Chalmers; Chalmers-Detroit (United States)

Chalmers Motor Car Company was an American automobile manufacturer based in Detroit, Michigan, that operated from 1908 to 1924. The company emerged as a successor to the Thomas-Detroit, which had been in production since 1906. Under the leadership of Hugh Chalmers, a former vice-president of the National Cash Register Company, the brand gained popularity, particularly between 1912 and 1919, by offering medium-priced vehicles.

Initially, the Chalmers-Detroit featured a four-cylinder engine and was available in various body styles, including roadsters and touring cars, priced at $1,500, while limousines were offered at $2,500. In 1911, the company rebranded to simply Chalmers and expanded its lineup to include two series of four-cylinder cars in both open and closed models, with prices ranging from $1,500 to $3,000. Notably, self-starters became standard equipment during this period. A six-cylinder series was introduced in 1913, leading to the discontinuation of four-cylinder models in 1915, with the six-cylinder cars remaining until the end of production.

Chalmers' production peaked in 1916, with over 21,000 vehicles completed. The company produced approximately 20,000 cars during the war years of 1917 and 1918. However, production began to decline, with 10,000 units manufactured in 1919 and a slight drop to 9,800 in 1920. In a strategic move, Hugh Chalmers leased his manufacturing plants to Maxwell, a major competitor, in hopes of benefiting from their tooling and promotional expertise. Unfortunately, this plan did not yield the desired results, as many automobile manufacturers faced financial difficulties due to over-expansion during the war.

In 1922, Chalmers was taken over by Maxwell, which had become a subsidiary of Chrysler. The last Chalmers vehicles featured lockheed hydraulic brakes, with production dropping to less than 1,000 units in 1923. These final cars were marketed as 1924 models, marking the end of the Chalmers brand. Following its discontinuation, the Chalmers was replaced in the Chrysler Corporation lineup by the newly launched Chrysler Six, which utilized the Maxwell as its four-cylinder companion car.