1915 Overland Model 82

The first Overland was built in Terre Haute, Indiana in 1903 by Claude Cox and featured numerous advanced features including a water-cooled single-cylinder engine installed vertically under the hood. Approximately twelve examples were built and then were followed by a twin in 1904 but production barely doubled. Early Overland vehicles featured a removable ignition plug that prevented automobile theft when left unattended. Prospects brightened when the upstate New York agency for Overland was taken on by an Elmira-based individual named John North Willys. Mr. Willy's talents allowed him to sell Jeffrey and American Underslung automobiles faster than they could be produced. Needing more inventory, he placed an order for 500 1907 Overlands and placed a $10,000 deposit. With little response from the Overland factory, he jumped on a train and headed to Indianapolis. There he discovered....nothing....well, practically nothing.

The early history of the Overland company was a roller coaster ride typical of many of the early automobile manufacturers. In 1907, the company was in danger of collapsing, and in an effort to prevent losing the sales he had generated, John North Willys assumed management of the struggling company. He used more of his own personal funds to pay the small workforce's back wages, and got production back on track, with 465 vehicles built in 1908 and 4,907 a year later. He later took over the Marion Motor Car Company of Marion, Ohio, and in 1909, he acquired Col. Albert Pope's Pope-Toledo factory in Toledo, Ohio, then consolidated his automotive holdings in the Willys-Overland Company. The newly reorganized company oscillated between the verge of bankruptcy and years of multi-million-dollar profit, and production continued until the 1930s. In 1914, Overland was the second-largest producer of cars in the US, behind only Ford. While the Model T was an everyman's car, the Overland was an upmarket model selling for about twice the cost of a T. It had a larger and more powerful engine, a larger footprint, and a more spacious interior. Overlands featured a four-cylinder engine with separately cast cylinder jugs. An electric starter was available as a $125 option in 1914 and was the last year for right-hand drive.

The 1915 Overland model lineup included the Model 81 resting on a 106-inch wheelbase, the Model 80 on a 114-inch wheelbase, and the range-topping Model 82 on a 125-inch wheelbase. The Model 81 was equipped with a four-cylinder engine delivering 30 horsepower and body styles included a five-passenger tourer priced at $850, a roadster at $795, a Panel Delivery at $895, and a delivery at $850. The Model 80 had a 35-horsepower four-cylinder engine and the five-passenger tourer was priced at $1,075, the coupe at $1,600 and the roadster at $1,050. The Model 82 was built solely as a seven-passenger tourer priced at $1,475 and powered by a six-cylinder engine delivering 50 horsepower. It was a Continental L-head unit with a 303 cubic-inch displacement.

by Daniel Vaughan | Feb 2022