Grant - Findlay, Ohio - (1913-1916)
The Grant was a natty little two-seater roadster on a
90-inch wheelbase with standard 56-inch tread. It was powered by a four-cylinder
12 hp water-cooled engine. It featured shaft drive, a sliding gear transmission,
drop forged front axle, and a three-point suspension arrangement of full
elliptic springs at the front, semi-elliptic at the rear placed crosswise back
of the rear axle. It had perky drum headlamps, nicely curved fenders and
sprightly but substantial wire wheels. And its price tag was $495. As a sports
car, which the Grant really was (in the much later M.G. TC tradition), it was
really a honey. After a small production run in temporary headquarters in
Detroit in 1913, the firm moved into the plant of the defunct Findlay Motor
Company of Ohio in November of 1913.
The first cars had 4 cylinders and no
starter motors, no generator, no water pump, no fuel gauge, and no speedo. It
did have electric headlights and an electric horn that ran off a 6 volt battery
in the boot. The battery must have been charged up each night before going for a
run as the horn used up a lot of power. The side lights and tail light were
either kerosene or acetylene. Some cars had factory fitted lighting and starter
motors at an additional charge of $10 on top of the $495 purchase
price.
The gearbox and differential are both
combined on the rear axle. The engine oil is gravity fed from a copper tank on
the firewall at about 6-8 drops per minute and it is burnt as it is used. The
oil drip rate is controlled from under the dashboard with a small valve with a
glass tube to enable the drops to be timed. This is what was called a 'total
loss system'. The problem with this was that there had to be smoke coming from
the exhaust to indicate that the motor was getting enough oil. The engine block
had a brass tap on the bottom right side to prevent the oil level getting too
high. This oil was allowed to drip onto the roads.
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