Biddle Motor Car Company

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Biddle Motor Car Co.
Biddle-Crane Motor Car Co.

logo
legal form various, under public law
founding 1915
resolution 1922
Reason for dissolution insolvency
Seat 1915–1919:
Philadelphia , Pennsylvania , USA
1919–1922:
New York City , New York , USA
management A. Mc. I. Maris (sic.)
Branch Upper class - Automobile

The Biddle Motor Car Company , from 1921 Biddle-Crane Motor Car Company , was an American automobile manufacturer in Philadelphia (Pennsylvania) from 1915-1919 and then in New York City . The company operated a regional market with representative city cars, some of which with Duesenberg - walking beam engines were equipped. The company is believed to be the first in the United States to hire a designer to do the design. Between 1915 and 1922, approximately 1750 Biddle automobiles were manufactured by three incarnations of the same company. The brand name was Biddle , later the vehicles were also unofficially known as Crane-Biddle and Biddle-Crane .

Company history

The Biddle Motor Car Company owes its existence to the fact that wealthy Philadelphia citizens saw a market for a locally manufactured, prestigious city car. The president of the company was A. Mc. I. Maris , chief designer Charles Fry . It was named after R. Ralston Biddle from a prominent family in the city. Whether he contributed more than his name seems questionable.

City cars for high demands

The requirements for such a vehicle were: maneuverability in city traffic, prestige and comfort. The Biddle was not intended as a travel or sports car. The technique was simple and unspectacular. For a luxury vehicle from that time, it had a short wheelbase for greater maneuverability in city traffic. Because there were no sporting ambitions, a lightweight construction was less necessary than a stable base for high-quality bodies. Charles Fry and Otto R. Bieler are named as designers .

All Biddle automobiles were assembled vehicles , which means that they were assembled from parts and components from suppliers. This was a widespread method that also enabled smaller manufacturers to produce efficiently and profitably. It went far beyond the usual use of bought-in bodies or engines and included practically every vehicle part used, right through to the box frame and the axles.

Almost all Biddle vehicles were technically unremarkable but solid Buda - four-cylinder engine WTU who normally drive commercial vehicles and was also used in some taxis. A very small number of Biddle cars were equipped with adapted racing engines from Duesenberg , which gave these vehicles an attractive performance despite their relatively high weight. The Duesenberg brothers used a valve control with a camshaft below , long rocker arms and valves arranged "lying" in the cylinder head . Because of the exposed rocker arms, which look like the balancer ("walking beam", "walking beam") of a steam engine, it was called the walking beam valve control.

It is also possible that a single vehicle was built with the Rochester-Duesenberg advancement of this engine. It was exhibited as Biddle in the Harrah Collection in Reno, Nevada for years , but is now seen as Argonne .

Miriam Warren Hubbard: First American Auto Designer?

Automobile bodies were largely made by hand at the time; in the case of some mass-produced products such as the Ford Model T or the Dodge 30 , it took place on the assembly line . At other manufacturers, production was rationalized in that the bodies were ordered from the body shop according to the estimated needs. This could then pre-produce individual parts. Such structures are called "semi-custom" or, if the version was shown in the manufacturer's sales catalog, "factory body", even if they were mostly made in special companies and not by the car manufacturer itself and could also be highly individualized. Occasionally, the designs came from independent designers, but usually from the body builder's drawing department.

There was little leeway for the bodybuilder when it came to the design of the bonnet, which was defined by the radiator grille at the front and the fire wall at the rear. While the latter was often a stiffening element of the chassis and was part of it, which is what the radiator grille is important for recognizing the car brand. Most car manufacturers therefore designed and produced their own radiator grille, hood and often the fenders. They delivered these components to the bodybuilder together with the chassis. Headlights, bumpers and window frames for the open versions were added later. The elegant design of these brand-typical elements was one of the first tasks for automobile designers, most of whom had a degree in commercial graphics or who had learned from a car or bodybuilder.

When Biddle they went a slightly different way. One of the first customers, Miriam Warren Hubbard , contributed essential design elements to the Biddle, in particular the "pointed cooler" which has become fashionable in Europe. Biddle subsequently had it made by the English & Mersick Manufacturing Company in New Haven, Connecticut . It resembled that of the contemporary Mercedes cars. Miriam Warren Hubbard is the first female car designer in the United States to have a verifiable production model in her portfolio . This is noteworthy in that Biddle was bought mainly for its high quality bodywork and sleek appearance. The success of their designs is shown not least in the fact that several suppliers displayed the Biddle as a customer example in their own advertisements, including the engine supplier Duesenberg.

