FRANKLIN – year 1927

Manufacturer: Franklin Automobile Co.. Syracuse, New York, USA.

In the city of Syracuse, in the US state of New York, Herbert Franklin founded the village of 1901 r. Franklin. John Wilkinson, constructor of successful cars of this brand, only used air-cooled engines in his models. In his opinion, cooling the engines with water was an unnecessary complication. Franklin already in 1902 r. introduced a car with this type of cooling to the market, which two years later, in the San Francisco - New York rally, he broke the then record, equal to 61 days. It had a 4-cylinder in-line displacement engine 2 liters and power 10,3 kW (14 KM). The engine was cooled by a fan mounted in the flywheel and had a magneto, then the most widely used ignition system. Noteworthy were Franklin's wooden chassis and both rigid axles, sprung with elliptical springs. A false radiator has become a characteristic feature of the model, mounted only at the request of conservative buyers. Drive to the rear axle was via a 3-speed gearbox. An external band brake acted on the rear axle. The curb weight of the car was 760 kg. The company quoted the maximum speed 75 km / h and consumption 12 liters per 100 km.

In the 1920s, H.. Franklin, with the help of designer Glenn Shoemaker, built a new model with a 12 cylinder, 4-with a displacement stroke engine 6585 cm3. It was an engine with an OHV overhead valve. The car with a 2-speed gearbox developed the maximum speed 150 km/h. Rigid axles were connected to the frame with semi-elliptical springs. Possessing a mass of almost 3 tony, it was the complete opposite of the previous Franklin models, known for their good properties. He was offered for 4200 US dollars.

In the 1930s, the company developed the new Series 12-cylinder 17, which was its last model due to the economic crisis. Today we can find 72 examples of this original brand in the Harraha automotive collection in Reno, Newadz.