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Rare Stutz Resurfaces

A 1923 Stutz 7 Passenger Touring, the only know surviving example, in exceptional Original Condition has just been acquired by SignificantCars.Com-an established  Indianapolis-based Collector car brokerage and restoration company.  The Stutz Motor Company was a mainstay of the Indianapolis Automotive World back when Indianapolis rivaled Detroit for top status in Auto Manufacturing Operations.  Over 130 Different makes of Cars were produced in Indianapolis in the early days of the industry.  Stutz cars were produced from 1911 to 1934, and in their heyday Stutz was one of Indy’s “Big 3” along with Marmon and Duesenberg. 

Harry C. Stutz was an early Automotive entreprenuer, engineer, and innovator. He grew up caring for and repairing agricultural machinery on the family farm. Automobiles and engines fascinated him. Stutz built his first car in 1897, and then a second auto using a gasoline engine of his own design and manufacture. In 1905, he designed a car for the American Motor Car Company, and later designed the first Transaxle for use at The Marion Automobile Company.  In 1911, He designed and built a new car for the Inaugural Indianapolis 500, which finished 5th and earned the Slogan “the Car that made Good in a Day”.   He founded an enterprise that he later renamed it Stutz Motor Company. He was also instrumental in creating the Stutz Fire Engine Company, as well as the H.C.S. Motor Car Company in 1919. In 1929 he formed the Stutz-Bellanca Airplane Company.

This 23 Touring is special for several reasons.“1923 was a transitional year for Stutz Drivetrains with the appearance of the new Speedway 6, so very few of the KLDH 4’s were built in 1923” according to noted Stutz Historian Bill Greer.  “This is the only known ‘23 KLHD Touring car known to survive”.  The KLHD 4 is a very stout T Head motor with 4 valves per cylinder and dual ignition.  The motor replaced the original Stutz Motor that carried the company through the teens, in 1920.  Local upstart rival Duesenberg came out with a Straight 8 motor in 1921, so the rugged KLHD 4’s days were numbered early as Cars with 6 or more cylinders were becoming the fashion.

This car is in amazingly well preserved condition, with its original paint, upholstery, top, and carpeting intact.  The wood framed body is in excellent shape, with no wood rot whatsoever, the doors shut with authority and do not sag.  There is no serious corrosion or rust on any part of the car.  All of the original hardware and gauges are present and are very well preserved.  Most of the original paint still has a good amount of gloss to it, with the exception of the splash aprons and parts of the fenders…the body paint is amazing with little or no crazing.  The car is totally complete with nothing missing.  Once part of the legendary A.K Miller Collection, this car spent the bulk of its life in a barn in Vermont.

A. K. Miller, was an eccentric recluse who operated Miller's Flying Service in 1930, in Montclair, New Jersey. Miller provided mail and other delivery services by means of a gyrocopter, as well as listing "Expert Automobile Repairing" and "Aeroplanes Rebuilt & Overhauled" on his business card. In his later years he was known for his eccentricities, and his collection of valuable antique cars. After retiring from the Air Force in 1946, Miller and his wife moved to a large farm in East Orange, Vermont. The house had no central heating, antiquated plumbing and limited electricity; hot water was created by metal coils inside the wood stove. It is here that Miller's eccentricities began to emerge. He exchanged most of his cash for gold and silver bars and coins. He took his gyrocopter apart and stored the pieces inside an old one-room schoolhouse that stood on his property. Over the years, he constructed a large number of sheds and ramshackle barns out of scrap lumber and nails that he scavenged from various places. Inside the shacks, Miller concealed his trove of prized Stutz motorcars. While locals knew he had a Stutz or two, and Miller was known to other Stutz collectors, nobody knew the true extent of the collection.
What this miserly lifestyle and ill-kept property hid was eventually to bring $2.18 million at auction. The 87-year-old A.K. Miller himself died in 1993 after falling from a ladder, and Imogene died of a heart attack in 1996. As no heirs were found, the IRS moved in to assess the value of the estate (taking a particular interest in collecting the years of back taxes the Millers had owed). All told, approximately 30 original Stutz motorcars, a Stanley Steamer, a 1926 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost, several Franklins, a Volkswagen Karmann Ghia (which had somehow been placed in the loft of the main barn), and assorted VW Beetles were discovered throughout the property. The main barn and the various sheds and shacks Miller had constructed over the years hid a fortune in antique vehicles and a huge number of spare parts Miller had purchased from the Stutz company when it went out of business.

A further $1 million in gold bullion was discovered hidden in the wood pile. $900,000 in stock certificates, and $75,000 in silver bullion and coins were also uncovered in various safes and crawlspaces. A huge, 3-day auction was held by Christie's Auction House to liquidate the Miller estate, including the cache of antique and other automobiles, and a cache of other collected items including music boxes (one of which sold for $7,040), typewriters, sewing machines, spool cabinets, and other assorted mini-collections. Today, the A.K. Miller collection is recognized as one of the largest and most well-known collections of Stutz motorcars. 

Back to the ‘23 Touring, since the cars purchase at the Auction, it has changed little.  Its buyer had just started work on the car, having the wheels repainted, before passing on.  His Heirs contacted Significant Cars who jumped at the chance to acquire the car. 
 
Significant Cars Owner Shawn Miller has a particular interest in Indianapolis built Cars. He has several Indianapolis built cars in his personal Collection, and is a particular champion of Original cars.  “Indianapolis produced some very exciting cars during the Brass and Classic Era, and having grown up here, it’s only natural to want to investigate that and try to preserve that history.  I enjoy preserving things, or fixing them up, it’s a hobby of mine. I like to find things that have been neglected and breath new life into them ” says Miller-who has personally restored several Victorian buildings in downtown Indianapolis, including an 1880’s Veneer Mill that serves as his garage, and “more than my fair share” of old cars.  “Its refreshing to find a car like this that has so much of its original features intact.  Normally we have to completely disassemble cars of this vintage and start over”.  “Our approach to this project will be more towards preservation than restoration- it’s rare to get that opportunity with a car this old”.  All of the mechanical components such as engine, gearbox, brakes, wiring, etc. will be rebuilt or recommissioned, but great care will be taken to preserve the original finish of all of these items.  While the upholstery and top are quite stiff and brittle, Miller says “we have started the soaking process where we apply various emoluments or salves to the leather and other soft material-I think I can save it, although the top may be another story since it has been in the folded position so long”.  Penetrating Oil has been liberally applied to all nuts and fasteners that will be removed, so that the originals can be saved and reused if at all possible.   

Added Miller:  “We are very excited to get this lovely original car back to its home.  This car represents an important part of Indianapolis Automotive History, that can now be preserved and enjoyed by future generations. I would be remiss if I didn’t thank A.K. Miller and the previous owner for keeping the car in such good condition, and of course for passing it on to me”.