After completing the work, Otto Bieler went to Jersey City ( New Jersey ), where he and Harold E. Porter founded the Argonne Motor Car Company in 1919 , which produced a similar vehicle, but with a more sporty note. Only about 25 Argonne were built between 1919 and 1920.

Slow start

Advertisement from a Biddle brand agency. The pictured model D Sporting Type was therefore a "Custom", i.e. a special production (1917).

Production of the Biddle began in 1915. These vehicles are included in the first 1916 model year. In each of these first two calendar years, around 100 vehicles were built, which was within the expected and expected range. It is unclear whether a Model C named by a single source is identical to the Model D , which most sources record for 1915-1919. The differences weren't great anyway; Biddle built practically the same car throughout the production period. The wheelbase, number and composition of the listed factory bodies and, for a very small number of vehicles, the engine were varied.

Biddle Motor Car Corporation share (1919).

In the following three production years from 1917 to 1920, never more than 500 vehicles were ever built. In 1918 prices were increased.

They hoped for better market access by relocating the company to New York City . In 1919, the new headquarters moved to a property at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and 142nd Street. Around this time, Maris moved to the luxury car manufacturer Du Pont Motors as managing director .

Biddle could not get rid of the "flaw" of a just made-up automobile. During these difficulties, memorable events such as the start of automobile production at the former engine manufacturer Lincoln , the realignment of General Motors under Alfred P. Sloan , with which Cadillac was established as the most exclusive group brand, and the launch of the Packard Single Six , with which the prestigious Luxury brand expanded its program downwards for the first time in ten years. The new model represented direct and serious competition for Biddle . The reasons for the problems of the company seem to have been not only in the new division of the luxury market, but also in its critical size, whereby it always worked close to the profitability limit. and an increasingly aging product in a dissolving niche market. Biddle was one of the last luxury class manufacturers to rely on four-cylinder engines. In the USA there was also a short but severe recession from 1920 to around 1922 , the causes of which can be found in an agricultural crisis and which troubled the entire economy.

HC Maibohm

Maibohm Model B Sedan (1922).

In 1920 the ailing company was sold to a consortium of business people, including HC Maibohm . As owner of the Maibohm Motors Company in Sandusky (Ohio), he was himself a manufacturer of assembled automobiles and came from the carriage and body construction. That was the beginning of a complicated sequence of acquisitions.

First, HC Maibohm's plans to form a small group around the Maibohm and Biddle brands came to nothing . The group took over the reorganization efforts of the Biddle Motor Car Company and eventually failed because they were unable to pay for some minor components for 40 and almost completed Biddle because the supplier in question was unwilling to defer outstanding payments before previous outstanding payments were settled. These missing Biddle the means.

Biddle-Crane Motor Car Company

In early 1921, the company was sold again to a consortium led by FL Crane , who reorganized it as the Biddle-Crane Motor Car Company . After the outstanding invoices had been paid, the 40 vehicles ordered could finally be delivered; they are also known as the Biddle-Crane .

Influences and further developments: Hare's Motors

Hare's Motors advert for Locomobile automobiles. A Locomobile Model 48 Sportif (1920) is shown.

At the end of 1919, New York investors acquired the traditional sports car manufacturer Mercer Automobile Company and founded the holding company Hare's Motors as the parent company. Shortly thereafter, two other very respected luxury car manufacturers, the Simplex Automobile Company and the Locomobile Company of America, were incorporated . The group of companies led by Emlem S. Hare went bankrupt as early as 1921.

While HC Maibohm was still trying to save the Biddle Motor Company in New York , his own company got into trouble. With a fatal forward strategy he attempted a break free and in April 1922 acquired the Simplex Automobile Company from the bankruptcy estate of Hare's Motors . This second attempt by Maibohm to form a corporation also failed. As early as May 1922, Maibohm's creditors took over his Maibohm Motors . They reorganized the company as Arrows Motors in August and then as Courier Motors . They too were unsuccessful and production of the Courier ended in 1923. HC Maibohm later organized a company to manufacture radio sets.

Biddle-Cranes bankruptcy

The financial problems around Maibohm led in early 1921 to another sale of the Biddle Motor Car Company to a consortium around FL Crane , who reorganized it as the Biddle-Crane Motor Car Company . Crane had already acquired Simplex from the bankruptcy of Hare's Motors , reorganized it as the Crane-Simplex Company and relocated its production to Long Island City . Whether FL Crane was related to the automobile pioneer and later chief engineer of Simplex , Henry Middlebrook Crane could not be proven. HM Crane had sold his own company, the Crane Motor Car Company , to Simplex in 1914 .

