1910 Stoddard-Dayton Model K Tourer

The Dayton Motor Car Co. was founded in 1904 by the Stoddard family of Dayton, Ohio. John Stoddard had made his fortune in the paint, varnish, and farm implement business. Along with his son Charles, they started making high-quality cars in a variety of body styles in 1905.

The cars from 1905-1907 used Rutenber engines. In 1907 Stoddard hired an engineer from England, H.J. Edwards, who designed a very advanced motor featuring hemispherical combustion chambers with inclined overhead valves, twin camshafts, and dual ignition, arguably the most advanced motor available in the United States at that time. In 1910 the Stoddard's sold out to the U.S. Motor Co., but that was an ill-fated venture and by 1913 Stoddard-Dayton, along with the U.S. Motor Co., was just another of a long list of failed automobile manufacturers.

This 1910 Model K has a 354 cubic-inch four-cylinder engine producing 50 horsepower with a three-speed transmission with a 120-inch wheelbase. It was found in extremely poor condition, with many vital parts missing. This includes much of the running gear and rare brass parts such as the lamps. It took over thirty years to locate and acquire the necessary parts and to reproduce the parts that could not be located. The restoration then took an additional four years. There were enough body parts to recreate the body identically to the original. The result is this beautiful correct restoration.