What would you do with a vehicle that is 106 years old? Do you park it in a museum as a static display or do you get it running for parades and special appearances? Here’s your chance to decide with this 1912 International Harvester MA Auto Wagon on eBay in Monroe, Michigan where it has been bid up to $11,600 with six days to go. Shout out to Barn Finds reader Fred H for the tip!
When these were built they were intended to supplement the machinery that was already at work on farms throughout America. Farmers had come to rely on steam engines to power equipment like threshers and hit and miss internal combustion engines were also in common use. While automobiles were being seen more frequently, they really weren’t ideal as the only road vehicle on a farm and International Harvester had a good reputation with farmers.
The photos of the Auto Wagon look like a motorized horse-drawn wagon. The high wood spoke wheels and even higher driving position would have made drivers new to automobiles feel right at home. The high ground clearance was necessary to cope with the poor roads of the day and to be able to travel off road as well. The rear seat was an option for the Auto Wagon and this one has it.
The Auto Wagon is powered by a two-cylinder air cooled gasoline engine that puts out 18-20 horsepower. It has a two-speed planetary transmission and drive was sent to the rear wheel via two Morse chains. Gear changes and clutch engagement were taken care of with single lever in a push-pull-lift manner. The Auto Wagon is supported by elliptical leaf springs backed up with heave springs and it rides on solid rubber tires so the passengers would likely be shaken and stirred.
The seller says that it needs a complete restoration so be sure to brush up on your woodworking skills as well as your mechanical/blacksmithing practice. So, what would you do with this bit of American history? It may be welcome at some farm equipment shows and with a top speed of around 20 mph, it would make a fine parade vehicle.
Big turbo Cummins, 8 speed, slammed, it’s already got the big wheels,,,see how ridiculous that gets? Seriously, what a wonderful piece of history here. These helped put “ol’ Dobbin” out to pasture, and it never came back. While I’m not sure total originality is in order, I suppose you could switch the motor with a more modern type, this has parade wagon all over it. Since museums are closing left and right, no sense stashing it there. Use it, show people, this is what started it all.
It deserves a full restoration and used to the best of its abilities, if only to teach. Cool piece of machinery.
Over here, it would be restored and driven…
Oh, to have some room and fewer projects!
Beatnik Bedouin,
We should try and catch up sometime either when your in Tauranga or when I’m in Waihi
Kiwi Glen
I’ll be at the Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride in Tauranga on the 30th of September, most likely riding my unrestored ’83 Vespa PX200E.
I’ve been helping organise the event since the first Tauranga one (the previous year (2014), I helped organise and participated the one in Auckland, 48 hours before I moved to Waihi. LOL).
I may come down to do the Tauranga VCC Daffodil Day event on the 26th of this month.
Is this the first recorded version of a crew cab option?
I have a 1912 and can sympathize with the seller. It’s cool as heck until you attempt to actually drive it more than a block. I’m 54, been a car guy all my life, got the car from my Grandfather, and hardly do more than look at it on occasion. It’s a great car, awesome that it’s so old, and it belongs in a museum or on display somewhere for sure. Until you own a car this old for several years you will not understand the dedication it takes just to keep it operable. Mine is a Maxwell by the way. Once you get it running you can’t be careful enough as it’s right hand drive with no brake lights and no way current drivers will understand why you are doing 20 in a 35, let alone what your odd hand signals from the wrong side of the car are supposed to mean. They will then whip out their phone and take a video of themselves cutting you off and swerving all over the place before telling you to take it back home. Loads of fun! Sorry if I sound bitter but that’s the reality of it. Let the hate mail begin.
I can fully sympathize Sir. Years ago I owned a delightful, early, three wheeled British AC with tiller steering and single cylinder engine. What did it for me was when I took it out for a ride on a warm mid-summer day down a deserted back country road enjoying myself immensely when a young cop, not yet dry behind the ears rudely pulled me over and, without even asking for any documents (which I had – all fully legal) loudly ordered me to “get that thing off ‘his’ road” and not let him “catch me there again”. The experience so ruined it for me that I sold the car and never again ventured into ownership of primitive cars, although I’ve had many vintage/classic cars.
@Dirk – I am sorry for your experience. I guess it really is about personalities, isn’t it.
Had the experience happened to me, I would have had some fun with him… a lot. He would have spent at least an hour of his day, there, going over every granular piece of his complaint. I would have demanded a citation (so he would have to codify my ‘infraction’), then my day in court. Any judge would have had absolutely no time for his nonsense and arrogance.
By the time I were through, that cop would’ve looked like Eddy Murphy or one of the other Hollywood cops, taken in to the Captain’s office and (arms and hands waving) getting the cliched chewing out. Only this would’ve been real.