It seems obvious that the small production of the automobile, now also called Biddle-Crane , was merged with that of the Crane-Simplex , but the sources can neither be proven nor excluded. After the outstanding invoices had been paid, the 40 ordered vehicles could still be delivered.

The Biddle Series B was continued under the new management , although hardly any vehicles were delivered in 1920. In 1921, Raulang was won over as a supplier for the factory bodies. This was the body division of the Baker, Rauch & Lang Company in Cleveland (Ohio) established in 1919 . Rauch & Lang had previously been a respected coachbuilder. After the merger with Baker Electric , the incorporation of Owen Magnetic and a capital injection from General Electric , there was a reorganization.

Very few Biddle with such constructions have been made. After the FL Cranes Group had also failed, the last bankruptcy occurred, which sealed the end of both brands.

In the roughly seven-year existence of the brand, Biddle is likely to have originated in 1750 .

Of the other companies grouped under Hare's Motors , Mercer existed until 1925 - an attempted revival failed in 1931 - and Locomobile until 1929. The latter was acquired as a new top brand by Durant Motors from the Hare's bankruptcy and went under with the Durant group.

Biddle series

Biddle was a medium-sized manufacturer with an annual output of no more than 500 vehicles. There are gaps, ambiguities and overlaps in the history of the model that can only be partially cleared up on the basis of the available literature. The following overview goes into this and points out inconsistencies. There are two conceivable reasons for the overlap: It is possible that an internal distinction was introduced between complete vehicles from the catalog and automobiles with individually manufactured superstructures assembled on request. It is more likely that Biddle had set an annual production and had to enter into corresponding purchase commitments with the suppliers. The next series started when the parts were used up; this did not have to coincide with the model year.

Model C (1915)

Biddle Touring and Roadster (1915). Depending on the source, the 1915 Biddle are considered Model C or D. The angular fenders quickly went out of fashion.

The Model C is only mentioned by a single source, and they provide little technical information. A four-cylinder engine of unknown origin is listed; the specifications are missing. The wheelbase is 120 inches (3,048 mm) as it is called by all known sources for 1915 and 1916. The vehicle initially appears to have only come onto the market as a four-seater touring at US $ 1700, but a work picture also shows a roadster version.

Early chassis cost US $ 1650; the source for the model C cites an implausible US $ 1700 for the body-mounted vehicle. Possibly Model C as an early pre-production version or the longer-built Model D apply. was. Due to the lack of technical data, this cannot currently be confirmed.

For Model C had chassis numbers C200 to C299 reserved.

Biddle Model D (1915-1918)

Biddle Model D Custom Sporting Type (1917)

In principle, the Biddle Motor Car Company built a single model throughout its existence, but this in numerous variants. These in turn differ only in details from the basic model, typically in the wheelbase, available factory bodies and - very rarely - in a different engine. The Biddle Model D can be seen as this basic model . As mentioned, its wheelbase was 120 inches (3,048 mm); one source (it only covers model year 1915) mentions an additional 122 inches (3099 mm). A water-cooled , side-controlled four - cylinder Buda WTU engine is proven to be the drive . Its characteristics are: displacement 226.4 ci (3710 cm³); Output 48 bhp (36 kW) at 2200 rpm, NACC rating 22.5 HP (rounded to 23 HP at Kimes / Clark).

According to Kimes / Clark, Model D was built from 1915 to 1918, after which there is no model name there. Accordingly, the wheelbase grew to 121 inches (3073 mm) in 1917. Prices rose rapidly; As early as 1917 a touring cost from US $ 2275.00.

A few walking beam motors have been documented by Biddle for 1915 without a specific model name being found for them. This supports the statement of the Duesenberg historian Fred Roe that the Duesenberg engine was available for an additional charge of US $ 1000 for every Biddle vehicle. This huge additional price equivalent to about the equivalent of two brand new Model T Ford . Biddle with Duesenberg Walking Beam motors are likely to have technically corresponded to the Biddle Model HA except for a few details .

Biddle Model H (1917-1919)

Although this series is the successor to the D as the new standard model and was offered in the company's best-selling years, one of the main sources used, Kimes' and Clark's Standard Catalog of American Cars 1805–1942 , is not mentioned at all; until 1918 he called it the Model D and then dispensed with an assignment.

Nevertheless, the Model H has been proven. There is also a vehicle dated 1918. Technically, there are no major differences between model D and H . They may be completely identical, but there is at least a close technical similarity. Buda engines were used unchanged and the wheelbase also remained at 121 inches (3073 mm). In 1917 the price range was US $ 2275 to 4000, in 1918 the prices were raised to US $ 2600 to 4100 and in 1919 again to US $ 2750 to 4500.

