Peerless Motor Company

{{about|the American automobile|the British automobile|Peerless (UK car)|other uses|Peerless (disambiguation)}}

{{Infobox company

|name = Peerless Motor Car Company

|logo = Peerless 1908 usa.jpg

|type = Automobile Manufacturing

|genre =

|foundation = {{start date and age|1900}}

|founder =

|fate = Became Peerless Corp. Brewers

|location_city = Cleveland, Ohio

|location_country = United States

|key_people = Louis P. Mooers, Chief Engineer (1901–1905){{cite web|last1=Vaughn|first1=Daniel|title=1912 Peerless Model 36|url=http://www.conceptcarz.com/vehicle/z14612/Peerless-Model-36.aspx|website=ConceptCarz|access-date=18 December 2014}}
Charles Schmidt, Chief Engineer (1905–1921)

|area_served = United States

|industry = Automotive

|products = Luxury automobiles
automotive parts
military vehicles

|services =

|market cap =

|revenue =

|operating_income =

|net_income =

|assets =

|equity =

|num_employees =

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|defunct = 1931

|footnotes =

}}

The Peerless Motor Car Company was an American automobile manufacturer that produced the Peerless brand of motorcars in Cleveland, Ohio, from 1900 to 1931.{{cite web| url= http://www.historic-structures.com/oh/cleveland/peerless_motor_car.php| title= History of Peerless Motor Company| website=historic-structures.com}} One of the "Three Ps"{{spnd}}Packard, Peerless, and Pierce-Arrow{{spnd}}the company was known for building high-quality luxury automobiles.{{cite book| editor1-last= Georgano |editor1-first= G. N.|title= Encyclopedia of American Automobiles |date= 1971 |publisher=Rainbird Reference Books|location=London|isbn=0-525-097929 |pages= 153–154|edition=2nd}} Peerless popularized a number of vehicle innovations that later became standard equipment, including drum brakes and the first enclosed-body production cars.

History

Image:The New Peerless Plant Cleveland Ohio.GIF

Peerless Motors was established in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1900 at 43 Lisbon Street. It began manufacturing automobiles while using De Dion-Bouton engines under license from the French company.{{cite book |last1=Kimes |first1=Beverly |title=Standard catalog of American Cars 1805–1942 |date=1996 |publisher=Krause publications |isbn=0-87341-478-0 |pages=1105–1141 |edition=third}} Engineer Louis P. Mooers designed the first Peerless models, as well as several proprietary engines. The first Peerless-branded vehicles appeared in 1902, with a front-mounted engine driving the rear wheels through a shaft. This later became the standard vehicle propulsion layout for automobiles. In 1904, Mooers designed the Green Dragon racecar and enlisted Barney Oldfield to drive it. The Green Dragon brought notability and success to Peerless, as Oldfield used it to set a number of early world automobile speed records.

File:Peerless-auto 1905 ad.jpg

In 1905, the {{convert|35|hp}} Green Dragon competed in the world's first 24-hour endurance race in Columbus, Ohio. Piloted by Earnest Bollinger, Aurther Feasel, and briefly by Barney Oldfield, the Peerless led the race for the first hour before crashing into a fence, later finishing in 3rd place.{{cite journal|editor1-last=Estep|editor1-first=E. Ralph|title=Eventful 24 Hours|journal=The Motor Way|volume=13|issue=1|pages=13|location=Chicago, IL|date=6 September 1905|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HG0fAQAAMAAJ&q=peerless+hoster&pg=PP17|access-date=14 August 2010}}

From 1905 to 1907, Peerless experienced a rapid expansion in size and production volume. As the Peerless namesake grew in fame, the company began producing increasingly higher-priced models with a focus on luxury. In 1911, Peerless was one of the first car companies to introduce electric lighting on their vehicles, with electric starters added in 1913. In 1915, the firm introduced its first V8 engine, intending to compete with the Cadillac V8 introduced a year earlier. This model became Peerless' staple production vehicle until 1925, when engines produced by other manufacturers were first used in Peerless models.

