1912 Cartercar Model R Tourer

254ci Inline 4-Cylinder Engine
Single Carburetor
40bhp
3-Speed Manual Transmission
Front and Rear Live Axle Suspension
Rear External Contracting Drum Brakes

*A fully restored example
*Formerly part of the Bellm's Museum
*Tradition two-tone color scheme
*A wonderful open tourer

THE CARTERCAR

Byron Carter was superintendent of the Jackson Automobile Company in Jackson, Michigan. He designed a friction drive mechanism for automobiles, but was unable to convince his colleagues at Jackson to adopt it, so he struck out on his and founded the Motorcar Company across town. He soon moved on to Detroit in search of investors, and renamed the company after himself: The CarterCar Company.

The CarterCar was introduced in 1906, with "no clutch to slip...no gears to strip... no universal joints to break...no shaft drive to twist...no bevel gears to wear and howl...no noise to annoy." The CarterCar transmission was simplicity itself, two disks running at right angles to one another. To increase the gear ratio the driven disk was moved across the face of the driving disk. To reverse, it was moved past dead center. Advertised as "The Car of a Thousand Speeds," the CarterCar enjoyed a good reception. Sales rose steadily, if modestly, to 325 by 1908. That April, however, Byron Carter died of pneumonia. In October 1909, William C. Durant bought CarterCar for General Motors, impressed by its friction drive. Durant, however, was ousted from GM in 1910, and CarterCar languished. By the time Durant made his comeback at GM the CarterCar was defunct and its factory had been repurposed to build Oakland cars.

THE MOTORCAR OFFERED

This Model R tourer sits on the company's mid-size 112 inch wheelbase in between the Model H and Model S. As shown in a document in the history file, by 1965 the vehicle had belonged to Bellm's Cars of Yesteryear Incorporated, a museum located in Sarasota, Florida. In 1995, the Cartercar was transferred to D.E. Foeller Sales and not much later to the Tupelo Automobile Museum.

This is a fine example which appears to have received a thorough restoration at some point in its life. The upholstery shows little signs of age, as does the dash and shining brass. Under the hood and on the exterior present equally well. Overall, the restoration has aged very well. This Model R Cartercar is a fine example of early motoring and will surely be welcome in any collection of aged motorcars.