Biddle Model HA and K (1917-1918)

Patent drawing of the Duesenberg engine with walking beam valve train (1913).

There is only one Biddle series for which an engine other than a Buda has been clearly proven. This is the version built in small numbers with a walking beam four-cylinder engine from Duesenberg Motors Corporation (DMC) in Elizabeth (New Jersey) . The company published a brochure in 1915 promising a street version of the famous racing car engine. The designation was Model A or A-3 .

Again, there was some confusion about Biddle's names and various details. According to Duesenberg historians Fred Roe and Don Butler , the designation was K , according to the Collector Car Database HA . It also carries - obviously flawed - Model K with the engine data of the Buda WTU (without naming it) and an unrealistic 90 bhp (67 kW) power. On the other hand, the Standard Catalog of American Cars 1805–1942 does not list a series with a Duesenberg engine, but mentions that Biddle did have such throttled racing engines. However, the standard catalog has the engine with a displacement of 350.5 ci (5735 cm³) and a somewhat reduced output (100 bhp for the racing cars). Such an engine could not be identified; this is probably a misprint at Kimes. Duesenberg offered the walking beam motor in two versions. The smaller one made 80 bhp (60 kW) from 301 ci (4899 cm³) displacement, the larger 103 bhp (77 kW) from 360 ci (5899 cm³) displacement (due to different conversions and roundings there are also 360.5 ci and more approximations Values). Both Roe and Butler are clearly committed to the smaller of these two engines. Both also agree that there is no external distinguishing feature between Buda and Duesenberg motorized vehicles. After Roe, Biddle announced at the end of 1915, making it the first car manufacturer to bring out a model with the new walking beam engine. It then took until the late summer of 1917, over two years, to implement it. This is also due to the fact that the Duesenbergs' announcement was made too early.

The oldest photos of a Biddle K date from early autumn 1917. They show the first car in the series, a four-door touring. How long Model K stayed in the program is unclear. Duesenberg Motors always had delivery problems. By the beginning of 1918 at the latest, production was switched entirely to aircraft engines and the civilian market was no longer served.

Model K Roadster

There is an undated photo of a Biddle Roadster showing the attractive vehicle at the edge of a racetrack. This car's chassis may have been shortened and it comes with an optional Biflex bumper. This vehicle is assigned to the K series and dated to 1918. The photo can also be found in an older edition of Georgano's standard work on automobile brands with the caption 1918 Biddle Model K 7 Liter Roadster, which makes little sense. It is also available online. The illustration may show the last Biddle Model K ; this was destroyed in an accident in 1933.

Biddle and Biddle-Crane Series B (1920–1922)

Biddle-Crane model B-1 inner link (1922).

Series B replaced the H and K as the standard model in 1920 . Production is likely to have been minimal, with Biddle's total production estimated at 1750 vehicles, of which around 1700 were made before 1920. This leaves little more than the forty vehicles from 1920 mentioned at the beginning, which could only be delivered as Crane-Biddle in the following year . It seems that the new Biddle differed technically only in details from the predecessor.

According to the Collector Cars Database , there were two versions, which probably only differed in the wheelbase. The B-1 retained the previous wheelbase of 121 inches (3073 mm). A slightly longer version B-5 with 125 inches (3175 mm) was therefore new .

Kimes and Clark have different information. You confirm the B-1 , but do not know a B-5 . Instead, in 1922, they only had a B-1 Brougham for six people, also with a 125-inch wheelbase, and a B-1 (chauffeur-driven) sedan with six seats and a wheelbase of 126 inches (3200 mm).

Ominous Biddle with Rochester-Duesenberg engine

Rochester Motor Co. advert for Rochester-Duesenberg engines. The five-liter model G3 (1919) is shown.

At the end of 1918, Rochester Motors Company, Inc. in Rochester (New York) acquired the rights to the walking beam motor, including tools and construction plans, from Duesenberg Motors, which was in liquidation . The company was owned by John North Willys , who had also acquired the Duesenberg facilities in Elizabeth. In collaboration with Fred Duesenberg , the engine was revised in a short time and made ready for series production and road use. It appeared at the end of 1919 as the Rochester-Duesenberg Model G with 301 ci (approx. 5 liters) displacement and shortly afterwards as the G-1 with 340 ci (approx. 5.6 liters). It remained available well into the 1920s.

There is evidence that a single Biddle Roadster was delivered with a Rochester-Duesenberg engine. In 1943, such a vehicle appeared as a barn find and, surprisingly, even survived the government's scrap metal collection campaigns at the time, to which many old cars fell victim. William F. Harrah (1911–1978) later acquired it and exhibited it as Biddle in his William Harrah Collection in Reno (Nevada) .

