Columbia Automobile Company
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| Industry | Automobile |
|---|---|
| Fate | Sold |
| Founded | 1899 |
| Defunct | 1910 (marque continued by purchaser) |
| Headquarters | Hartford, Connecticut, United States |
| Products | Vehicles |
Columbia was an American brand of automobiles produced by a group of companies in the United States. They included the Pope Manufacturing Company of Hartford, Connecticut, the Electric Vehicle Company, and an entity of brief existence in 1899, the Columbia Automobile Company.
At the turn of the Twentieth century they were producing and selling hundreds of vehicles a year under Pope's Columbia brand name, while most gasoline engine automobile manufacturers had made only a few dozen.
In 1908, the company was renamed the Columbia Motor Car Company and in 1910 was acquired by United States Motor Company. A different Columbia Motors existed from 1917 to 1924.
The 1904 'Columbia Brougham' was equipped with a tonneau. It could seat 4 passengers and sold for US$3,500. Twin electric motors were situated at the rear of the car. Similar 'Columbia' coupes, 'Columbia Hansom' cabs, or hansoms, were also produced for the same price. They could achieve 13 mph (21 km/h). A 'Columbia Victoria Phaeton' was priced at US$3,000, but was based on the same design.
The 'Columbia Surrey' and 'Columbia Victoria' were more traditional horseless carriages. Both used the same power system as the larger cars, with twin electric motors, but cost much less at US$1,500 and US$1,600, respectively.
At the bottom end of the range was the 'Columbia Runabout' car. Priced at just US$750, it used a single electric motor, with an Exide battery and Concord springs.
Columbia's basic runabout was typical of the time, resembling a horseless carriage, and was steered via a tiller. It cost US$850, US$200 more than the contemporary Curved Dash Oldsmobile. The 1,200-pound (540 kg), single bench seat vehicle had a wheelbase of 64 inches (1,600 mm), and rode on 30-inch (760 mm) wooden spoked wheels, with leather fenders. The drivetrain had clear evolutionary roots in Pope's bicycle business, driving the rear axle via a chain drive, producing virtually the only operating noise. Between the motor and the chain drive was a transmission with three forward and two reverse speeds. Twenty batteries manufactured by Exide Batteries, also associated with Electric Vehicle Company, were placed above both axles in order to balance the weight. Brakes on both rear wheels featured a bell, which rang when the vehicle reached a full stop. Top speed was about 15 mph (24 km/h).
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