Apperson
Encyclopedia
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
automobile
Automobile
An automobile, autocar, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor...
manufactured from 1901 to 1926 in Kokomo
Kokomo, Indiana
Kokomo is a city in and the county seat of Howard County, Indiana, United States, Indiana's 13th largest city. It is the principal city of the Kokomo, Indiana Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Howard and Tipton counties....
, Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
.
Company history
The company was founded by the brothers Edgar and Elmer Apperson shortly after they left Haynes-AppersonHaynes-Apperson
Haynes-Apperson Company was a manufacturer of Brass Era automobiles in Kokomo, Indiana, from 1896 to 1905. It was the first automobile manufacturer in Indiana, and among the first in the United States...
; for a time they continued to use a FR layoutont-mounted flat-twin
Flat-twin
A flat-twin is a two cylinder internal combustion engine with the cylinders arranged on opposite sides of the crankshaft. It is part of the class of flat engines, sub-type "boxer", and shares most characteristics of those engines.-Motorcycle use:...
engine, following it with a horizontal four
Flat-4
A flat-4 or horizontally opposed-4 is a flat engine with four cylinders arranged horizontally in two banks of two cylinders on each side of a central crankcase...
.
Apperson cars
By 1904, Apperson offered vertical foursStraight-4
The inline-four engine or straight-four engine is an internal combustion engine with all four cylinders mounted in a straight line, or plane along the crankcase. The single bank of cylinders may be oriented in either a vertical or an inclined plane with all the pistons driving a common crankshaft....
in two models. The 1904 Apperson Touring Car was a touring car
Touring car
A touring car, or tourer, is an open car seating five or more. Touring cars may have two or four doors. Often, the belt line is lowered in the front doors to give the car a more sportive character. They were often fitted with a folding roof and side curtains. Engines on early models were either in...
model. Equipped with a tonneau
Tonneau
right|thumb|260px|1903 [[Ford Model A |Ford Model A]] rear-door TonneauTonneau cover , describes a hard or soft cover used to protect unoccupied passenger seats in a convertible, roadster, or for a pickup truck bed. Hard tonneau covers open by a hinging or folding mechanism while soft covers open...
, it could seat 6 passengers and sold for US$6000. The vertical-mounted straight-4
Straight-4
The inline-four engine or straight-four engine is an internal combustion engine with all four cylinders mounted in a straight line, or plane along the crankcase. The single bank of cylinders may be oriented in either a vertical or an inclined plane with all the pistons driving a common crankshaft....
, situated at the front of the car, produced 40 hp (29.8 kW). A 4-speed transmission was fitted. The steel-framed car weighed 2800 lb (1270 kg). The Apperson offered electric lights, a novelty for the time, and used a modern cellular radiator. The 25 hp (18.6 kW) version weighed 1800 lb (816 kg) and sold for US$3500.
In 1906 the company catalogued a 95 hp (71 kW) four at $10,500. The next year the first of the famed Jackrabbit speedster
Speedster
Speedster may refer to:In automotive:* Opel Speedster* Plymouth Speedster* Porsche Speedster* Studebaker Speedster* Speedster AutomobilesIn fiction:* Speedster , a type of superhero whose primary power is superspeed....
s rolled off the line; this was a 60 hp (45 kW) that sold for $5000. For a time, the entire range was known as the "Jack Rabbit" - in 1913 a 32.4 hp (24 kW) four and a 33.7 hp (25 kW) six were listed, and a 33.8 hp (25 kW) 90 degree V-8
V8 engine
A V8 engine is a V engine with eight cylinders mounted on the crankcase in two banks of four cylinders, in most cases set at a right angle to each other but sometimes at a narrower angle, with all eight pistons driving a common crankshaft....
of 5.5 L (5502 cc/335 in³) followed in 1914.
Roadplane models introduced
In 1916 the company announced production of the "Roadplane" six and eights. The term "Roadplane" did not refer to a specific model but was a marketing concept devised by Elmer Apperson that was applied to the "Chummy Roadster" and the "Touring" car. Elmer took the unusual step of patenting the "Chummy Roadster" design (see:"U.S. Patent 48359").The "Silver-Apperson", designed by Conover T. Silver, was launched in 1917; the model was known as the "Anniversary" after 1919. A sedan proprietary
Property
Property is any physical or intangible entity that is owned by a person or jointly by a group of people or a legal entity like a corporation...
with six cylinders of 3.2 L (3243 cc/197 in³) appeared in 1923, and a Lycoming
Lycoming Engines
Lycoming Engines is a U.S. aircraft engine company, known primarily for its general aviation engines. For most of its history Lycoming has been part of the AVCO group as AVCO Lycoming. In 1987 AVCO was purchased by Textron to become Textron Lycoming...
eight cylinder was offered beginning in 1924.