While Henry Ford may have been the pioneer of cheap, mass-produced cars in the form of the iconic Model T, Essex was a significant American brand during the early 1900s. The company was the first to bring affordable enclosed, steel-framed and steel-roofed cars to market, beginning in 1922 a trend away from the then-conventional canvas-roofed “touring” cars.
It could be argued Essex was the starting point for the passenger car configuration we are familiar with today.
In fact, looking at the basics of a 1929 Essex Super Six sedan (surely one of the earliest cars to employ the “Super” descriptor), not a lot has changed in terms of basic design when compared with any modern rear-drive sedan.
Up front beats a 2.6-litre inline six (albeit with a combination of side and overhead valves) rated at 18.15 horsepower, driving a three-speed manual gearbox, while the brakes were all-wheel drums. The suspension may sound a little primitive with live, leaf-spring axles front and back, but it wasn’t that long ago that an Australian mainstream family wagon used the same configuration at the rear… And not all that long ago that Nissan’s Patrol was live-axled, canvas-roofed, drum-braked and utilised a three-speed manual gearbox (albeit with a 4WD transfer case).
The four-door, five-passenger Essex Super Six sedan weighed in at around 1270kg and ran a 2800mm wheelbase, which is not that far from fairly recent Holden sedans. And, while they admittedly employed archaic wooden spokes and split steel rims, the wheels measured a very contemporary 20 inches. All this, 82 years ago.
The Essex Motor Company in fact was initially a subsidiary of US car-maker Hudson but Essex cars eventually became a product of Hudson in 1922, surviving until 1933 when they adopted the Terraplane badge. This was not before Essex chalked up a few hillclimb records in the US, including victory at Pikes Peak in 1923.
This 1929 Essex Super Six roadster from Gelorup in Western Australia may or may not be the oldest car listed on carsales.com.au and with its canvas roof it may not feature full-steel construction, but it does represent a brand that owns a significant place in automotive history.
The owner has put a price of $25,000 on the fully restored cream/maroon car (a nice change from Model T black) and claims it would be difficult to find a better example. Described as mechanically “A1”, the car looks the part in photos, right down to the original ID plate.
Essex cars were brought into Australia as cab-chassis units and then built into sedan configuration before going on sale. This one was converted from passenger car to ute some time during its life but was restored back to its full five-passenger role about ten years ago.
According to its present owner, who has had the car for the last seven years, the Super Six roadster, which weighs less than the sedan models at not much more than one tonne, has sufficient grunt to cruise easily at 80km/h and with its torquey long-stroke engine climbs most hills in top gear.
“My father had an Essex when I was a kid and when I saw the Super Six the memories - right down to the smell of the interior - instantly came back.”
There’s probably no better way of experiencing family motoring as it was 80 or so years ago.