Online Auto Museum

Pierce-Arrow Model 80 Runabout, #8011609, 1926

Location:
RM Sotheby's, Hershey, 2023

Owner: Conrad Fletcher | Golden, Colorado

Prologue:

Image Source: Nikon D750 (24.3 MP)

A parade of portraits... Of the Colorado Pierce-Arrow cars at RM Hershey, I profiled three, and of those I actually looked forward to this Model 80 Runabout most. Ornamental details in RM's gallery piqued my curiosity—the castings, colors, pinstripes, and patina. Working close, portraits make ready vignettes of these details, and here I found quite a few.

The car itself is probably not the last Model 80 Runabout we'll see, a popular configuration on a series aimed at broadening Pierce-Arrow's customer base. From the standpoint of old cars, this one is a nice example. Like its companions on offer that lovely October afternoon, chassis #8011609 feels genuine and of-the-period. Truly classic, (not concours), which is a quality I feel this catalogue needs.

References:

  • "Pierce-Arrow" by Marc Ralston, A.S. Barnes & Co., Inc., San Diego, CA, c. 1980, pages 119-120, 232
  • Automobile Quarterly, Volume 28, Number 4, Fourth Quarter 1990, "Change and Prosperity" by John C. Meyer III, The Kutztown Publishing Company, Inc. Kutztown, PA, pages 73-74
  • Automobile Quarterly, Volume 6, Number 3, Third Quarter 1968, "Pierce-Arrow: An American Aristocrat," by Maurice D. Hendry, The Kutztown Publishing Company, Inc. Kutztown, PA, page 257
  • RM Sotheby's: The Hershey 2023 auction listing for #8011609.
  • Chicago Vintage Motor Carriage: A nice article on their beautiful 1927 Model 80 Rumabout, with good references to manufacturing quality.

 

Last Updated: Nov 12, 2024