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46-489: Foreseeing the necessity to switch to the production of horseless carriages, Cunningham started automobile production in 1908 with gasoline engine cars that sold at approximately $ 3,500, a very high price at the time. Initially the company made only the chassis. They assembled each car to individual customer requirements, using components from other manufacturers. Engines came from Buffalo or Continental . Cunningham also sold electric cars based on their experimental vehicle from

92-427: A 4-passenger torpedo and a 4-passenger toy tonneau , each at $ 3,500. Prices for the other models remained unchanged. In 1913, the new model M superseded the J and had a slightly less powerful engine rated at 36.1 HP . Its chassis had the same wheelbase as previously. There was a little shuffling with the body styles as the phaeton and torpedo were listed for 5 passengers now. Again, there were seven body styles but

138-511: A Lincoln built with a town car body for his father's personal use. Seeking publicity and building on his work with Studebaker, Raymond Loewy had two Lincoln Continentals altered to coupés de ville in 1946 using a removable plexiglas cover over the chauffeur. Ford introduced a town car body to its Model A line in December 1928. Designed by LeBaron and designated the 140-A, the Model A town car

184-401: A canopy for the passengers and no partition between the driver and the passengers (passengers enter the compartment via driver's area). The separate exposed area for the driver followed from horse-drawn carriages . The term "coupé de ville" came into existence in the 19th century before the invention of the automobile. The initial usage of the term was for a variant of the coupé carriage that

230-421: A partition between the driver and the passengers. These partitions often had a small slide-back glass window, or were completely made of glass with a manual or electric winding system. The passengers could speak to the driver through a communications tube, or, from the 1920s, through an electrical device similar to a telephone . Some designs included a switch panel in the rear passenger compartment, which contained

276-604: A small edition with individual equipment ("semi-custom"). In France, Audineau et Cie., Mulbacher and Rothschild became known for such works. In the United Kingdom, the style was applied to numerous chassis by the various specialist coachwork builders, but it is most often associated via the 4-door Sedanca de Ville variant with Rolls-Royce motor cars, and the 2-door sporting Sedanca variant with Bentleys . Coachbuilders included Barker , Hooper , H. J. Mulliner and Park Ward . Due to its historic and luxurious connections,

322-480: A speedometer and switches to impart the most common instructions to the driver via a lighted dashboard panel, such as "stop", "left", "right", or "home". In the United States, a coupé de ville with rear doors for the passenger area, no roof or sides for the driver's area, and a partition between the passengers and the driver was referred to as a "town car" or "town brougham". Town cars normally had side windows in

368-530: A stripped but otherwise stock series V-3 Cunningham special roadster at 98 mph in a six-mile trial at the Sheepshead Bay Race Track . Jay Leno featured his personal 1920 Cunningham V-Series Roadster on an episode of Jay Leno's Garage in 2012. Industrial designer Adam Baker of Rochester, NY sought to re-imagine the company as a modern day enterprise with a concept car design in 2016. Continental Motors Company Continental Motors Company

414-432: A touring car and three formal styles (one of them a Cabriolet convertible sedan) on the smaller chassis, with prices starting at $ 6,000. On the larger chassis, there were two touring cars at $ 6,700 and $ 6,800, and a town car and a cabriolet at $ 8,100 each. For 1922, Cunningham no longer listed prices, only stating "Prices Upon Application". The cars now offered a four-speed manual transmission and coincidentally were called

460-402: A wheelbase of 132 inches. Twelve body styles were listed in its first year. Open types—five- and seven-passenger touring cars, a new two-passenger roadster , a three-passenger runabout and a four-passenger toy tonneau—were priced at $ 3,750. There were three new closed styles at $ 4,500 each: a four-passenger coupé , a five-passenger sedan and a four-passenger roadster coupé. At $ 5,000 each,

506-423: Is a car body style produced from 1908 to 1939. It has an external or open-topped driver's position, as well as an enclosed compartment for passengers. Although the different terms may have once had specific meanings for certain car manufacturers or countries, the terms are often used interchangeably. Some coupés de ville have the passengers separated from the driver in a fully enclosed compartment while others have

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552-479: Is defined as a coupé de ville in the United States. French variant similar to the town car. French variant similar to the coupé chauffeur but with a longer passenger compartment capable of holding up to seven passengers, with up to three on jump seats usually facing forward. The style was referred to in the United States as a limousine town car and in Britain as a limousine de ville . The term Coupé Napoleon

