The Penultimate Speedster

The company lasted only 36 years but left an indelible imprint on the nation's automotive landscape. It grew out of the Eckhart Carriage Company, established in 1875 by Charles Eckhart to supply wagons to people heading west but by the turn of the century Charles' two sons had begun building automobiles and the firm took on the name of its home town: the Auburn Automobile Company.

The cars that were coming out of Northern Indiana were some of the most reliable and most prestigious of the day. Yet when an economic depression hit in 1921, Auburn found itself unable to sell cars. The firm was sold to a group of Chicago businessmen who recruited Erret Cord to turn things around. He did and by 1926 the company was turning a profit. Cord took the next step and purchased the company.

In addition to the Auburn, Cord decided to manufacture cars with his own name based on the mechanicals of the highly successful race cars being produced by the Duesenberg brothers. Ultimately that line of cars was brought into the fold.

Auburns, Cords and Duesenbergs were soon considered status symbols and the nation's rich and famous all wanted to own one. The cars blended high performance with beautiful designs and came with very hefty price tags. So when the Great Depression hit in 1929, all three lines suffered. Auburns were last manufactured in 1936. Cords and Duesenbergs soon followed suit.

Pictured here is a beautiful example of the last year an Auburn was made. This 1936 852 Boattail Speedster was originally supposed to replace the Duesenberg Model J. It is exceptionally long and its supercharged straight eight engine could easily push it over 100 miles per hour.

This example is actually number 144 or 150.