1913 Stutz Series B

Harry C. Stutz's early attempts and experiments with the automobile began in the late 1890s. He opened a small machine shop in Dayton in 1899, which was later called the Stutz Manufacturing Company. Using what was available, including agricultural parts, he created a vehicle that he called Old Hickory. Another vehicle was built in 1900, and both of these vehicles were experimental. Stutz built a single-cylinder gasoline-powered engine of his own design, later selling the rights to the Lindsay Automobile Parts Company of Indianapolis. He moved to Indianapolis to supervise its manufacture and production. In mid-1903, he left the company and went to the Central Motor Car Company, and by 1904 he was at the G&J Tire Company, then went to the Schebler Carburetor Company. Several other employments followed.

By 1910, Stutz had the experience and resources to form the Stutz Auto Parts Company. Within a few weeks, he had built the car that would be taken to the Indianapolis track to partake in the inaugural running of the 500. This was 'The Car That Made Good in a Day' and cemented the company's position into the history books. The Stutz averaged 62.375 mph for 500 miles with only minimal mechanical adjustment and 13 pit stops, 11 of which were for tires. The Stutz was driven by Gil Anderson to an impressive 11th place finish, which did not earn any prize money but it did birth the well-known slogan.

The Stutz Bearcat was offered to the public in 1912 and was essentially a road-worthy version of the Stutz racer that competed at Indy. It was a true sports car that had nothing but the bare essentials. It had two bucket seats and no windshield or convertible top. It had a low-slung chassis which gave it a lower center of gravity, good handling characteristics, and a lightweight design. The early examples used proprietary Wisconsin engines and Stutz's own rear three-speed transaxle. The Wisconsin engine had a twin-camshaft 'T-Head' design, with inlet valves on one side of the block and exhausts on the other. It displaced 6.4 liters and offered 50 horsepower. This engine would be used until 1917, when Stutz began to manufacture their own engines.

Stutz also offered a 60 horsepower six-cylinder engine for 1912, and the Bearcat model was available on both chassis. Stutz built 266 vehicles in 1912, followed by 759 the following year. Body styles included a Roadster, Tourer, Bearcat, and Toy Tonneau.

The Stutz Company promoted their sporty Bearcat as a carbon copy of their racing model. 'We are now building duplicates of this 'car that made good in a day' with absolutely the same material, workmanship, and design,' boasted the 1912 factory catalogue.

by Daniel Vaughan | May 2019