Image:Peerlessautologo.png

File:Peerless Truck and Motor Co. 1922.jpg

File:Peerless Motor Cars store at night in Florida (16458823164).jpg

During World War I, Peerless manufactured military vehicle chassis and trucks.

One such vehicle, the Peerless armoured car, was manufactured for Great Britain with the Austin Motor Company of Birmingham being the maker of the armored body and Peerless the manufacture of the chassis. The chassis was manufactured in Cleveland, Ohio.

In 1929, the entire Peerless range was redesigned to compete with other vehicles produced by Stutz and Marmon. This move saw increased sales, and for 1930 another design refresh was undertaken. The Peerless-designed V8 was replaced by a Continental straight-8 as a cost-saving measure. However, the Great Depression that began in 1929 greatly reduced the sales of luxury automobiles. Peerless stripped down its production and attempted to market one line of vehicles to wealthy Americans who were not affected by the depression. In 1930–31, Peerless commissioned Murphy Body Works to design what the company envisioned as its 1933 model. The task was assigned to a young Frank Hershey, who produced a remarkably clean, elegant vehicle. A single V16-engined 1931 Peerless was finished in June 1931, the last Peerless ever produced.

Peerless remained an idle business until the end of Prohibition in 1933 allowed the manufacture of alcohol. Peerless then revamped its factory and gained a license to brew beer under the Carling Black Label and Red Cap ale brands from the Brewing Corporation of Canada.

Hershey's single prototype V-16 remained in the Peerless factory until the end of World War II and it is now owned by the Crawford Auto-Aviation Museum in Ohio.

The following Peerless vehicles are deemed "classic cars" by the Classic Car Club of America (CCCA): 1925 Series 67; 1926 – 1928 Series 69; 1929 Model Eight-125;2013 CCCA List of Full Classics; 8-125 owner Mr. John Knight of Canada 1930-1 Custom 8 and the 1932 Deluxe Custom 8.

Production models

Peerless Model 9 {{cite web|url= https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=chi.105712459&seq=86 |title= Peerless Model 9 |date=1905-01-15|publisher= Hand book of automobiles (1905) |access-date=2025-03-07}}
Peerless Model 9 Limousine 5 Persons{{cite web|url= https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=chi.105712459&seq=87 |title= Peerless Model 9 Limousine 5 Persons |date=1905-01-15|publisher= Hand book of automobiles (1905) |access-date=2025-03-07}}
Peerless Model 9 Limousine 7 Persons{{cite web|url= https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=chi.105712459&seq=88 |title= Peerless Model 9 Limousine 7 Persons |date=1905-01-15|publisher= Hand book of automobiles (1905) |access-date=2025-03-07}}
Peerless Model 11{{cite web|url= https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=chi.105712459&seq=89 |title= Peerless Model 11 |date=1905-01-15|publisher= Hand book of automobiles (1905) |access-date=2025-03-07}}
Peerless Model 12{{cite web|url= https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=chi.105712459&seq=90 |title= Peerless Model 12 |date=1905-01-15|publisher= Hand book of automobiles (1905) |access-date=2025-03-07}}
Peerless Model 14{{cite web|url= https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015022474673&seq=130 |title= Peerless Model 14 |date=1906-01-15|publisher= Hand book of automobiles (1906) |access-date=2025-03-11}}
Peerless Model 15{{cite web|url= https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015022474673&seq=135 |title= Peerless Model 15 |date=1906-01-15|publisher= Hand book of automobiles (1906) |access-date=2025-03-11}}
Peerless Model 16{{cite web|url= https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015022474681&seq=95 |title= Peerless Model 16 |date=1907-01-15|publisher= Hand book of automobiles (1907) |access-date=2025-03-15}}
Peerless Model 18{{cite web|url= https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015022474699&seq=72 |title= Peerless Model 18 |date=1908-01-15|publisher= Hand book of automobiles (1908) |access-date=2025-03-16}}
Peerless Model 19{{cite web|url= https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015036836156&seq=102 |title= Peerless Model 19 |date=1909-01-15|publisher= Hand book of automobiles (1909) |access-date=2025-03-22}}
Peerless Model 20{{cite web|url= https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015022474699&seq=77 |title= Peerless Model 20 |date=1908-01-15|publisher= Hand book of automobiles (1908) |access-date=2025-03-16}}
Peerless Model 25{{cite web|url= https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015036836156&seq=111 |title= Peerless Model 25 |date=1909-01-15|publisher= Hand book of automobiles (1909) |access-date=2025-03-22}}
Peerless Model 27{{cite web|url= https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015022474715&seq=65 |title= Peerless Model 27 |date=1910-01-15|publisher= Hand book of automobiles (1910) |access-date=2025-03-23}}
Peerless Model 28{{cite web|url= https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015022474715&seq=80 |title= Peerless Model 28 |date=1910-01-15|publisher= Hand book of automobiles (1910) |access-date=2025-03-23}}
Peerless Model 29{{cite web|url= https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015022474723&seq=241 |title= Peerless Model 29 |date=1911-01-15|publisher= Hand book of automobiles (1911) |access-date=2025-03-29}}
Peerless Model 31{{cite web|url= https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015022474723&seq=232 |title= Peerless Model 31 |date=1911-01-15|publisher= Hand book of automobiles (1911) |access-date=2025-03-29}}
Peerless Model 32{{cite web|url= https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015022474723&seq=233 |title= Peerless Model 32 |date=1911-01-15|publisher= Hand book of automobiles (1911) |access-date=2025-03-29}}

