American Bantam Convertible Coupe

The American Bantam Convertible Coupe was first introduced in 1937 as a restyling of the earlier American Austin Coupe (1929 - 1936). A coupe is a two-door, one-seat car that often sports a convertible top. Like the Austin Coupe, the Bantam was built north of Pittsburgh in Butler, Pennsylvania by the American Austin Car Company, which changed its name to the American Bantam Car Company in 1935.

The automobiles produced by American Bantam - namely the Austin and Bantam coupes - are integral players in the story of automobile production in Pittsburgh; because together they represent the highest and most recent output of any motorcar by a company headquartered here.

American Bantam offered many options in its attempts to attract the buying public. Nine different models of the Bantam Coupe were offered in 1940-41, with prices ranging from $399 to $575. The weather-tight convertible with rollup windows, for example, was priced at $525, compared to $850 for a Ford convertible. Despite these efforts at competitive pricing, the American Bantam Car Company was out of business by 1941. No Pittsburgh-based companies have manufactured cars since that time.