1915 Peerless Model 48

The Peerless Motor Company of Cleveland OH had humble beginnings as a maker of clothes wringers.  They graduated into the manufacture of bicycles and then on to cars.  Their first automotive attempts were quite basic 1- & 2-cylinder machines and, similar to Pierce Arrow, around 1904 they grew into a fairly substantial 4-cylinder vehicle.  From there it was off to races chasing the high-end market in 1908 with a hefty 6-cylinder.  Peerless was known as one of the three “Ps” being associated with high-end cars alongside Pierce Arrow and Packard though their production numbers never did equal either of their rivals.

The 1915 Peerless 48 was their top-of-the-line car with a 577 cu in 6-cylinder engine and a four-speed transmission sitting in a roomy 138-inch wheelbase chassis.  The company slogan was “Everything the name implies” which was not a hyperbolic statement.  Large and powerful, it is a bit of a brute to drive as it has rather heavy steering and a stiff to push clutch with matching brake pedal.   Chances are the purchaser didn’t do the actual driving and the guy who got the job didn’t complain much as he was at the helm of a Peerless.  A lofty gig for a chauffeur.

Peerless carried on building luxury cars but when the stock market crashed in 1929, the die was cast and though the company did hang on until 1931 the market for boutique expensive cars just dried up.