{"id":1053,"date":"2013-03-01T03:22:42","date_gmt":"2013-03-01T07:22:42","guid":{"rendered":"\/yorkspast\/?p=1053"},"modified":"2016-07-08T03:36:15","modified_gmt":"2016-07-08T07:36:15","slug":"a-new-car-by-an-old-designer-the-kline-kar-pullman-pedigree-to-racing-success-part-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/yorkblog.com\/yorkspast\/a-new-car-by-an-old-designer-the-kline-kar-pullman-pedigree-to-racing-success-part-3\/","title":{"rendered":"A New Car by an Old Designer, the KLINE KAR; Pullman Pedigree to Racing Success, Part 3"},"content":{"rendered":"
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James Allen Kline at the Wheel of a 1912 Kline Kar known as the Meteor (Original Photo from Virginia Historical Society; Used with their Permission and Enhanced by S. H. Smith, 2013)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This 1912 Kline \u201cMeteor\u201d Kar is shown with designer James Allen Kline behind the wheel.\u00a0 At first glance, this car could have been built in Pennsylvania or Virginia.\u00a0 The reason, through October 1912 Kline Kars were built, where the cars originated, in York, Pa.; however starting November 1912, Kline Kar production shifted to Richmond, Va.<\/p>\n

Turns out, this Meteor was actually built in York, Pennsylvania.<\/strong>\u00a0 Recall what I noted in Part 2<\/a>; newspapers from Harrisburg continuing to closely follow automobiles James Kline had a hand in creating.\u00a0 This exact photograph was published in the February 3rd 1912 Issue of The Patriot<\/em>, a newspaper in Harrisburg, Pa.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Meteor was outwardly similar in appearance to the Gentleman\u2019s Roadster that Kline had designed for Pullman.\u00a0 However with Kline\u2019s 6-60 engine, the Meteor had 50% more horsepower than the Roadster.\u00a0 Nevertheless the Meteor weighed less than the Roadster due to Kline\u2019s innovative use of lightweight steel forgings in the Meteor frame.<\/p>\n

In part 1<\/a> of this series we learned that James A. Kline had been the general manager and respected designer of Pullman cars at the York Motor Car Company until being eased out of that company.\u00a0 In part 2<\/a> of this series we learned about the immediate success of Kline Kars, designed by Jimmy Kline, at the start-up B.C.K. Motor Company in York, PA; and their use of racing to popularize Kline Kars.\u00a0 In the final part of this series, I\u2019ll get into the family history of James A. Kline, interspersed with the move of Kline Kar production from York, Pennsylvania.<\/p>\n

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After reading the feature article in the Winter 2013 Issue of Pennsylvania Heritage<\/em> stating that the first competitive automobile event in Pennsylvania was won by a Kline Kar right off the showroom floor, I wanted to know more.\u00a0 Historical articles on Kline Kars on the Internet, as usual, had varying discrepancies between the articles.\u00a0 When that occurs, I tend to go to original sources, or articles noting their sources, to sort out the correct facts.<\/p>\n

This time many of the Internet article variations were because published articles in newspapers, magazines and books from pre-Internet days contained those differences.\u00a0 Maybe it\u2019s the family historian in me; the one detail that bugs me is the birthplace variation of James Allen Kline.\u00a0 It is listed as one of five difference places in three Pennsylvania counties:<\/strong><\/p>\n