Gallery of selected models

File:Stahls Automotive Collection December 2021 026 (1904 Peerless Type 8 Style K).jpg|1904 Peerless Type 8 Style K

File:1911 Peerless 45-HP Model 32.JPG|1911 Peerless Six Model 32 Roadster

File:1912 Peerless Model 36.JPG|1912 Peerless Six Model 38 Berline Limousine with right-hand drive

File:1914 Peerless.jpg|1914 Peerless Six Model 60 7-Passenger Touring Sedan

File:Peerless Model 56 7-Passenger Touring 1917.jpg|1917 Peerless Eight Model 56 7-Passenger Touring Sedan

File:1931 Peerless woodland 1 cropped.jpg|1931 Peerless Master Eight Sedan

File:1932 Peerless (cropped).jpg|1932 Peerless V-16 Prototype (one manufactured)

References

External links

[https://cplorg.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p128201coll0/id/3697/rec/1 Peerless Limousine 1908: A non-technical Description of its usefulness] - 18-page sales catalog
[https://cplorg.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p128201coll0/id/3696/rec/1 The New Peerless 6-80] sales catalog (c.1927)
[https://www.conceptcarz.com/view/model/635/peerless.aspx Peerless Automobiles at Concceptcarz]
[http://ech.case.edu/ech-cgi/article.pl?id=PMCC Peerless Motor Car Co.] entry from the Encyclopedia of Cleveland History
[https://www.loc.gov/rr/rarebook/coll/099.html The Frederic W. Goudy Collection] at the Library of Congress contains illustrated advertising posters for the Peerless Motor Company.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nuc4XARvw-Y Tank Chats #26 Peerless Armoured Car] Tank Chats #26 Peerless Armoured Car.
[https://www.warhistoryonline.com/military-vehicle-news/peerless-armoured-car-watch-x.html All There Is to Know The 1919 Peerless Armoured Car]
{{HAER |survey=OH-11 |id=oh0117 |title=Cleveland Automobile Industry, Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, OH |data=34}}
{{HAER |survey=OH-11-D |id=oh0004 |title=Peerless Motor Car Company, East Ninety-third Street & Quincy Avenue, Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, OH |photos=8 |data=15 |cap=2 |link=no}}