After Fred Roe had the opportunity to examine the car in the Harrah collection in the 1980s , he was already making assumptions about the real origin of the sports car. In his Duesenberg standard work, he listed it as part of a second series by Argonne , which was still accepted at the time and which is said to have originated in 1920 and into which components by Singer and Biddle are said to have been incorporated. In fact, the vehicle was assigned as a Biddle based on the components found with a corresponding logo, for example on the gearbox housing. Roe attributes this to the personal ties between the two companies; Otto Bieler started his own business with Argonne after he left Biddle . Roe also noted back then that this vehicle had no technical similarities with Biddle and found out that it had been temporarily registered as Argonne before it was closed. In his estimation, Biddle was one of the buyers of Duesenberg engines when the Rochester-Duesenberg became available in late 1919, but the company was on the verge of financial collapse. Accordingly, Biddle neither bought such motors nor mentioned them in the company literature or even announced them. Currently, the vehicle is owned by the Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum in Fairbanks ( Alaska ) that it as Argonne Model D leads with built in the 1920s. Consequently, this vehicle was not included in the following model overview.

Another former Biddle employee went freelance with a sports car project in 1919. Former racing driver Wade D. Morton set up Meteor Motors, Inc. in Philadelphia , where he built the Meteor Series K, a sports car also powered by a Rochester-Duesenberg engine.

Model overview

Unless otherwise noted, the following overview is based on information provided by automotive historians Beverly Rae Kimes and Henry Austin Clark, Jr. in the Standard Catalog of American Cars 1805-1942. 3. Edition. 1996. This source only lists the series with Buda engines, but confirms the existence of Biddle vehicles as early as 1915.

Model
rating 		construction time engine Power
bhp / kW		 Wheelbase
in / mm		 Bodies Price range
US $		 Remarks
C. 1915 R4
 120/3048 Touring , 4 pl. 1700, - All information: Classic Car Database; is only listed from this source.
D
22.5 HP 		1915-1916 R4 sv
Buda WTU
226.4 ci
3710 cm³		 48 / 37.8 120/3048 Roadster , Touring, Town Car 1700, -– 3000, - Chassis US $ 1650.
D
22.5 HP 		1915 R4 sv
Buda WTU
226.4 ci
3710 cm³		 48 / 37.8 122/3099 Touring, 5 pl. 1800, - Only mentioned in Dluhy; further Karr. possible. Unclear whether US $ 1800 applies to 120 and 122 inch wheelbases.
D
22.5 HP 		1917-1918 R4 sv
Buda WTU
226.4 / 3710		 48 / 37.8 121/3073 Raceabout , Roadster, Touring, Brougham , Town Car, Semi-Collapsible Town Car Collapsible Town Car 2100, - 3900, - Chassis from 1918 US $ 2095.
HA
25.6 HP 		1917 R4 WB
Duesenberg
301.6 / 4942		 80 / 69.7 121/3073 Speedster Special, Roadster, Sporting , Touring, Brougham, Sk.Sedan, Landaulet-Brougham 3500, -– 5000, - Duesenberg 350.5 ci at Kimes is more plausible.
H
22.5 HP 		1918 R4 sv
Buda WTU
226.4 / 3710		 48 / 37.8 121/3073 Raceabout, Roadster, Touring, Brougham, Town Car, Semi-Collapsible Town Car, Collapsible Town Car 2100, - 3900, - According to Kimes: Model D , 121 inch wheelbase (3073 mm)
H
22.5 HP 		1919 R4 sv
Buda WTU
226.4 / 3710		 48 / 37.8 121/3073 Speedway Special, Touring, Town Car, Coupé , Landaulet , Salon Sedan, Collapsible Town Car 2750, - 4400, - ; Kimes only lists Touring and Salon Sedan
K 1918 R4
226.4 / 3710		 90 / 121/3073 Speedster Special, Roadster, Touring, "Sk Sedan", Brougham, Landaulet Brougham 3550, - 5050, - Implausible data, cf. Biddle Model HA and K (1917-1918) .
B-1 1920-1921 R4 sv
Buda WTU
226.4 / 3710		 48 / 37.8 121/3073 Roadster, Rosemont King-Roadster, Touring, Sedan, Ormond (Speedway) 2900, - 4600, -
B-1 1922 R4 sv
Buda WTU
226.4 / 3710		 48 / 37.8 121/3073 Roadster, Speedway , Coupé, Sedan 3475, -– 4350, -
B-5 1920-1921 R4 sv
Buda WTU
226.4 / 3710		 48 / 37.8 125/3175 Touring, Town Car 3950, -– 6800, - Chassis US $ 3000.
B-5 1922 R4 sv
Buda WTU
226.4 / 3710		 48 / 37.8 125/3175 not specified

Market position

Advertisement for the Handley-Knight Model A 7-passenger Touring (1920).

