Electric classics charge to NEC
Pioneer classics will be seen in motion in a first for November’s show
The NEC Classic Motor Show (November 12-14) will feature a special moving exhibition demonstrating the history of the electric car. With its own dedicated indoor track similar to the old London Classic Car Show Grand Avenue, many of the battery-powered classics will also be making their NEC debuts.
1912 Baker Electric
On loan from collector Andrew Wood, this 1912 Baker Electric is set to make its dynamic debut as the star of its electric classics exhibition this November.
Wood’s car is one of the later Baker models, which were manufactured in Ohio from 1899 to 1914. The first Baker vehicle was a two seater with a selling price of $850 ($28k today). One was sold to Thomas Edison as his first car. Edison also designed the nickel-iron batteries used in some Baker electrics. A Baker Electric was also one of the first cars on the White House Presidential fleet, used by President William Taft and his wife Helen.
Unlike other cars of its era, the Baker Electric needed no cranking, had no gasoline smell and was essentially maintenance-free. Typically of the time, it was marketed to women. The model range was expanded in 1904 to two vehicles, both two-seaters with armoured wood-frames, centrally-located electric motors, and 12-cell batteries. By 1906 Baker had made 800 cars, making it the largest electric vehicle manufacturer in the world at the time.
Come 1910, the Baker Electric was a luxurious car priced at $2800 ($80k today). It had a seating capacity of four passengers and was painted black with choice of blue, green or maroon panels. The last model variant was also offered with a ‘Queen Victoria’ coachwork style that was ‘interchangeable on the chassis’, priced at an additional $300.