Lot 222: c.1913 K.R.I.T. 25HP TOURER

Two tone green with green fabric interior

Engine: four cylinder, side valve,
Gearbox: three speed manual
Suspension: front and rear, semi-elliptic leaf spring
Brakes: contracting band on rear wheels.
Right hand drive

The Krit Motor Car Company was founded in Detroit in mid-1909 and set up by a group of people including W.S. Piggins and Claude S. Briggs to build cars designed by Kenneth Crittenden, whose background had included spells at Ford and Regal prior to this. Crittenden's new car, which began to roll off the production line in the autumn of 1909, was much in the mould of both other companies, being a four cylinder model with a purposeful 25hp fitted in a car of modest proportions. This combination allowed it to achieve fair competitive success in a number of hillclimb events, and to begin to establish a reputation.

Despite this promising start and their choice of a swastika as a motif for the company - a 19th century good luck symbol - it consistently suffered from financial troubles, and early on lost one of the principal team, Briggs, who left to work at Brush and later on the Detroiter cars. By 1911 Krit was sold to Walter S. Russel of the Russel Wheel and Foundry company. Russel increased capital, and took over the former Owen plant for manufacturing the Krit, with Crittenden now installed as head of engineering and Vice President. This development was also not met with the fortune that it perhaps deserved, as even with the manufacturing streamlined the cars' sales became affected. Firstly local demand suffered from a poor crop harvest in 1913, and then the export market which had proven successful was limited by the onset of war in Europe.

The car we offer must have been one of the original exports as it is to right hand drive specification, and was found by the present owner in Ireland in the late 1960s. At the time of purchase it was shipped across to Liverpool and driven more than 400 miles to the owner's home, but it seems that this initial enthusiasm was not continued and the car has now been stored for many years.

So few examples of the Krit survive, and with the absence of any period records, there is no precise way date the car. However, On the basis of the changes of the bodywork styling, which it seems was all built in house, this car correlates with photographs of 1913 models, the last year before they streamlined bonnets into the bodywork and the bulkhead was hidden. On inspection of the car it seems as if the windscreen would have been originally set further back, closer to the driver with cowl between, but both this and the present guise appear to have been options. In any event, it can be no earlier than 1910 nor later than 1915 when the company folded.

After its recent discovery but a Christie's specialist, the car made to run within the hour. Naturally it would need a thorough check over and an MoT before properly returned to the road, but this is no doubt a good sign that it is still mechanically serviceable. Cosmetically, it has clearly been repainted earlier in its life, and its interior refurbished in period style fabric, both have now aged, but again are not damaged and would be perfectly serviceable. It appears to be complete in all major respects, even retaining K-R-I-T kicker plates under the doors, and radiator script.

An extremely rare survivor of the make, which should prove a usable alternative to other more well-known cars of its period, and allow entry to Edwardian car events of the Veteran Car Club of Great Britain amongst others.