Leach (automobile)

Leach-Biltwell Motor Company
	Leach-Biltwell 1922 advertisement
Company type	Stock company
Industry	Automobile manufacturing
Predecessor	Leach Motor Car Co.
Founded	Los Angeles, California, U.S. (1919)
Founder	Martin Andrew Leach
Defunct	1924
Fate	Ceased trading
Headquarters	Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Products	Leach Power-Plus Six

Leach-Biltwell Motor Company manufactured and distributed the Leach luxury automobile from 1919 to 1924 in Los Angeles, California.^[1]

History

Leach-Biltwell Motor Company was a west-coast automobile manufacturer. Martin Andrew Leach of the Leach Motor Car Company formed Leach-Biltwell for automobile coachbuilding and customization. In 1919 the company was re-capitalized and began producing complete automobiles. Leach purchased the Republic Truck Company factory and began production of the Leach Power-Plus Six motorcar.^[1]

In 1922 the company again re-capitalized and expanded by purchasing the Miller Engine and Foundry works. Harry A. Miller became a vice-president of Leach-Biltwell and developed a new engine for the company. In 1923 the company was in financial trouble and introduced a smaller automobile called the California. In 1924, the company moved to a smaller factory and discontinued the Leach Power-Plus Six.^[2]^[1]

Models

The Leach Power-Plus Six used a model 9N Red Seal Continental 303.1 cubic inch 60 hp inline six-cylinder engine.^[1] Touring coachwork on a 128-inch wheelbase featured two or four door body styles. Leach popularized the distinctive "California top" that was a precursor of the "hardtop" body style thirty years later.^[1] In 1922 the engine was changed to a Miller model 999 100 hp Ohc six-cylinder engine, on a 134-inch wheelbase. This technically advanced engine had teething troubles and many were replaced with Continentals.^[2]

For luxury customization, the Leach included a tilt and telescoping steering column, removable steering wheel (to be used as an anti-theft feature), a directional signal/stop light box with a dashboard switch, lighted aluminum steps instead of running boards, a one piece windshield and disc wheels with chromium rims.^[3]

The Leach was priced in 1920 from $5,200 to a high in 1922 of $6,500 (equivalent to $118,318 in 2023). From 218 to 264 cars (chassis with and without factory bodies) were produced.^[3]^[1]

Advertising

Leach-Biltwell displayed a Leach at the 1920 Chicago Auto Show. Although primarily sold in California, with the slogan "The Aristocrat of Motordom", Leach advertised in major magazines to attract national attention.^[2]

Leach-Biltwell Brochure
Leach Power-Plus Six Advertisement
Leach two-page Advertisement

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Kimes, Beverly Rae; Clark Jr., Henry Austin (1996). Standard Catalog of American Cars 1805-1942 (3rd ed.). Krause Publications. ISBN 978-0-87341-428-9.
^ ^a ^b ^c Georgano, Nick (2001). The Beaulieu Encyclopedia of the Automobile (3 vol. ed.). Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers. ISBN 1-57958-293-1.
^ ^a ^b Theobald, Mark (January 1, 2004). "Coachbuilt - M.A. Leach, Leach-Biltwell". Coachbuilt. Retrieved June 21, 2022.

External links

Hollywood Glamour: Meet The Only Surviving 1922 Leach Model 22A

[:0-1] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Kimes, Beverly Rae; Clark Jr., Henry Austin (1996). Standard Catalog of American Cars 1805-1942 (3rd ed.). Krause Publications. ISBN 978-0-87341-428-9.

[:1-2] Georgano, Nick (2001). The Beaulieu Encyclopedia of the Automobile (3 vol. ed.). Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers. ISBN 1-57958-293-1.

[:2-3] Theobald, Mark (January 1, 2004). "Coachbuilt - M.A. Leach, Leach-Biltwell". Coachbuilt. Retrieved June 21, 2022.

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