Scripps-Booth
Scripps-Booth was a United States automobile company based in Detroit, Michigan which produced motor vehicles from 1913 through 1923.
The company was founded by artist and engineer James Booth (of the Scripps publishing family), who also built the Bi-Autogo.[1] Scripps Booth company produced autos intended for the luxury market.
For 1914, Scripps Booth offered a three-passenger torpedo roadster, powered by a 103in3 (1702 cc) (2⅞×4-inch, 3½×102 mm)[2] 18 hp (13 kW) watercooled four cylinder[3] of valve-in-head design[3] (very sophisticated for the period), with Zenith carburetor and Atwater-Kent automatic spark advance.[3] It featured a 110 in (2794 mm) wheelbase and 30×3½-inch (76×8.8-cm)[3] Houk detachable wire wheels, with three speeds and (still a rarity then) shaft drive.[3] With complete electrical equipment, from Bijur[3] starter to ignition (on a separate switch from starter) to headlights to Klaxet electric horn (with a button in the steering hub, rather than a bulb)[3] to pushbutton door locks,[3] it sold for US$775,[3] compared to US$700 for the Ford Model S (new in 1909), US$650 for the high-volume Oldsmobile Runabout,[4] Ford's Model T at $550, Western's Gale Model A at US$500,[5] the Black starting as low as $375,[6] and the Success at an amazingly low US$250.[4]
In 1917 the Scripps Booth Company was purchased by Chevrolet; General Motors discontinued the brand name in 1923.
Notes
- ↑ Clymer, Floyd. Treasury of Early American Automobiles, 1877-1925 (New York: Bonanza Books, 1950), p.115.
- ↑ Clymer, Floyd. Treasury of Early American Automobiles, 1877-1925 (New York: Bonanza Books, 1950), p.149.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 Clymer, p.149.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Clymer, p.32.
- ↑ Clymer, p.51.
- ↑ Clymer, p.61.
Sources
- Clymer, Floyd. Treasury of Early American Automobiles, 1877-1925. New York: Bonanza Books, 1950.
- Scripps-Booth history
- 1913 Scripps-Booth Bi-Autogo, called one of the "Worst Cars of All Time"
See also
- List of automobile manufacturers
- List of defunct automobile manufacturers
Source
- Clymer, Floyd. Treasury of Early American Automobiles, 1877-1925. New York: Bonanza Books, 1950.