an auto marque of the past - Commerce trucks

An advert from 1917

A Commerce truck used in NZ with "Gapes & Brooks" painted on the front and "Northland Quarry" painted on the side (not dated).

The Commerce Motor Car Co. was based from 1911 to 1923 in Detroit, Michigan; from 1923 to 1926 in Ypsilanti, Michigan and from 1927 to 1932 was owned by Relay Motors Corp. in Lima, Ohio.

The first Commerce was a 1/2-ton panel delivery powered by a 4-cylinder L-head engine of 16.9 hp with right-hand steering and single chain final drive. For 1913 steering was changed to left-hand, and the engine was a 4-cylinder Northway, in 1914, 800 of these delivery trucks, also made in open express and canopy form, were made with the first three years of production. Capacity went up to 3/4-ton in 1914 and a 1-tonner was added for 1917. This had the same engine as the smaller model, but final drive was by internal gears in place of the 3/4-tonner's bevel drive. By 1922 Continental engines were used, in trucks from 3/4 to 2 1/2 tons, and a 10-passenger charabanc which was an elongated touring car with a fixed top. Claimed to be 'the wonder of motordom' it cost $2,350 and could travel at 40 mph (64 km/h) easily. Force-feed lubrication and worm drive came on all the 1924 models, and for 1925 four bus chassis from 18 to 28 passengers joined the range, together with a powermatic special lumber truck, dump truck, oil truck and funeral car.

For 1926 Commerce trucks underwent major changes in specifications and styling. 6-cylinder engines, still Continentals, were featured, with 3-speed transmission in place of 4, and semi-floating spiral bevel rear axle. Early in 1927 Relay Motors of Wabash, Indiana bought Commerce and moved truck manufacture into the plant of Service Motors which it had also bought, and later into the plant of another purchase, Garford Truck Co of Lima, Ohio. Under Relay management Commerce trucks were re-engineered again, returning to worm drive. They were now basically the same as the new Relay trucks in eight models from 1 to 4 tons, using 6-cylinder Buda engines, 4-wheel hydraulic brakes and the same sheet metal. Com­merce, Garford and Service trucks were now identical ex­cept for the nameplates. Of the four makes in the Relay group Commerce fared the worst, with only 65 trucks re­gistered for 1928, and a microscopic 16 for 1929. At the bottom of the Depression Relay was forced into receiver­ship, resulting in the suspension of Commerce and Service production, though they continued Relay and Garford for a little longer.

(info from coachbuilt.com)