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1915

Model: 25 36/"Four-36" "Six-36" "Six-46"
Cylinders: 4 4 6 6
Horsepower SAE: 22.5 25.6 22 29.4
Wheelbase: 110 116 112 124


1915 Models
1915 Models, The Saturday Evening Post, Sep. 2, 1914, p. 71

When Paige-Detroit first announced its 1915 models the Model 36 and the Model 25 were carried forward unchanged. Within a few months prices were lowered on cars in both lines. The decreases presumably came from improved efficiencies in the more modern plant and from economies in purchasing larger quantities of materials. Only two Model 36 autos, the Glenwood touring car and a now nameless roadster, were advertised, compared to the six models offered in 1914.

A perceptive observer might have deduced from these price reductions and model changes that the company was in a period of transition. In January of 1915 this became clear when Paige dropped the Model 25 line. The Model 36 touring car and roadster continued as "Four-36" models. Paige claimed the Glenwood touring car and its companion roadster had given given universal satisfaction, required no changes in design or high experimental and engineering costs, and offered either for the new, lower price of $1,075.

The big news was a new six-cylinder line, consisting of the Fairfield touring car and the Meadowbrook roadster. The Company modestly described the new line as the "Ultimate Six" and the standard by which all other "Sixes" were to be judged.

1915 Six
1915 "Six-46", The Saturday Evening Post, Jan. 2, 1915

The Paige-Continental engine had an aluminum crankcase and cast iron unit block with a detachable head that enabled the car to throttle down to three miles per hour in high gear, then speed up within 30 seconds to 50 miles per hour. The streamlined body on the longer 124 inch wheelbase set it apart from the semi-streamlined Model 36 of 1914, and it made the straight-dash 1913 Model 36 look old-fashioned in comparison. The Six-46 had a zig-zag, cellular radiator. In addition, the radiator was v-shaped, which was a distinctive trademark that Paige used through 1923. The company claimed to have "again set the standard of value in the moderate priced field."

1915 Glenwood
1915 "Four-36", The Saturday Evening Post, Jan. 9, 1915, p. 31

The buying public and auto critics received the new, larger Paige autos very well. The trend was definitely toward six-cylinder cars. By the middle of 1915, Paige-Detroit dropped its last two four-cylinder cars and replaced them with a single, new "Six-36" five-passenger touring car, and for only $20 more than the "Four-36" Glenwood cost at the beginning of the model year:

This new car had a 112 inch wheelbase and 32 inch wheels with 32 x 4 tires. It had a double set of brakes on the rear wheels that expanded internally and contracted externally on 12 inch steel brake drums.

1915 Hollywood
1915 "Six-36". Saturday Evening Post, June 5, 1915, p. 55

By the time that this new "Six-36" appeared, some further enhancements had been made to the original "Six-46" models. The bodies were done in Richelieu Blue, and the wheels were now finished in a deep, rich red. A narrow bead of red added a touch of distinctive individuality to the front of the radiator. Company literature stated,

The strikingly beautiful body design of the "Six-46" is now set off with a painting finish so rich and lustrous that it is positively mirror-like. To secure this lasting brilliancy requires 24 days of painting and hand rubbing until it is ready for the final exquisite finish.

The prices were reduced $100, to just $1295. A permanent winter top was available for the touring car for only $250, which was "beautifully proportioned to match the Paige foreign-like beauty and made to fit the body with absolute accuracy." This top was made from a composite material called Agasote, "which will withstand any weather condition; just like metal, at the same time it is lighter in weight, is more soundproof; is rust-proof; therefore, preserves the paint finish." The top could be easily attached "by any one of limited mechanical ability."

Four closed models were also added to the series:

The town car had room for a driver and one passenger in the open driving compartment and in the enclosed back section for three passengers on the back seat and two on auxiliary folding chairs. The town car "is a vehicle of pleasure and utility for the folks whose social position in a community demands exclusiveness and the ownership of the finest equipage." The driving compartment was upholstered in hand-buffed French glaze long grain leather of select quality.

Three distinct combinations of color and upholstery were available that would certainly have suited potential buyers in that day and age:

The automobile industry in general was thriving! People everywhere were eager to replace their horse and buggy with an automobile. In 1915 Paige-Detroit wasn't the only manufacturer providing more car for less money. In the mid-priced range of six-cylinders cars it had plenty of competition, including Hupmobile, Studebaker, Buick, Overland, Moon, Auburn, Hudson, Velie, and Mitchell. A few, such as the Grant and the Saxon, cost less that the "Six-36". And among higher priced six-cylinder autos were the Oakland, Kissel Kar, Apperson, Chalmers, National, Haynes and the air-cooled Franklin.

The Penalty of Leadership

Cadillac ad
Full Size

Paige-Detroit announced its new six-cylinder Paige autos in the January 2, 1915, issue of the Saturday Evening Post magazine. In that same issue the Cadillac Motor Car Co. placed the adjacent ad.

In September of 1914, after previously standing behind its four-cylinder engine and stating that it had no intention of marketing a six-cylinder car, Cadillac made the stunning announcement of its eight-cylinder, "V-type" engine. After the passage of several months Cadillac, in the person of Theodore McManus, who wrote Cadillac's advertising, presumably felt an explanation was in order.

Ninety years later his ad remains famous. Compared to ads from Paige-Detroit and other auto makers, it is plain, but this was typical of McManus's work for Cadillac during this period. His ads were packed with text and only occasionally even showed a car. This one's provocative title, however, is as stiking today as it must have been then. The ad makes no extravagant product claims but instead warns the potential Cadillac customer that he must be willing to endure the envy of others for being in the forefront. And, yes, we know Cadillac makes motor cars, but nowhere in it is the reader told what exactly Cadillac is selling, other than status.

Whatever impact the ad made on the public, it certainly made an impression on the advertising industry. Nothing quite like it had been seen before. It defined the Cadillac and made it stand out from other cars. Perhaps the best compliment to Cadillac, the self-proclaimed "Standard of the World", is that it is a style of ad that has been imitated many times since the original was published so long ago.

Four years later Cadillac repeated the ad in a different format in the January 11, 1919, issue of the Saturday Evening Post magazine.

Elsewhere in 1915:

  • The Budd Co. produces an all-steel body for Dodge.
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