I am not just blustering. I have done it. But do not think I’m a cop-hater or anti authoritarian. There were 7 cops and spouses invited to my wedding. I shot with one of them regularly. It is just my nature to confront unmerited rebuke and ignorance/arrogance, with (to use a cold-war term) ‘massive retaliation’.
Gave you a thumbs up for the ‘chin up’ classic British attitude (pip pip, wot, and all that).
No hater here, you are absolutely correct, it’s a hurry up world and getting vicious on the road.
@Mark H. I had the exact same problems with my 1912 Little. Once the restoration was complete I couldn’t wait to get it on the road, only to discover that it was the most dangerous to be due to mobile rubberneckers! Within 3 months it was garaged under the house only to emerge for the occasional car show/parade to which it was taken on a trailer.
@ken TILLY – BEeeeooooteeeeful car. Were I you, I’d be taking it to the grocery store, if for no other reason that to jostle a few realities. BIG thumbs up.
I think you pretty much summed up what’s happening to the hobby, and why. Not just antique vehicles either, 20’s, 30’s, 40’s, even some 50’s, just horribly inept for today’s travel. Oh sure, it sounds like fun, but at some point, you have to go on a busy road and the novelty wears thin, when you got your classic topped out and hollerin’ at 57 mph with several diesel( sorry, had to get that in there) 4×4 car/pickups pushing you. Best thing, like I’ve said all along, in cases like this, or your Maxwell, is to trailer it 6 blocks from a show, unload and putt-putt in. It’s a shame to deprive people of such historical vehicles, just because it’s unsafe to get it there. At a show this last Sat. here, there was only ONE Model A, ONE!( and being shown by an elderly couple) At any given show, there were always several Model A’s, but not today. I think it tells me, people that drive those types of cars to shows, are getting too old, and probably had a bad experience the last time they took it to a show.
No hate mail Mark H….. I have owned a 1969 Camaro RS, a 1937 Seagrave Fire Engine ( second to the last made with a T-head Cylinder) and currently own a 1926 Model T Speedster. While the Speedster can do at least 55, it is scary as hell with one transmission brake and Rocky Mountain Rear Auxiliary brakes, and as much as I love it , I cannot see me driving it over Highway 17 to San Jose as much as i would like to ! No respect from drivers today…. at Least the Seagrave Fire Engine was 23 feet long and hitting it would have hurt modern cars probably more than it !
@Firemandk – Wow. A Seagrave is one of my bucket list vehicles (I have a VERY BIG bucket). My ideal Seagrave is somewhere in the early 1950’s. But, your stuff is sooooo coooolll. Thumbs up to you.
Thank You TriPowerVette ! It really was a special engine : purchased by San Diego with it’s twin, 1000 plus Cubic Inch T-head 6 cylinder placed in an engine meant to have a V-12, so the hood was absolutely huge. Had a “Sweet-heart” grill, flat glass fold down windshield, Carriage style wrap around bucket seat for 3, round gas tank behind that , a real mixture of 1920’s and 1930’s styling, a real “depression” era fire engine . Wish I had kept it . I had 99% of the original parts to put it back to factory original when my friend died and I lost my storage. It is owned locally by the two guys that bought it but I have not seen it in years !
My Seagrave was almost exactly like this one , minus the beautiful restoration …….
Here’s a nice 6 cylinder T-head engine of the mid 1930’s…. It has the long hood…. Very nice….Makes me really wish I had kept mine . I am afraid that the Car hobby has become too expensive for the average Joe these days …..
@Firemandk – I wasn’t going to mention it, because you seem like a Seagrave kinda guy (and heaven knows I want one), but I also have a soft spot for old (again, 1950’s) American LaFrance engines.
The reason I want a fire engine so much, is the fact that: 1) many (if not most) are amazingly well taken care of, no matter how old they are, 2) many have EXTREMELY low mileage (or service hours), and 3) for some reason, they have virtually no resale value.
Also; for many years, I lived in a county island, where, if one wanted fire and garbage collection services (for example) on had to subscribe. Even then, help was usually fairly far away. I always thought how cool it would be to have a pumper on site, so that fire suppression would be a snap (or at least more feasable, quickly). Also; I thought I might make a few bux, hauling water for those who had no wells and depended on hauling water… It was just a though I had… a long time ago.
All together, one might acquire a sterling example of the type, for pennies. The chrome, and the paint, and the gauges and the accessories combine to be the adult fulfillment of any child’s dream.
Storage, and continued maintenance are the two main obstacles to ownership of a fire engine (and aircraft), which are among the least of the concerns for other 4-wheel (and 2-wheel) -based hobbies. The entry fee may even be negligible, where other 4-wheel and most all 2-wheel prizes nearly always demand one’s first born (and continued child bearing).
But, NOBODY doesn’t LOVE fire engines. Not if you have a soul.
