1931 Peerless Master 8

The history of Peerless began in 1874 in Cincinnati as a manufacturer of laundry equipment, expanding into bicycle manufacturing following a move into larger facilities in Cleveland, and soon followed by automobile production. The Peerless Motor Car Company was established in 1900 at 43 Lisbon Street in Cleveland, Ohio, producing motorcars using a license from the French Company De Dion-Bouton. Starting with motorettes and two-cylinder, three-wheeled vehicles, by 1904, a four-cylinder Peerless was built and made famous by Barney Oldfield as The Green Dragon. The early Peerless models were designed by engineer Louis P. Mooers, who also designed several proprietary engines. The Peerless Company became the first company to adopt what would become the standard of automobile design, a front-mounted engine powering the rear wheels via a solid drive shaft.

The Green Dragon competed in the world's first 24-hour endurance race in Columbus, Ohio in 1905 where it was driven by Earnest Bollinger, Aurther Feasel, and briefly by Barney Oldfield. For the first hour, the Peerless led the race but ultimately finished in 3rd place following a crash into a fence.

Peerless prestige, price, power, displacement size, and overall vehicle size continued to increase during the mid-1900s as the company's focus shifted toward luxury. They were one of the first car companies to introduce electric lighting on their vehicles, in 1911, with electric starters standardized in 1913. With the introduction of the electric starter, Peerless was able to increase the size of its six-cylinder engines. Its first V8 engine was introduced in 1915, just shortly after Cadillac introduced its V8, and would power Peerless vehicles until 1925 when the company began using engines from other manufacturers for its vehicles.

The relentless pursuit of greater horsepower, sophistication, and opulence throughout the entire automotive marketplace was relentless, with engines that included sizes of V-16, horsepower that exceeded 300 hp, large and sophisticated chassis designs, extravagant coachwork employing lightweight materials, and even front-wheel drive. In the wake of the stock market crash and the onset of the Great Depression, many companies were forced out of business. Peerless would be among them, with 1931 being its final year of producing vehicles, switching to the beer distribution business. Peerless built 851 vehicles in 1931 before going out of business in June. Approximately 1,274 examples were built of the 'Master Series' between 1930 and 1931.

Prior to being forced out of business, Peerless had commissioned Murphy Body Works to design what the company had hoped to be its 1933 model. The designs were penned by Frank Hershey under the guidance of Frank Spring, including the 1932 Peerless X-D V-16 prototype. Hershey would later be instrumental in creating the Pontiacs of the 1930s, the Cadillac tailfins that appeared in the late 1940s, and spent several years at Packard and designing the 1955 Ford Thunderbird.

The Peerless Master Series was powered by a Continental Straight 8 engine with a 322 cubic-inch displacement and developed 120 horsepower on a 125-inch wheelbase. The sedan and coupe had a factory base price of approximately $2,000, the club sedan and brougham were $45 higher, and the cabriolet listed for $2,095.

The Master 8 with its 120 horsepower engine and 125-inch wheelbase was the company's intermediate-level vehicle, positioned above the Standard 8 with its 118-inch wheelbase, and below the Custom 8 resting on a 138-inch wheelbase. The 120-horsepower engine powered all 1931 Peerless vehicles. The Standard 8 had a base price of $1,495 for its coupe and sedan and $1,545 for its Brougham and Club Sedan. The Cabriolet had a price of $1,600. The Custom 8 was priced from $2,895 to $3,145, with its brougham selling for $2,845, the seven-passenger sedan at $2,945, and the limousine at $3,145.

The final Peerless was the 464 cubic-inch V16 prototype, built almost entirely from aluminum, representing the company's association with another Cleveland-based company, Alcoa.

by Daniel Vaughan | Feb 2021