598-546: Is used for the Sedanca Coupé. A coupé de ville is alternatively defined in North America as a drophead coupé with a three-position top which may be fully closed, fully open, or partially closed, leaving rear passengers covered. In the United Kingdom, a sedanca-style drophead coupé with three-position folding top (fully open, covering the rear passengers only, or fully closed) is called a " cabriolet victoria ". This variant

644-528: Is very similar to the British clarence carriage . The term "de ville" is French for "for town" and indicates that the vehicle is for use in town or for short distances. When added to the end of a body style (saloon, coupé, landaulet, etc.), "de Ville" indicated that the top over the driver's compartment could be folded away, retracted, or otherwise removed. As a vehicle for town use, the coupé de ville usually had no facilities for carrying luggage. Early cars had

690-404: The 132-inch. wheelbase, at substantially higher cost. Roadster and 4-passenger touring were $ 6,200, and the sedan cost $ 7,600. On the longer chassis, a 6-passenger touring car was available at $ 6,700. Three formal styles, called Inside Drive limousine, Town Limousine and Landaulet, priced at $ 8,100 each, were among the most expensive cars of the time. For 1921, there were few changes. Now, there were

736-405: The 1890s. By 1910, the company was producing all its parts and selling its cars in the range of $ 4,500 to $ 5,000. From 1911 Cunningham offered complete automobiles that were illustrated in its first catalogue. They were hand-built and production was slow: one and a half cars per worker per year from a workforce of 450. Much of the wood- and metal-work was crafted by hand. The first of these cars

782-544: The 1931 De Vaux, a product of the De Vaux-Hall, which had been using body dies left over from the former Durant produced by Durant Motors until 1930. The 1933 Continentals were marketed in three model ranges: the largest and most expensive was the six-cylinder Ace , next was a smaller six called the Flyer and also the low-priced four-cylinder Beacon . The 1933 Beacon roadster was the lowest price full-size car offered for sale in

828-780: The De Vaux-Hall Motors Company, using the Durant body dies, in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and Oakland, California, and under the De Vaux brand name. When De Vaux-Hall collapsed in 1932, unable to pay creditors, Continental Motors assumed automobile assembly and marketed the vehicles under the Continental-De Vaux brand name for the balance of the 1932 model year. Continental Motors introduced a completely new line of Continental-branded automobiles for 1933. These cars were not based upon

874-427: The United Kingdom is unclear. According to once source, "sedanca de ville" refers to a town car variant, and "sedanca" refers to a sedanca coupé. According to another source, sedanca de ville is a redundant term and sedanca refers to a town car. In France, Germany and Italy, the term "coupé de ville" was used for both the town car and sedanca coupé variants. In the United States, the similar term "coupé de ville"

920-469: The United States in the 1930s, costing only $ US335. None of these met with success in the depression era economy. At this same time, Dominion Motors Ltd. of Canada was building the same Flyer and Beacon cars under arrangement with Continental for sale in the Canadian market, and importing the larger Ace models. Dominion then converted to building Reo brand trucks. The Ace and Flyer models were discontinued at

966-784: The close of the 1933 model year. Finding that its cars were unprofitable, Continental stopped assembling even Beacon automobiles in 1934. Continental was a major manufacturer of horizontally opposed 'flat four' airplane engines and supplied a similar engine for Sherman tanks during World War II. Apparently the US government contracts continued during the Korean War. As the jet engine began to replace piston engine powered airplanes, Continental began losing their military contracts. The jet engine technology thus creating an understandable end to Continental's military prosperity. When Korean War ended, Kaiser Corporation, who used Continental engines in all their vehicles,

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1012-484: The doors only. The name "town car" is an Anglicized version of "de Ville". The terms sedanca and sedanca de ville were introduced by Spanish nobleman Count Carlos de Salamanca, the Spanish distributor for Rolls-Royce, in 1923. The strict definition of a sedanca includes a locker for the cant rails and canopy that form the roof; this was introduced by Count de Salamanca in his original sedanca. Usage of these terms in

1058-449: The driver fully exposed to the weather with no cover, no doors, and sometimes no windshield,. As speed and distances travelled increased, windshields were added to protect the driver from dirt from the unpaved roads and dung from draught animals. Later models also included doors to the driving compartment. Early roofs for the driver's area were made of a single skin of leather without any structural support, and were held in place between

1104-527: The earliest V8 engines built in the USA, after the Cadillac V8 model which was introduced in 1914. Series V-2 started with model year 1918 and changes were few. Body styles were reduced to eight and prices increased, starting now at $ 4,250 for open-bodied cars. With the exception of a reintroduced Landaulet at $ 5,750, closed cars cost $ 5,500 each. Gone were the runabout, the roadster coupé, the touring sedan and, again,

