1923 Detroit Electric Model 97B

Brougham

The Anderson Electric Car Company of Detroit built 13,000 Detroit Electrics between 1907 and 1939. Production peaked at 1,000 - 2,000 cars a year before the company's name changed to 'The Detroit Electric Car Company' in 1920 to separate it from Anderson's body and motor/controller businesses. EV sales withered in the 1920s, but the company continued building them until the 1929 stock market crash and then filed for bankruptcy. It was acquired and stayed in business, filling special orders until the last car was shipped on February 23, 1939.

The Detroit Electric was very popular amongst women due to its quietness and lack of crank starting. Most notably, they were favored by Clara Ford and Mina Miller Edison, the wives of Henry Ford and Thomas Edison. Mrs. Edison's Detroit Electric can still be viewed in Edison's garage at their residence in Llewellyn Park in West Orange, New Jersey.

This 1923 example was rescued from the Antique Auto Museum in Iowa, where it was found aging ungracefully. Its interior had been reupholstered in 1970s crushed-velvet velour; all of its wiring needed to be replaced; and virtually everything else was either in poor condition or missing. The biggest challenge for restorer Coastal Classics was fabricating nearly everything it needed, including a new swing-out windshield, windshield frame, and right front corner window. The exterior was black with metallic blue vinyl pin-striping. It was missing the windshield and right corner glass as well as the trim pieces for each window. Over the course of a year-and-a-half, the Detroit Electric received a ground-up restoration.

Powered by 14 six-volt batteries, seven in front and seven in back, it has a driving range of about 50 miles. It has tiller steering, rear-only drum brakes (aided somewhat by a brake on its electric drive motor), and a top speed of about 25 mph.