1908 Sears Motor Buggy

Identified as a 1910, Chicago-built car by its serial number 2714, as well as the

particular style of script on its front-mounted brass plate, this Model H Motor Buggy

should benefit from a full 14 hp, a healthy 40% power increase over the earliest

examples.

Several different versions were offered, ranging from the base Model G and upwards

through H, J, K, L, M, N (with enclosed bodywork), and P, a long wheelbase, four

passenger model. Model names N, R, and X were reserved for truck versions.

The car presents very well with correct black wooden bodywork and black folding top,

the latter of which combined with fenders to distinguish the Model H from the base

Model G.

Though pneumatic and so-called “cushion rubber” tires were optional on some models,

this car appears to be equipped with standard, solid rubber items mounted to factory

style 36” wooden wheels.

Two color chassis and wheel color schemes were available, including Brewster Green

and Carmine Red (as specified here). Bodywork was always black, and pinstripes like

those seen here were common additions.

There’s little to differentiate the car’s interior from its exterior, but essentially everything

under the top and between the dashboard and buttoned two-place sofa appears

factory-correct. All three are made of leather. The driver sits on the left, and steering is

by tiller.

The car remains in running, driving condition, and its 107ci air-cooled flat-twin is started

by a crank inserted at the front. Power is transmitted to the rear wheels via an

ingeniously simple and robust mechanism; the mid-mounted flywheel is mounted

perpendicular to the rear axle, itself fitted with a large, rubber-tired roller that is driven by

said flywheel via friction. The driver is able to control this roller’s horizontal orientation,

and sliding it nearer to or further from the flywheel’s center effectively changes the “gear

ratio”. To provide differential effect during turning, either rear wheel is fitted with an

overrunning clutch.

The original wooden floorboard has been replaced with a well-fitted acrylic floorboard,

placing many of these fascinating mechanisms on clear display to the driver and

passenger, but allowing the car to retain a stock look when viewed from a short

distance. Note the twin, belt-driven cooling fans, and from the rear, a pair of surprisingly

large-bore exhaust pipes.

The acrylic fitted floorboard allows for a great bird's eye view of the mechanical operations of this Sears Buggy, but the seller has also reported to us that the original floorboard will also be included in the sale as well.

The car is offered with minimal background, though it is known to have been purchased

by the current owner in 2008, and to have been previously restored.

The Sears Motor Buggy was among the earliest automobiles to offer modicums of

reliability, practicality, and convenience, making nicely preserved and working examples

such as this car uniquely satisfying ownership prospects. Effective or not, this is most

definitely a pre-standardization vehicle, and thus presents a veritable wonderland for

those inclined to ponder, operate, and tinker with unusual mechanisms.