F/S My 1904 Brennan 20 HP 4 cylinder race car project on Ebay

[George Albright]

Please see auction # 260546840280. Listed under Other Makes,1939 and older collector cars catagory. 1904 Brennan is in the auction title. Up for auction is my finest piece. I acquired this a decade ago, and shared its existence with only several of my closest horseless carriage collector friends. I have come to realize that I have too many other projects at this time, and it might be time to hand it over to someone who will get it constructed sooner than later. This is one of my most amazing finds in my 30 years of collecting pre 1905 cars and parts. I purchased the enclosed from a N.J. collector who has a fully restored 1900 Brennan car. He bought the enclosed from a gentleman, whose uncle was the shop foreman of the Brennan Company of Syracuse, N.Y. when they closed the factory in the 1950s. This appears to be the test chassis the factory used to test its various engines at the turn of the century, along with one of those engines and transmissions from 1904. The uncle died years later, and left the enclosed to his nephew. Enclosed is a notarized affidavit the seller of the project provided me, when I bought the project. The Brennan Company is a well known engine builder to early car buffs, having started furnishing companies and individuals engines in 1897. Around 1900 they started providing complete cars for sale, in very small quantities, on an as ordered basis, much like Dykes and Neustadt Perry of St. Louis. There are several 1900-04 Brennan cars in the USA, and at least one in England. Each one is different. All are one or 2 cylinder. Brennan continued building auto, marine and industrial engines into the teens, and switched to building just marine engines from the 1920s, all the way up to the 1950s, when they went out of business. In the 1950s they also built a line of lawnmowers. No one has ever seen the existence of a 4 cylinder 20 HP overhead pushrod engine like this. Add to that, the brass data plate riveted to the block is stamped engine #1, 1904!!! (see enclosed photo of the data plate) This engine is air cooled and looks almost identical in setup and size to a 1904 Franklin 20 HP engine! It is in like new condition. Even the paper tags are still on the engine timer! The motor has been run at sometime, as there is a slight amount of soot on the spark plugs. The 3 speed sliding gear transmission is stamped Syracuse Gear Company, a Brennan Company, and patent dated Feb. 1904 on the cover. It is BRAND NEW! Notice how the mounting ears have not been drilled! In the Brennan literature I have, this transmission is shown with this size engine. Finally is the unusual riveted "I" shaped frame, that is identical to the frame in the 1905 Brennan running gear pictured here, from a 1905 catalogue. The frame has several drilled holes in various places up front, which leads me to believe this was the factory's "mule chassis' to mount and try various 2 and 4 cylinder engines in, from the 1903-05 period. I also received the original 2 seats, which must have been mounted on the chassis when they tested engines, the front axle, cone clutch, engine fan, 4 cylinder coil box, etc. I have also acquired a beautiful correct early rear axle and drive shaft, 2 early steering columns, one short and one long, and beautiful early copper gas tank, and a superb set of Midgley 30 X 3 wheels with almost brand new tires, which were removed from a fully restored 1905 Cadillac. According to the 1905 Brennen catalogue, the cars would have used 30 X 3 wheels. As a superb bonus, I acquired a MATCHED SET of pre 1910 wicker Bleriot type airplane aircraft seats, with leather arm rests! This virtually everything you need to build an authentic 1904 racer racing speedster car is enclosed. I cannot guarantee it, but this vehicle may be eligible for the London To Brighton Run for Veteran pre 1905 vehicles. Pre 1905 four cylinder vehicles are very rare and valuable the world over. This is true especially in the USA where very few cars were built with 4 cylinder engines. 4 cylinder pre 1905 cars sell in the several hundreds of thousands of dollars, and up, when they do come up for sale. Thus this will be a VERY valuable car when completed, both monetarily and historically. For serious inquiries I have several emails available of 1903-05 Brennan Catalogues and ads from Horseless Age Magazine, and lots of close up photos. I will assist in arranging shipping both in the USA and overseas. There are probably less than a dozen pre 1905 racing cars in existence in the entire world! All of the parts are in superb condition. This will be a simple project to complete, since it is an air-cooled engine and will not require a radiator, water pump, etc. You just need to make a false front radiator. I believe the 'Buy It Now" price of $38,000 is very reasonable for this project. If you decide to purchase it, please contact me, and pay me through wire or check. Questions or inquiries for photos and info to me at gnalbright@gmail.com or call my cell 352.843.1624, 10 AM to 9 PM Eastern Standard Time. Good Luck! George Albright, Ocala, Fla. (PS Please see my other auctions of early car parts!)