Sorry to all readers for all of my misspellings and improper capitalization in the above post. I was in a hurry.
I’ve come to the realisation that most drivers today have that, “ME FIRST,” attitude and most are true jerks. I say, screw em! Drive what you love and just do your best to enjoy!
@Steve A – Now we’re talkin’. Thumbs up!
I wanna buy and fix this up so bad I can taste it.
How does it taste?
“woody”
Very nice! Lots of fun could be had putting around with this one. And believe me, they putt. A local IH dealer had a 1913 version and drove it a lot. The old guy passed on a couple of years back. I’m not sure what happened to it.
We have horses and I love to drive them with a horse drawn carriage. There is a winding hard packed dirt road near my house that was perfect for these carriages. One day I was run off the road by a schoolbus!!! When I tracked the driver down she was unapologetic and insisted that she had the right of way ( not true in our County) and that I should get off the road. That was my last outing and the carriage has been stored in the garage since. I doubt it would be any better with a powered carriage as I had just as bad experiences with a Model T. I don’t know how bicyclists do it. If I understand correctly even the Amish are rethinking the wisdom of carriages on the road.
This would be a fun restoration, I don’t know what you would DO with it afterwords.
Someone, not me, could easily drive this in, say, Palm Springs or Key West. No freeway unless necessary & naturally you take the daily driver. On the plus side, in town you’d share the road w/bicycle bars peddled by bachelorette/bachelor parties. As well as already gawking drivers there’s pedicabs, regular bikes, Gems & Rascals too! Toss in pedestrians 100% unfamiliar w/modern ‘don’t walk ‘ signs and I think this vehicle will be just fine.
It’s easy to get used to the freeway-less life. For me it was Laguna to Santa Monica & back 5x a week or San Diego to everywhere on a sales route . I can’t imagine doing that again. Now if it’s over 20 miles away I consider getting a hotel room.
I once drove my 1934 Desoto Airflow from Winnipeg to Chicago on smaller highways. Two other drivers in particular appeared to be absolutely livid with hate when they passed me screaming that I should keep that piece of **** off the road. Nice paint, wide whites, no patina. Pity.
I get that occasionally when I take one of my relics on the road. They give me the single digit salute and swear at me. I just smile and cheerfully wave back. I find that the majority of jack-asses drive personal luxury vehicles and show just as much contempt for the RVs.
I travel 25 miles to work each day. It never fails; if I’m doing 75 there’s some jerk has to go 80. I love to get one of those on my tail as I come up on the left side of a semi. I slow down to just a tad faster than the semi, just fast enough to overtake him but take the entire 25 miles to do it. Many times I’ve had some A-Ho in a souped up 4×4 kissing my tailgate all the way to the next town and then shot-gun into a 50 mph zone at 85, only to catch the morning speed trap. And I got everything I need to have on my dash cam.
I’d like to see your Air Flow….
I drive a commercial truck for a living. Locally, there is one town intersection I go thru that is kinda like a traffic circle – there is a clock in the intersection, with flowers planted all around it, and a concrete circle surrounding the whole thing. I have to slow down to about 10mph going around it, then I immediately hit a hill, so my flashers are on and all 80,000# of me go crawling up the hill, for the next two miles! Guy flies past me today, right after the state had come thru reprinting the road lines. Lovely yellow splatters all over that Audi!!!
ls swap lol
My great-grandfather was a salesman for the International Harvester company and sold these and had one of these. My grandfather broke his wrist trying to start it.
Attached is a photo of my grandfather next to one in the 60s.
Although this car seems weird and unique, “motorbuggies” like these were actually the norm back then and literally hundreds of manufacturers in the USA made them. This IH was known for it’s reliability as was my 1910 Sears motorbuggy. Sears was the only auto seller that guaranteed their cars hence the reliability. This model IH has 2 transverse leaf springs which make them a little tippy. You might want a make with 4 longitudinal springs. Beware of makes that don’t have Ackerman steering, they are really tippy. The model T killed off these 1 & 2 cylinder buggies by 1913. The Sears has a CVT-modern!
@tripower vette. Re my 1912 Little. Long story made short. Because it lived under the house a museum owner persuaded me to sell it to the museum for a pittance because at least many people would be able to see it, although not on the road. Eventually I agreed only to discover that ONE HOUR after he came to collect it, he sold it to his brother-in-law 50 miles away from me! For a LOT more money i’m sure. On it’s first rally he over revved it, broke the crankshaft and had a rod and half a piston come out through the block. Poetic justice I would say. S.O.B. As you sow, so shall you reap! It took the owner over 5 years to get it back on the road.
@ken TILLY – Actually, I have a different take on it: The reason he overrevved it was because HE didn’t put the 10’s of thousands of $’s, or backbreaking (not to mention fingernail breaking) hundreds of hours (not to mention LOVE) into the building of it. Just like the A**HOLES who used to sell my brother and me the clapped out muscle cars they had bought, used like toilet paper and threw away, or like an ape throws away a banana peel; they had no more appreciation for it than that.
