Walter Flanders was a veteran of the Ford Motor Company, where he had instituted the first phase of Henry Ford’s mass production plan. He and partners Barney Everitt and William Metzger envisioned a quality car built in production quantities, a “well-finished” medium-priced car.

The E-M-F Model 30, introduced in 1908, was just that. Designed by engineer William Kelly, the 30 was a forward-thinking car with a three-speed transaxle. However, early models with thermosyphon cooling were prone to overheating. Kelly recalled the cars and fitted water pumps, which solved the problem, but not before critics spelled their demise. The E-M-F 30 did live on, in a way, as a Studebaker, after the Everitt-Metzger-Flanders Company was taken over by the South Bend wagonmaker-turned-auto manufacturer in 1912.

This E-M-F 30 Five-Passenger Touring was purchased by the Merrick Auto Museum in 2006. Previous owners have included Kenneth Powell of Stockbridge, Georgia. Recipient of a frame-off restoration, it presents very well in red, with black accent striping and fenders. Cream wheels, in turn, are accented in red. The car is equipped with E&J brass acetylene headlamps and oil sidelamps and taillamp. There is a full canvas touring top and a brass windshield from Westchester Appliance Company of Bronx, New York. The car rides on 34 × 3½ Firestone Non-Skid tires. The seats are upholstered in black buttoned tufted leather.