Sep 20

HCM Marmon

On another website there is a little info on Howard Marmon's last escapade before moving on. Their 16 was modified to a V12 and a new monocoque body was made; a little Pierce-esque. It has some interesting looks from some angles and less gainly ones from others. The performance is said to be quite good and reached 113 mph. One prototype was made and exhibited a Pebble a few years ago. it sold at auction for over $400K. Here are a few photos from RM Auctions. It would be neat if more than this example existed to attempt experienced comparisons with other "greats" of the era.

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Sep 20, 2026

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Replies (12)

· Sep 20

Have a friend whose grandfather was Thomas Litle the chief engineer at Marmon in the late 20s. He was chief engineer at Lincoln but Henry Ford fired him because he was president of the SAE and Henry didn't like the distraction. So he moved on to Marmon. Always wondered if he had a hand in the V16 and V12.

The V12 prototype was a unique in a number of ways. The 368 cubic-inch, overhead-valve aluminum V-12 produced 151 horsepower and WIlbur Shaw got it up to 113 mph on the indy track. When the company went in to receivership Howard kept the car, which remained with him until his death.

https://www.thesahb.com/snapshot-397-1932-marmon-experimental-v12/

· Sep 20

Btw, on the subject of Marmon, I saw this very nice V16 yesterday at @parkerspackards cars and coffee event.

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· Sep 20

The slab sides almost give it an eastern European look.

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· Sep 20

In that SAHB article I linked they mentioned the Tatra as an influence. Especially with the central spine frame.

· Sep 21

Four wheel independent suspension? In 1931? In America? Talk about being ahead of its time.

· Sep 21

I would like to see some photos of this setup. Nobody had 4 wheel independent suspension that early. Mercedes introduced it on the 380 in 1933.

· Sep 21

Compare with the production V16 Sedan. Quite different.

· Sep 21

Better comparison is the production Victoria.

· Sep 21

The V12 design looks late 30s to me, while the production LeBaron looks forward thinking art deco early 30s. So while the Walter Teague designed production cars were cutting edge in terms of their lack of ornamentation, the 12 is way ahead in all aspects.

· Sep 21

A Marmon V16 engine is a work of art. But aren't the blocks aluminum? That has to be a problem over time.

· Sep 22

Peerless made one V-12 car, too.

· Sep 22

That is something I did not know. I’ve seen the V16 car in the Crawford.