Honestly; in my estimation, you are partially to blame. When you don’t stand up to bullies they are emboldened. You let a mindless bully ruin your well-earned hobby/pleasure. Then, as a result, the loved car became the unloved toy – soon to be broken and cast aside. He paid nothing for it, and that was his level of respect.
Next time, carry a larger-than-life, full-color, high-resolution laminated photo of your bare A** with you in the car (maybe put it on a stick or something). When the churls give you the finger, you give them the BUTT.
Then go about your day, enjoying your magnificent outing.
I read an article one time in (I believe) ‘Flying’ magazine. It was the story of a privately owned Douglass A-26. The farmer would fly it low over the Kansas countryside, just relishing the history, and wonder of that piece of flying art. The title of the article was: “Some Men Live Grandly”. That article formed the basis of part of my personality.
Never let someone take your grand-ness from you!
Your comments really add a lot to this site, and I enjoy reading them all.
@simon – If your comment was directed to me, then I thank you kindly, and give you a ‘thumbs up’. If not, then I beg your pardon (you can keep the ‘thumbs up’).
@@ken TILLY – As an aside, do you have any idea how much you look like the actor Charles Durning? (except, I think you may be better looking, and you are of course younger – he’s dead).
@ken TILLY – DO NOT DIE. We need people like you. Just hang in there, some of those punks who ride crotch rockets and video themselves eluding police and driving 200mph on city streets are BOUND to meet their untimely ends, then they can go in your place…
Makes sense to me, anyway.
oops, correction, the Ebay photos show 3 leaf springs, so it might not be too tippy. The class of the auction is the 1913 hupmobile and its going for less money!. Note that most of these old cars did not have front brakes until about 1925. Even at 30 mph you will miss those front brakes. This IH will probably sell for about $15K, but will need a minimum of $10k if you do it yourself. This IH seems to have acetylene lamps, a step up from kerosene. The nickel plating will be pricey
I’m very much surprised to read of the scorn, or even hatred, aimed at elderly machines in supposedly civilized places. Here, in and around Pasadena, and L.A. County in general, any nice weekend day will bring out the swarm of Model As and the occasional T, and frequently something more rare and/or grand. Don’t know if it still happens, but there was an annual pre-WW2 run up Mt. Wilson every New Year’s Day that attracted what appeared to be hundreds of ancient machines and their drivers and passengers.
What I would do with this 1906 beast would be to spiff it up cosmetically, get it capable of moving reliably, and then whenever we have a party park it under the porte-cochère of our 1908 house and tell everyone it’s our new car!
Doesn’t seem to bother Jay Leno. A couple years back I was visiting my kids in L.A. and we saw Jay driving some big headlight brass era roadster in downtown Burbank.
Neglected to mention, re:Daily Use: At an AACA concours in Franklin, TN about thirty years ago, my runaway favorite was a very sweet little Brush runabout that was the most wonderful mix of old and new I’ve ever met: Wood frame and axles, steel paneled body, water-cooled 2-cylinder inline engine with clutch and transmission right behind, then driveshaft to chassis-mounted diff and chain drive to each rear wheel. Open two-seater with a little cargo box behind, all painted a very becoming blue, except for the varnished frame and axles. Had a nice chat with the owner, who mentioned that this was his around-town shopping car, weather permitting, and was perfectly suited to the task.
@Will Owen – Absolutely. That Brush owner really knows what it’s all about. Thanks for posting. Thumbs up.
Well, it made me want one!
Question: does the entire front axel pivot when turning, or does it have some sort of kingpin setup?
Johnmloghry
The car has a kingpin set up and just the wheels steer. I put one of these together last year for a family. Super cool machine and a great example of how vehicles has advanced over the last 100 years.
I wish this truck was availible for parts,I need some drive chain to complete the 1914 AutoWagen that I was working on. Strange drive chain on these.
60 pitch between the pins, but the same width as an 80 pitch chain.
I have been searching for a year+ to find some links or a legnth of chain
If anybody can help please reach out
Thank you Karl for the info. Wish I could help with your chain problem, but like Schultz “I know nothing”.
Carl,
The annual Fall Hershey AACA swap meet is coming up the second week in October. If you cannot find your needed chain, or at least a good lead for it, there then it is a good chance that there is none left to be had.
The oldest in my collection is a 1915 Model T, which, while challenging to drive by today’s standards is a whole lot more “modern” than this highwheeler.
Still, I’d love to have a piece this early and primitive in my own collection. They don’t seem to come up for sale very often, and the asking prices tend to be on what I think is the high side for something that’s going to need a tear-down and probably needs most of the wood replaced.