 1925, the last year of the four. Interestingly enough, Hupmobile’s 4-litre straight-8 appeared in 1925, a year before the first six. This Hupmobile car was a conventional machine with contracting Lockheed hydraulic brakes, mechanical actuation being used on the 6-cylinder Hupmobile cars. The Hupmobile car company stayed in the medium-price field, sixes selling at $1.295 in 1929, while prices of the Hupmobile M-series sv eight started at $1.825. In 1929 Chandler’s plant in Cleveland was acquired and was used for the manufacture of the less expensive Huppmobile Hupps. Like most of America’s independent makes, the Hupmobile car company was hit hard by the Depression, sales of Hupmobile cars dropping from 50.374 in 1929 to 17.450 in 1931, although in the next two years, in 1932 and 1933 some very handsome Hupmobile cars were made.

In 1934 the Hupmobile Aerodynamic range with three-piece wrap-around windscreens and headlamps faired into the bonnet sides appeared. An experimental front wheel drive version was not proceeded with. The aerodynamic Hupmobile cars were made in 4-litre, 6-cylinder and 5-litre straight-8 forms, but sales were poor and the Hupmobile car factory closed down halfway through the 1936 season. It was reopened, but the 1937 and 1938 Hupmobile cars were of little interest apart from the standardization of automatic overdrive on the eights. Like Graham, Hupmobile tried to stay in business by adapting the body dies on the discontinued 810/812 Cord series to their conventional running gear. These Hupmobile Skylarks were built in the Graham factory; the last Hupmobile cars were completed in July 1940, but were sold as 1941 models.

Source: Georgano, encyclopedia of motorcar; MCS

The information is written with the greatest of care. However, if you have any suggested amendments please contact us at office@prewarcar.com