1916 Simplex Crane Model 5 46hp Limousine
Few American automobiles from the brass era matched the engineering sophistication and exclusivity of this Simplex six-cylinder luxury car. After Herman Broesel’s sons sold Simplex to a New York consortium around 1912, the new management purchased Crane Motor Car Company to gain access to a competitive six-cylinder design.
Engineer Henry M. Crane created the Model 5 using a 144-inch wheelbase chassis featuring a massive 563-cubic-inch L-head inline six that developed 100 to 110 horsepower at just 1,800 to 2,000 rpm. Cast in two blocks of three cylinders with all valves on one side, the engine drove through a single-plate clutch and four-speed transmission.
The chassis alone cost $5,000 when introduced in 1915 (later rising to $7,000), carrying custom coachwork by America’s finest builders including Brewster, Holbrook, and Quinby. Notable owners included John D. Rockefeller and Frederick Vanderbilt.
Simplex was acquired by Wright-Martin Aircraft Corporation in 1917, with automobile production ending that same year when the factory converted to Hispano-Suiza aero engine manufacture for World War I.
Fewer than 500 examples were completed before production ceased permanently.
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