Take a bow

Text: Srinivas Krishnan
Photos: Deepak Tolani


If the Pierce-Arrow Motor Car Company was still in existence today, America's premier brand Cadillac would have had to play second fiddle in the prestige marque stakes. Luckily for Cadillac – and unluckily for purveyors of America's finest cars – Pierce-Arrow died young. It was barely 38 years old. And not just Cadillac, another British luxury car maker would have also sighed in relief.

That's because Pierce-Arrow and Rolls-Royce were looking at the same target audience – royalty, political leaders, personalities, industrialists and the like. Essentially people who were well-heeled, knew a great car when they saw one, and had the money for it. The list of Pierce-Arrow owners reads like a 'Best of Who's Who.'

Charlie Chaplin, Woodrow Wilson (as in US President), Orville Wright (of the first flight fame), King C Gillette (The Best A Man Can Get!), Ransom E Olds (that's right, maker of Oldsmobile and REO cars), J D Rockefeller (so rich, he
possessed a heart of gold), King Albert of Belgium, Emperor Hirohito of Japan, King Ibn Saud of Saudi Arabia, the Shah of Persia... and the maharaja of Indore who purchased one as a state car. This was a 1931 Type 41 B model, powered by a peerless straight eight, in a seven-passenger phaeton tourer body style.

This Pierce-Arrow had barely 4,000 km under its belt when it was acquired for industrialist Vijay Mallya's superb collection. The car was pain-stakingly restored by Chubi Lalwani and Manvendra Singh, both of whom brought it up to concours condition. But unlike other classics that just stand around and strut like peacocks, this car could move. In 1987, it made history by being the first Indian entry to win in an international vintage event. Competing with entries from the US, Japan and other countries, Mallya and Lalwani rallied it to victory in the Equatorial Vintage Rally of Singapore. And even at this moment, it looks all set to repeat history.

Eights and heights
The Great Depression be damned, Pierce-Arrow was entering its most successful phase ever. In 1929, they introduced a fresh line-up of cars that were powered by a new straight eight, which replaced their ageing six cylinder motor. Up till 1928, there were rumours that the publicly held firm would merge with General Motors and even Rolls-Royce. But all that stopped when the Studebaker Corporation picked up a majority stake in Pierce-Arrow that year to fill up the premium gap in their portfolio. Though manufacturing of both the marques were kept separate, Studebaker had a profound influence on Pierce-Arrow, and bankrolled the development of the inline eight, while increasing its dealer network as well-leading to Pierce-Arrow selling a record 9,840 cars in 1929.

Peering inside the long hood of the Type 41, I can see that record-breaking engine, sitting smug and solid. Unlike its earlier engine that had a steel block bolted to an aluminium crankcase, this engine was cast as a single crankcase and cylinder head assembly, with an L-head arrangement for the valves. Displacing 5998 CC, this straight eight develops 106 bhp at 3200 revs, and Pierce-Arrow's elegant advertising claimed a top speed of 85 mph (136 kph). After experiencing a drive in the Pierce-Arrow powered by this engine, I am not surprised that it did wonders for the manufacturer's sales figures.

Depress the floor-mounted starter button and the engine comes to life, with a mild frisson of whispered excitement. For smoothness, the crankshaft runs on nothing less than nine main bearings, that barely manage to hide the grunt the hood conceals. The pedal arrangement takes a little time to get used to, not because the accelerator pedal is in the middle between the clutch and the brake, but because of its size – it's diminutive, almost over-shadowed by the other two. Just as well, because all you need is a little tap for the Arrow to lunge forward. Throughout the drive, the engine doesn't raise its voice, and simply hisses its way around.

Silent revolution
Perhaps the engineers at Pierce-Arrow would laugh at the fact that today's cars have to go through NVH (noise-vibration-harshness) tests. They used to run in each engine, dismantle it and put it back again for more testing, and only then was it ready for assembly. They used to do the same thing with the bodywork. And it shows even today.

The car's so refined and well-built that you have to remember to glance at the elegant speedo+odo console to see how fast you are actually going. Driving the Arrow is surprisingly not that difficult, it's like driving an ultra-smooth and very long Jeep. It gathers speed without effort, and every shift is accompanied by a powerful surge. Shifting the three-speed gearbox involves some delicate declutching, but that's something you get used to with some practice. Reverse is engaged by depressing the button atop the gear lever – a safety feature that's tom-tommed in today's modern cars.