1150-586: The early 1950s an air cooled V12 engine was introduced for armored vehicles. Later the AVSI-1790 was developed into the AVDS-1790 diesel version, which was often retro-fitted to earlier vehicles. The following automobile companies used Continental engines: Some models used Continental engines for only part of their production lifespan; others used them exclusively. (Vehicles often change engines during production and/or service life) Town car Coupé de ville

1196-499: The finest cotton or silk adorned with brocade . The same material was also most often used to provide complete curtain coverage for the compartment, and was matched by substantial carpet and fine inlaid woodwork. The driver's compartment had leather seats to endure bad weather. The division between the two compartments often held jump seats for lighter passengers such as children, and it would often accommodate various compartments for drinks, cigars, make-up, or books. Some versions had

1242-493: The four more formal styles (five-passenger touring sedan, six-passenger town car , and a limousine and a berline that both seated eight passengers) were the most expensive. Individualizing these bodies added to the base prices. Cunningham invited its customers to commission their own bodywork, and assisted with design and execution. Such cars could easily cost twice as much as a comparable catalogued style. Listed as 1917 models, these cars were available from 1916. They are among

1288-506: The late 1930s 7 and 9 cylinder air cooled radial aircraft engines were adapted for use in armored vehicles. The W670 and R975 were considered very reliable by the British in North Africa, but were not developed further. Opposed: just after WWII an air cooled O6 was developed for armored vehicles. All were supercharged, AOS895-3 models had carburetors, -5 models had fuel injection with no increase in power, but greater fuel mileage. V type: in

1334-471: The mid-1960s. However, Stutz built both single and dual overhead cam inline six-cylinder engines in, respectively, the late 1920s and early 1930s (sohc) and the early 1930s (dohc). Moreover, these were fitted in Stutz production cars (though their numbers were comparatively small). Particular models of John Deere tractors are currently being supplied by Continental since the ownership transfer to Korea, as stated on

1380-494: The passenger compartment and the windshield by poppers to allow for easy removal or rollback when the weather allowed. From the late 1920s onward designs used a metal two-skin roof which retracted into a void above the passenger compartment, either manually or electrically. Due to its use as a chauffeured vehicle, the passenger compartment was normally luxurious, clad in the best materials, with seating for between two and most often up to six or occasionally eight persons, made of

1426-457: The production of automobiles rather indirectly. Continental was the producer of automobile engines for numerous independent automobile companies in the 1910s, 1920s, and 1930s, including Durant Motors Corporation which used the engines in its Star, Durant, Flint and Rugby model lines. Following the 1931 collapse of Durant, a group having interest in Durant Motors began assembling their own cars,

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1472-436: The same 442 c. i. displacement as before. There were 3 main bearings on each cylinder bench, and the counterweighted aluminium crankcase was cast in two parts. Pistons were cast iron and the oil pump was gear-driven. Transmission, again by Brown Lipe, had 4 speeds plus overdrive. Also available was an additional chassis with a wheelbase of 142 inches. Drum-type headlamps were introduced. There were three catalogued body styles on

1518-503: The series V's clutch and transmission came from Brown-Lipe-Chapin , axles and rear-wheel brakes from Timken -Detroit , pistons from Lynite , and an electrical system from Westinghouse . Roads were bad and Cunninghams were equipped with an air pump for easier repair of punctured tires. As there was no service network for the company, and owners did not wish to let local mechanics repair their expensive cars, Cunningham sent its own experts to their customers. Series V Cunninghams had

1564-439: The series V-4. The Volney-Lacey designed 442 cu in (7.2 L) continued, with 45 hp according to the outdated NACC measuring method—for 1923, the rating was 90 bhp. The 132-inch (model 91A) and 142-inch (model 82A) wheelbases continued, with mostly Cunningham-built bodywork. By 1926, the engine remained unchanged, and the cars were now equipped with four-wheel brakes. On November 17, 1919, Ralph DePalma drove

1610-464: The term town car found early favour amongst many North America automobile manufacturers. The most luxurious were handbuilt by coachbuilders on rolling chassis provided by prestige automakers, such as Packards and North American-built Rolls-Royces bodied by Brewster & Co. , and various Cadillacs, Lincolns, Packards, and others by LeBaron and Rollston . Brewster also sold a limited line of automobiles under its own name. In 1922, Edsel Ford had

