Knox Automobile Company
Industry | Automotive industry |
---|---|
Founded | 1900 |
Defunct | 1915 | , 1924
Fate | Bankruptcy |
Successor | Knox Motor Company |
Headquarters | Automobiles |
Production output | 10,835 |
The Knox Automobile Company was a manufacturer of
History
Harry Austin Knox built three experimental gasoline cars at Overman Wheel Company between 1895 and 1898. He left Overman when they decided to build a steam car. Knox joined with his former employer, Elihu H. Cutler of the Elektron Company to form the Knox Automobile Company in Springfield Massachusetts in 1900.[2] The Waltham Watch Company factory was purchased and Knox built 15 cars in their first year.[3]
The Knox Model A was a three-wheel runabout with a 5-hp one-cylinder air-cooled engine. In 1902 a four-wheel runabout and a 8-hp two-cylinder engine joined the model line-up. Early cars were called Knoxmobile with the Waterless Knox being used from 1903. A slogan used was "The Car That Never Drinks".[3] In some models, passengers rode up front over the front axle while the driver and another passenger sat in the back over the engine.[4]
The "Old Porcupine" engine
The flat-mounted
Growth
Knox pricing for the one-cylinder and two-cylinder models went for a low price in 1900 of $750, (equivalent to $27,468 in 2023) to medium-priced by 1904. A 1904 Knox Tuxedo Touring model, equipped with a straight-twin engine producing 16 hp (12 kW), was priced at $2,200, equivalent to $74,604 in 2023.[3]
In late 1904 Knox left the company over a disagreement on policy with Elihu Cutler. Knox set-up a new business across town to build the
In 1906 Knox Automobile Company introduced the Model G, a 40-hp air-cooled
In 1908 a water-cooled four-cylinder engine was introduced and customers could choose air-cooled or pay $100 more for water-cooled models.[2] A six-cylinder engine became available in 1910 and all Knox's became water-cooled. Only luxury-priced Knox's were offered after 1910.[2]
Racing
The Knox was raced by
Fate
By 1912 Knox sales were slipping and a receiver was called in. The last Knox automobiles were built in 1914 and Knox was declared bankrupt in 1915. Knox reorganized as the Knox Motors Corporation and continued to build tractors and trucks until 1924.[3][2]
Afterwards Harry Knox moved on to design tanks for the
Gallery
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1901 Model A Three-wheeler Runabout
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1903 Knox Model C Runabout
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1905 Knox Model F Surrey
-
1906 Knox Model G Touring
-
1909 Knox Model O Tonneauette
-
1910 Knox Model S Touring
Models[3]
Model | Year | Cylinders | Horsepower | Wheelbase |
---|---|---|---|---|
A | 1900–1902 | 1 | 5 bhp (3.7 kW) | |
Two Cylinder | 1902 | 2 | 8 bhp (6.0 kW) | |
B | 1902 | 1 | 8 bhp (6.0 kW) | 69 in (1,800 mm) |
C | 1903 | 1 | 8 bhp (6.0 kW) | 72 in (1,800 mm) |
Two Cylinder | 1904 | 2 | 18 bhp (13 kW) | 84 in (2,100 mm) |
One Cylinder | 1904 | 1 | 10 bhp (7.5 kW) | 72 in (1,800 mm) |
E | 1905 | 1 | 10 bhp (7.5 kW) | 72 in (1,800 mm) |
F-3 | 1905–1906 | 2 | 16 bhp (12 kW) | 87 in (2,200 mm) |
F-1 | 1905–1906 | 2 | 16 bhp (12 kW) | 81 in (2,100 mm) |
F | 1905–1906 | 2 | 16 bhp (12 kW) | 90 in (2,300 mm) |
F-4 | 1906–1907 | 2 | 16 bhp (12 kW) | 81 in (2,100 mm) |
G | 1906–1908 | 4 | 40 bhp (30 kW) | 112 in (2,800 mm) |
H | 1907–1909 | 4 | 30 bhp (22 kW) | 102 in (2,600 mm) |
L | 1908 | 4 | 30 bhp (22 kW) | 102 in (2,600 mm) |
O | 1909 | 4 | 38 bhp (28 kW) | 102–114 in (2,600–2,900 mm) |
M | 1909–1910 | 4 | 48 bhp (36 kW) | 127 in (3,200 mm) |
S | 1910–1912 | 6 | 60 bhp (45 kW) | 134 in (3,400 mm) |
R | 1910–1912 | 4 | 40 bhp (30 kW) | 117–122 in (3,000–3,100 mm) |
R-45 | 1912 | 4 | 40 bhp (30 kW) | 126 in (3,200 mm) |
66 | 1913 | 6 | 60 bhp (45 kW) | 134 in (3,400 mm) |
46 | 1913–1914 | 6 | 46 bhp (34 kW) | 130–134 in (3,300–3,400 mm) |
45 | 1913–1914 | 4 | 40 bhp (30 kW) | 126 in (3,200 mm) |
44 | 1913–1914 | 4 | 40 bhp (30 kW) | 117–122 in (3,000–3,100 mm) |
Production[3]
Year | Automobiles |
---|---|
1900 | 15 |
1901 | 100 |
1902 | 250 |
1903 | 500 |
1904 | 553 |
1905 | 572 |
1906 | 753 |
1907 | 1,000 |
1908 | 1,215 |
1909 | 1,317 |
1910 | 1,412 |
1911 | 1,215 |
1912 | 877 |
1913 | 673 |
1914 | 383 |
Total | 10,835 |
References
- ^ "Motor Age". 1915.
- ^ ISBN 1-57958-293-1.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-87341-428-9.
- ^ 100 Years of the American Auto Millennium Edition, page 24, Copyright 1999 Publications International, Ltd.
- ^ Clymer, Floyd. Treasury of Early American Automobiles, 1877-1925 (New York: Bonanza Books, 1950), p.170-1.
- ^ David LaChance (January 2007) "Old Porcupine – Knox", Hemmings Classic Car.
- ^ "History of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway".
See also
- Brass Era car
- List of defunct United States automobile manufacturers
- Knox automobiles at ConceptCarz