The US auto market was undergoing profound change in the early 1920s, for several reasons. One of these was the dominance of the Ford Model T in the lower price range. In 1924, every second new car sold in the USA was a T-model; General Motors achieved a market share of 23 percent with all of its brands. The rest of the market was divided into a few smaller corporations and dozens of small brands, often serving a regional market. The production methods that made Ford by far the dominant brand resulted in competitors moving to higher-priced market segments, these methods being extended to more expensive cars, and also market shakeouts through mergers and acquisitions. The aforementioned economic crisis also resulted in considerable upheaval, plus the poor payment behavior of the US government, which led to some companies having to give up, including Lozier and Inter-State . The recession also affected a number of new companies with insufficient capital, such as Apex Motor Corporation (branded Ace ), Argonne Motor Car Company , Daniels Motor Company , Hal Motor Car Company (branded HAL ), Handley-Knight , Kenworthy Motors Corporation , LaFayette Motors Corporation or American & British Manufacturing Corporation ( Porter trademark ). Many of the companies mentioned served the same price segment as Biddle . On the other hand, traditional companies quickly lost their buyers' favor, for example, as we have seen, with the abrupt end of Hare's Motors , with three traditional brands ( Locomobile , Mercer and Simplex ).

technology

Like many other motor vehicles from smaller manufacturers, the Biddle was an assembled vehicle . Such vehicles - commercial vehicles , motorcycles and tractors were also widespread  - consist of purchased components. The manufacturer therefore only acted as a manufacturer who bought all essential components on a free market with a wide range instead of producing them himself or having them manufactured according to his specifications. Virtually every component was available from motors , gearboxes , axles and prefabricated ladder frames to fittings, headlights and other electrical equipment. The respective providers also specialized in advising their customers in a targeted manner and, if necessary, launching customer-specific small series. The engineering work at Biddle also consisted largely of finding the most suitable components at a reasonable price, coordinating them as harmoniously as possible and then assembling the vehicle.

The build quality of the Biddle was very good and the brand was well respected.

Engines

Typical Buda four-cylinder engine for passenger cars and commercial vehicles (1920).

Almost all Biddle had a four-cylinder engine of Buda type WTU . This was a widespread and produced over a long period product, mainly in commercial vehicles and also in some taxi models like some early Checker - series or the Traveler's taxi was used. The engine has also been proven to drive passenger cars, albeit less often.

As early as 1915 there were a few Biddle Model HA and possibly K with the aforementioned Duesenberg Walking Beam four-cylinder engine, which increased the output from 48 to around 80 bhp; in the racing version, these engines made around 100 bhp.

Power transmission

The origin of the transmission has not been clarified for all models. Usually a conventional four-speed Brown-Lipe transmission is mentioned, occasionally with overdrive .

A single-plate clutch is mentioned for 1916; the final drive of Salisbury - rear axle was 4: 1 geared down and spiral cut. From around 1920, gear ratios of 4.5: 1 seem to have become common.

chassis

There is different data available on the wheelbase of Biddle vehicles. Mostly 120 inches (3048 mm) are mentioned, a single source also lists 122 inches (3099 mm) for 1915. From 1917 it was slightly lengthened to 121 inches (3073 mm). According to one source, it stayed there until the end of production, another one deviates from 122 inches (3099 mm) in the years 1917-1919 and with the B-5 a version with 125 inches (3175 mm) for 1920-1923.

The vehicle had a ladder frame , left-hand drive and a gasoline tank located in the rear. There is different data available on the wheelbase of Biddle vehicles. A single source names chassis for 1915 with a wheelbase of either 120 inches (3048 mm) or 122 inches (3099 mm)

Bodies

Most of the Biddle received factory bodies from Fleetwood . Even before it was acquired by General Motors, this company had a sizeable list of customers with some of the most exclusive automobile manufacturers. These included ALCo , Benz , Simplex and Crane-Simplex , Daniels , Doble , Duesenberg , FRP , Hispano-Suiza , Isotta Fraschini , Locomobile , Minerva , Owen Magnetic , Packard , Pierce-Arrow , Richelieu and Rolls-Royce .

From 1921 - therefore for the current Biddle Series B  - no less high-quality superstructures from Raulang were used. This was a brand of the Baker, Rauch and Lang Company , which also body the in-house Rauch and Lang Electric , the affiliated Owen Magnetic , but also Cadillac , Duesenberg, Franklin , Packard, Peerless , Stearns-Knight Wills Sainte Claire and other chassis.