1656-526: The toy tonneau had gone and a new 7-passenger "Berlin Limousine" joined the range. Prices remained the same with the exception of the two limousine types whose prices rose to $ 4,600. The main change in the model R that appeared in 1914 was a wheelbase of 129 in. Listed body styles were reduced to six. The torpedo and the "Berlin Limousine" were dropped. There were now three touring cars (for 4, 5, or 7 passengers, respectively). Prices rose considerably. The runabout

1702-410: The toy tonneau. The roadster now seated four passengers, as did the smaller touring car. For 1919 the berline, town car and coupé styles were dropped. A special roadster became available to commemorate race car driver Ralph DePalma ’s record-breaking run at Sheepshead Bay that year. With the series V-3 that went into production in 1920 came many improvements. Most significant was a new engine, which had

1748-520: The tractor's engine identification plate. Continental built many engines for the US military, some by license, and many of unusual type. Inline: several conventional gasoline I6s were built for trucks, the COA331 (licensed from REO), 6602, 22R, and AO895 (also used in some armored vehicles). Later the M-A-N licensed multifuel LDS427, LD465 and turbocharged LDT465 were developed, also for use in trucks. Radial: in

1794-574: Was able to gain ownership of a Continental engine making factory.* It was during that time of downsizing Continental's operations that many Continental employees dispersed to find jobs elsewhere in the industry -those engineers finding new jobs at other companies like the newly formed American Motors, even Chevrolet. Kaiser, working with a Continental-designed engine, introduced the USA's first mass-produced OHC inline six-cylinder engine. It debuted in Kaiser-owned Jeep Corporation vehicles in

1840-571: Was also used to describe a Bugatti Royale body of the type. The term is derived from the brougham carriage . In strict terms, a brougham would have a sharply squared rear end of the roof and a forward-curving body line at the base of the front of the passenger enclosure. The term degraded during the twentieth century. Due to its high-end luxurious form, bespoke commissioning and resultant design nature, and final high cost, coupés de ville of both types were hand-built in small numbers. The cars were almost always made as individual ("Full Custom"), or in

1886-441: Was an American manufacturer of internal combustion engines . The company produced engines as a supplier to many independent manufacturers of automobiles, tractors, trucks, and stationary equipment (such as pumps, generators , and industrial machinery drives) from the 1900s through the 1960s. Continental Motors also produced automobiles in 1932–1933 under the name Continental Automobile Company. The Continental Aircraft Engine Company

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1932-452: Was catalogued at $ 3,500, the tourers at $ 3,750, and the limousine and landaulet at $ 5,000 The Model S, built from 1915 until 1916, was the last of the big four-cylinder Cunninghams. Technically, these cars were quite similar to the model R. Body styles and prices remained unchanged. For 1916, the 5-passenger touring car was dropped. From the outset, Cunningham automobiles were admired for their clean lines. A radiator shell of Nickel silver

1978-624: Was formed in 1929 to develop and produce its aircraft engines , and would become the core business of Continental Motors, Inc. In 1905 , Continental Motors was born with the introduction of a four-cylinder, four stroke cycle L-head engine operated by a single camshaft . In August 1929, the Continental Motors Company formed the Continental Aircraft Engine Company as a subsidiary to develop and produce its aircraft engines. Continental Motors entered into

2024-510: Was included, and a feature seen on many of these cars was the use of aluminum steps instead of running boards , adding another European touch to the car. A V8 engine was developed in 1916 and introduced in the series V-1 Cunningham. A side-valve design with a displacement of 442 c.i., it was rated at 45 hp by the National Automobile Chamber of Commerce (NACC). Cunningham bought many components from outside vendors. For example,

2070-690: Was sold until early 1930. 1,065 Model A town cars were built by the end of production in 1930. In 1940 and 1941, a limited edition model of the Cadillac Sixty Special carried the Town Car name. It was reintroduced as a coupe hardtop in 1949 using the French name for the body style Coupe DeVille and in 1956 as a four-door hardtop called the Sedan DeVille . Production of cars with the coupe de ville body style ceased in 1939. However, car manufacturers in

2116-417: Was the model J, a very large automobile with a Cunningham-built 4-cylinder engine of 40 HP. Wheelbase was 124 in. There were four bodies: a 7-passenger touring car at $ 3,500, a runabout at $ 3,250, and a limousine and a landaulet at $ 4,500 each. For 1912, the model J was offered without much changes. Choice of bodies went up to seven and included three additional open body styles: a 5-passenger phaeton ,

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