About What is it? Quiz #482: Grade

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Well, we didn’t want to make it too easy for you. It was a bad photo, bad lighting etc etc. But it didn’t matter. We got no less than 20 (good) answers to last week's quiz. Did we make it too easy? According to Piet Geirnaert, it was quite difficult and he had to look through 254 pages in the encyclopedia before he found out what car it is. And also Verder Johnsen made a guess (a good one btw).

And when we looked further, it was quite hard indeed. Because it can be both: a German Grade and an Aestro Grade. Our source says it is a Grade, no mentioning of anything else. And as both cars are equally the same, we decided that we are ok with both answers.

The most complete answer came from Thomas Ulrich. The car on the photo is a Grade F2. The F2 was built between 1922 - 1924. The Grade was constructed by Hans Grade, one of the aircraft pioneers in Germany. He was the first German to fly with his self-built aeroplane. And started building two-stroke engines and motorbikes in Magdenburg. Before he began to manufacture light aeroplanes at Bork near Berlin. After the Kaiser war, he was not allowed anymore to produce aircrafts. So he designed a car, which was totally different to anything else. The body consisted of a steel tub in which the engine and all the ancillaries including seats were situated. The upper half of the body was a tub with only openings for the doors, bonnet and boot. In fact an all-steel monocoque body.

The engine was a two cylinder. Two stroke engine with 808 cc. The Grade had a friction drive and from the friction drive a chain to the right gearwheel. The engine developed 16 hp. The car was built before the end of 1924 because the hood lies on the left side. The hood was in a normal position in the back. The advertising for the Grade said, whereas a normal car has 2000 parts, the Grade has 300. Around 2000 Grades were built.

Unfortunately, he used more than 200 words.

Gerd Klioba added: “Hans Grade was doing his first flight in 1908 in a self-built triplane. His pilot licence wore the number 2. In 1915 he built a first car prototype and started car production in 1921 with the 4/12 PS two-cylinder friction-drive tandem seater, already looking much like the puzzle car.“

Christian Günzel said: “1909 he won the "Lanz Preis der Lüfte" - 50.000 Reichsmark); 1903 he built his first motorcycle, two years later he founded the "Grade Motorwerke GmbH Magdeburg".”

Erler Thomas also explained the difference between the German one and the Austrian one: “This is a Austo-Grade built from 1923 to 26 in Klosterneuburg near Vienna. made under licence from the German Grade Werke, technically identical to the German version apart from steering (worm and nut). 2 cylinder 2 stroke, 808ccm and 16hp.”

Thank you all for your answers, and thank you as well for the photos Gerd, Michael, Robbie and Tobias. We really appreciate it!

The winner of this week is Erler Thomas as he explained the small difference that is actually the new question that came up this week. Congratulations Erler, you receive the full 5 points in the six-month competition, sponsored by Hans Compter Rare Cars.

Thanks to Hans van Ingen Schenau for sending in the photo.

Have a good weekend everyone!

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