Car : Pierce-Arrow 48 Roadster
Year : 1915
Engine : 6 cylinders in line
Bore and stroke :114.3×139.7 mm
Cylinder capacity : 8596 cc
Gears : 4 forward
Brake horse power : 75
Maximum speed : 70 mph
Wheelbase : 11 ft 2½ ins ( 3.41 m) or 11 ft 10 ins ( 3.60 m)
Suspension : front: semi-elliptic leaf- springs; back: ¾ elliptic leaf- springs
Georage Pierce opened a small factory for household articles in Buffalo in 1870. In 1900 the company produced its first car, powered by a single-cylinder De Dion engine. Pierce only changed to twin-cylinder engines in 1903. In 1904 it was already making a 4-cylinder 4400 cc car called the Great Arrow 24/28, which was very successful. At this point George Pierce decided it would be a good idea to compete in motor racing, and was successful in rallies. The work ‘Arrow’ perfectly illustrated the look of Pierce cars, and from 1909 the firm became officially Pierce-Arrow Motor car.
The 1915 48 Roadster is typical of the Pierce-Arrow range. Its powerful engine developed 70-75 bhp at 2,500 revs, and consisted of three blocks of 2 cylinders with side valves, having two spark plugs per cylinder, dual ignition, pressure lubrication, forced water cooling , and radiator; surprisingly, it had a cone clutch. A characteristic of the car was the headlights built into the fenders. Pierce-Arrow was one of the companies to use this design. It was forced to merge with Studebaker due to financial problems in 1928, but it regained its independence in 1933. It struggled on until 1938, when finally it closed down.