1917 Paige Model 6-51

The Paige Automobile Company was formed by Harry M. Jewett, a wealthy coal company owner. He had taken a ride in a two-stroke, three-cylinder car that had been created by the Reliance Motor Company. The president of the company was Fred Paige. Jewett purchased the company, reorganized it as the Paige-Detroit Motor Car Company (based in Detroit, MI), and established Fred Paige as its president. Paige would remain as president for only a short period, as he was later forced out after several production problems arose. The 'Detroit' portion of the name was dropped in 1911, after Jewett had shut down production, fired many of the employees, and reorganized the company.

Their first vehicle was a two-seater vehicle powered by a three-cylinder, two-stroke engine that displaced 2.2 liters. A few years later, a four-stroke, four-cylinder model was offered. A six-cylinder unit became available by 1914. Four cylinders would be a part of the Paige line-up until 1916 when the company focused solely on their 3.7 and 4.9-liter sixes.

The company's most famous automobile was the Paige Daytona, built between 1922 through 1926. It was a sporty, 6-liter car that (in proper guise) set many speed records. The engines were Continental units that had a stroke of 5 inches and a bore that measured 3.75 inches. The block and cylinder head were constructed from iron while the crankcase was from lightweight aluminum. The crankshaft featured an adjustable pressure oil feed driven by a gear pump that provided the lubrication. Its engines breathed through Rayfield carburetors, had an L-head design, and had fully enclosed and lubricated valves. Equally impressive were the gearboxes, which were among the finest of the era. They were three-speed Warner non-synchromesh units that had a reputation for their ease of use, reliability, and quietness.

The Daytona 6-66 Speedsters were advertised as the 'World's Fastest Car'. Their claim was reinforced when a stripped production car exceeded 100 miles per hour at the Daytona sand-beach track. In doing so, it broke every stock car record for speed after traveling a mile in a mere 35.01 seconds at a speed of 102.8 miles an hour.

A low-cost alternative was also produced, called the Jewett.

Riding on the coat-tails of its sporty sibling, an eight-cylinder unit was added in 1927.

The Graham brothers were successful businessmen who had made a sizeable fortune in the manufacture of glass bottles. They later began building kits for modifying vehicles into trucks. This led to the manufacture of their own line of trucks which was later purchased by Dodge in 1925.

In 1927, the Graham brothers purchased the Paige-Detroit Motor Company for four million dollars. The following year, Paige-Detroit cars became known as Graham-Paiges. For several years, trucks were added to the lineup, but this was short-lived as Dodge had a non-competition agreement with the Graham Brothers which meant Paige-Detroit had to cease production of trucks.

by Daniel Vaughan | Mar 2011