For Series B a roadster is Brewster occupied. The occasional additional name Rosemont could be a reference to the Derham Body Company ; this coachbuilder was based in Rosemont, Pennsylvania .

It seems Biddle was aware that the short wheelbase was increasingly a disadvantage in the luxury market. Even the B-5 was rather short at 125 inches; Wheelbases of 132 and 136 inches were customary in this class. It is noticeable that not only the selection of factory bodies declined, but also the conservative designs that were initially dominant at Biddle , such as Brougham , Landaulet and Town Car, disappeared in favor of sportier bodies that were better suited to the compact appearance. The B-1 was temporarily available in two roadster and one speedster factory bodies and a sedan for self -drive replaced the chauffeur limousine.

The superstructures for Biddle always followed the traditional art of body construction and consisted, regardless of whether they were made in small series or individually, usually from a wooden frame with sheet metal planking, more rarely with plywood and artificial leather cladding ( Weymann patent ).

This article uses body designations recommended by the SAE , then Society of Automobile Engineers , at the time.

production

Exact production figures are not available. A source mentions 100 units built in 1915 and 1916 and a maximum of 500 each year up to 1919. Only 40 vehicles were assembled in 1920 and delivered by the Crane-Biddle Co. in 1921. In addition, there are a few more copies that were completed in 1921 and 1922. The total production is estimated at 1750 copies.

Biddle today

Biddle automobiles are extremely rare. A Model D Touring with a Victoria ("stroller") canopy from 1915 or 1916 is known - the sources vary, as is so often the case with Biddle  - for a long time in the possession of the Boyertown Museum of Historic Vehicles in Boyertown ( Pennsylvania ). It was seen at the AACA's Concours d'Elegance The Elegance at Hershey in June 1916 in Hershey, Pennsylvania . The Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum in Fairbanks, Alaska owns a 1918 Model H Town Car that it exhibited at the 2012 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance . A model B-1 "Ormond Speedway Special" from 1922 was offered at an auction on the occasion of the Hershey parts market in 2011. With an estimate of US $ 150,000 to 175,000, it received a maximum bid of US $ 80,000 and was therefore unsold.

No existing example with a walking beam engine is known.

Comparable brands

Brewster Model 41 Town car (1920).
Cole Aero Eight Roadster (1920-1922).

Remarks

NACC rating. Table for 1917-18.
  1. ↑ also Arthur M. Maris .
  2. ↑ This designation has no connection with the later Duesenberg Model A car .
  3. ↑ probably also Buda WTU, 3.7 L, 48 bhp.
  4. ↑ Collector Car Database records the data from the WTU, but only for Series B with ohv control. OHV motors are not detectable for either Biddle or Buda at this time, so a transmission error is the most likely assumption for this.
  5. ↑ listed as a two-seater; the same source shows the illustration of a touring named Rosemont with at least 4 seats from 1918, but does not list such a model in that year.

