Vehicle Description
With roots going back to approximately 1907, Detroit Electric grew
to become the longest-surviving car company dedicated exclusively
to battery power. Before adopting the name Detroit Electric, the
firm was known as the Anderson Carriage Company, and they were
among the earliest champions of battery power for their line of
lightweight city cars. After incorporating as Detroit Electric, the
company enjoyed strong sales throughout the teens and into the
twenties, peaking at nearly 5,000 vehicles per year. Detroit
Electrics were widely regarded as high-quality automobiles, with
multiple chassis and body options, including several different open
touring cars and even a sporty underslung roadster - predating the
Tesla Roadster by about a century! By the mid-teens, the bulk of
Detroit Electric production comprised of fully-enclosed coupes,
broughams, and sedans to best suit their customer base of
predominantly well-off, city-dwellers who appreciated the Detroit
Electric's smoke-free running and easy operation, particularly in
the days before the self-starter. Because of the relative
simplicity of electric power, not much changed on the cars
mechanically for the entirety of production. That also meant
Detroit Electric was slow to evolve their styling to make the
vehicles appear more conventional. The catalog often had a dizzying
array of models and body styles, yet the overall appearance of
Detroit Electrics remained unchanged from the teens through the
early thirties. It wasn't until they began purchasing bodies from
Willys and Dodge that the Detroit Electric look finally evolved. As
electric car sales dwindled in the face of improvements in petrol
power, the focus turned to commercial vehicle production. However,
passenger cars continued to be offered on a special-order basis,
and it is believed that they were still being built as late as
1939. This 1921 Detroit Electric Model 85A is a rare and unusual
example, featuring handsome brougham coachwork and a rarely seen
false bonnet/radiator treatment. Handsomely presented in a two-tone
black and green livery, it is the subject of a well-maintained
older restoration, and it is the only surviving Model 85A known to
marque historians. The body is in excellent order, and its
front-end treatment shows one of Detroit's earliest attempts to
build a more conventional appearing car. The coachwork is in very
good order, the high build quality reflected in its straight panels
and excellent fit, while the paintwork is glossy and attractive all
around, with only minor imperfections noted on close inspection.
Details include straw-colored coach lines, unique rectangular
bezels on the head and cowl lamps, and nickel grab handles and
wheel caps. Like many Detroits of the era, the spacious cabin has a
parlor-like atmosphere, with an overstuffed bench in the rear and a
swiveling front passenger seat, so occupants can chat face-to-face
while motoring silently along. This car's green velour upholstery
displays a bit of wear and fading in the fabric, yet it retains a
charming character. Detroit was one of the last holdouts of tiller
steering, long after the wheel became the industry standard. This
1921 model is no exception, with tiller-based controls for steering
and throttle and a foot-pedal operated brake. Instrumentation
monitors volts, amps, and speed - so there's little need for a
bulky dashboard. The beauty of early electric cars like this
Detroit lies in their mechanical simplicity. There's a big electric
motor driving the robust rear axle, mechanical rear brakes, and
that's about it. There are no cooling or fuel systems to service,
and they are remarkably reliable machines. This example has been
renewed with fresh batteries in the front and rear compartments and
had new contacts installed for the drive controls, which provides
four forward speeds. Piloting a Detroit Electric is a uniquely
enjoyable experience, humming along in near silence, with its
relative simplicity providing a fascinating counterpoint to today's
tech-laden, hyper-advanced electric luxury cars. This charming
example has the added cachet of being the only known survivor of
its type and would be a welcome addition to any diverse and
eclectic collection of autos. Offers welcome and trades considered
For additional details please view this listing directly on our
website
https://hymanltd.com/vehicles/6774-1921-detroit-electric-model-85a-2-dr/