1928 Stutz Model BB Weymann-type Sports Tourer

A native of Ohio, Harry C.Stutz arrived at Indianapolis in 1903 and was soon involved in the design and construction of successful racing cars, from which the legendary Bearcat - which, along with the Mercer Raceabout, may be defined as the two seminal American sports cars - evolved. Launched in 1926, Stutz's Vertical Eight - also known as the Series AA - was devised by Chief Engineer Charles Greuter and featured a 4.7-litre overhead-camshaft engine developing a healthy 92 bhp at 3200 rpm and with 198 lb/ft of torque on tap. With a low-slung ?Safety Chassis?, the Vertical Eight had an underslung worm-drive rear axle to give more interior space and a better centre of gravity, along with an unconventional hydrostatic brake system that was replaced by Lockheed hydraulic brakes for 1927. In 1928, Stutz enlarged the motor to 4.9-litres, resulting in a power increase to 115 bhp at 3600 rpm and the new model was known as the Series BB. Although a range of body styles were catalogued, most of them styled by Brewster or LeBaron, Stutz was also famous for introducing the Weymann method of fabric bodywork to America. Indeed, Charles Weymann was so impressed by the Stutz that he took entered one in the 1928 Le Mans 24-Hour endurance race for Messrs Brisson and Bloch, who shocked the establishment (and Bentley in particular) by taking the lead for much of the race, eventually finishing a magnificent second to the British car of Barnato/Rubin. This was the first time an American car had taken on the Europeans on home soil at La Sarthe and went a long way to earning Stutz a reputation as being perhaps the only Yankee automobile with a truly European sensibility. On the road, the Stutz compared very favourably to the Bentley 4.5-litre, with plenty of power and excellent roadholding. Stutz were always at the high quality end of the market and produced just 2,403 cars for the 1928 model year. The Stutz mascot was of the sun god, Ra.