literature

Web links

Commons : Biddle Motor Car Company  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, p. 124 (Biddle).
  2. ^ A b c Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, pp. 62-63 (Argonne).
  3. ^ Roe: Duesenberg - The Pursuit of Perfection. 1982, p. 65.
  4. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, pp. 124-125 (Biddle).
  5. ↑ a b c d e f Classic Car Database: Standard Specifications 1915 Biddle C Series, 120 in. Wheelbase.
  6. ↑ a b c d e Trombinoscar: 1915 Biddle Model D Victoria Touring.
  7. ^ Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, p. 480 (DuPont).
  8. ^ Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, p. 866 (Lincoln).
  9. ^ A b c Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, p. 916 (Maibohm).
  10. ↑ a b c d Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, p. 386 (Crane, Crane-Simplex).
  11. ↑ a b c d e coachbuilt.com: Baker, Rauch & Lang; Baker-Raulang.
  12. ^ Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, p. 383 (Courier).
  13. ↑ a b Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars 1805-1942. 1996, p. 890 (Locomobile).
  14. ↑ a b c d e Dluhy: American Automobiles of the Brass Era. 2013, p. 61 (Biddle 1915).
  15. ↑ a b Carfolio: Biddle '18, 1919 MY technical specifications.
  16. ↑ Classic Car Database: Standard Specifications Traveler Taxicab, WU L-head, 108.5 in. Wheelbase.
  17. ↑ Database: Standard Specifications 1917 Biddle D Series, 122 in. Wheelbase.
  18. ↑ a b c d e f Roe: Duesenberg - The Pursuit of Perfection. 1982, p. 46.
  19. ↑ a b c d Conceptcarz: 1918 Biddle Model H Town Car.
  20. ↑ a b Classic Car Database: Standard Specifications 1917 Biddle H Series, 121 in. Wheelbase.
  21. ↑ a b Classic Car Database: Standard Specifications 1918 Biddle H Series, 120 in. Wheelbase.
  22. ↑ a b c Classic Car Database: Standard Specifications 1919 Biddle H Series, 120 in. Wheelbase.
  23. ^ Roe: Duesenberg - The Pursuit of Perfection. 1982, p. 34.
  24. ^ A b Roe: Duesenberg - The Pursuit of Perfection. 1982, p. 39.
  25. ^ A b Roe: Duesenberg - The Pursuit of Perfection. 1982, p. 44.
  26. ^ Butler: Auburn Cord Duesenberg. 1992, p. 84.
  27. ^ Butler: Auburn Cord Duesenberg. 1992, p. 89.
  28. ↑ a b Allcarindex: 1915-23 Biddle ; with ill. 1918 Biddle Model K Roadster.
  29. ^ Georgano: Complete Encyclopedia of Motorcars, 1885 to the Present. 1973, p. 140.
  30. ↑ Classic Car Database: Standard Specifications 1920 Biddle B-1 Series, 121 in. Wheelbase.
  31. ↑ a b Classic Car Database: Standard Specifications 1921 Biddle B-1 Series, 121 in. Wheelbase.
  32. ↑ Classic Car Database: Standard Specifications 1922 Biddle B-1 Series, 121 in. Wheelbase.
  33. ↑ a b Classic Car Database: Standard Specifications 1920 Biddle B-5 Series.
  34. ↑ a b c Classic Car Database: Standard Specifications 1921 Biddle B-5 Series, 125 in. Wheelbase.
  35. ↑ a b Classic Car Database: Standard Specifications 1922 Biddle B-5 Series, 125 in. Wheelbase.
  36. ^ A b Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, p. 125 (Biddle).
  37. ^ Roe: Duesenberg - The Pursuit of Perfection. 1982, p. 63.
  38. ^ A b Roe: Duesenberg - The Pursuit of Perfection. 1982, p. 67.
  39. ↑ Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum: 1920 Argonne Model D Two-passenger Roadster. A sole survivor, the last of its kind and it's in our collection. (Fig.)
  40. ^ Roe: Duesenberg - The Pursuit of Perfection. 1982, p. 68.
  41. ↑ Classic Car Database: Standard Specifications 1917 Biddle HA Series, Duesenberg horizontal, 301.6 cid, 121 in. Wheelbase.
  42. ↑ Classic Car Database: Standard Specifications 1918 Biddle K Series, L-head, 226 cid, 121 in. Wheelbase.
  43. ^ Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, pp. 279-280 (Checker).
  44. ^ Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, p. 1477 (Traveler Taxi).
  45. ^ Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, p. 496 (Duesenberg).
  46. ↑ a b Conceptcarz: 1922 Biddle Model B-1 Ormond Speedway Special.
  47. ↑ a b Classic Car Database: Standard Specifications 1916 Biddle D Series, L-head, 266cid, 120 in. Wheelbase.
  48. ↑ Burness: American Car Spotter's Guide, 1920-39. 1975, p. 16.
  49. ^ Early American Automobiles: History of the Early American Automobile Industry, 1891-1929. Chapter 23: 1915; Biddle.
  50. ↑ coachbuilt.com: Fleetwood.
  51. ↑ coachbuilt.com: Derham.
  52. ↑ coachbuilt.com: Coach Building Terminology.
  53. ↑ a b Conceptcarz: 1916 Biddle Model D Victoria Touring.
  54. ^ Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, pp. 14-15 (Ace).
  55. ↑ coachbuilt.com: Brewster.
  56. ^ Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, p. 353 (Cole).
  57. ^ Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, pp. 403-406 (Cunningham).
  58. ^ Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, pp. 413-415 (Daniels).
  59. ^ Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, pp. 604-611 (Franklin).
  60. ^ Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, p. 674 (Handley-Knight).
  61. ^ Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, p. 803 (Kenworthy).
  62. ↑ Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars 1805-1942. 1996, pp. 1100-1102 (Owen Magnetic).
  63. ^ Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, pp. 1286-1287 (ReVere).
  64. ^ Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, pp. 1297-1299 (Roamer).
  65. ^ Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, pp. 1116-1118 (Packard).
  66. ↑ Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars 1805-1942. 1996, pp. 1100-1102 (Pathfinder).
  67. ^ Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, p. 1179 (Pierce-Arrow).
  68. ^ Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, p. 1395 (Stephens).
  69. ^ Kimes, Clark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, p. 1546 (Wills Sainte Claire).