Fal Automobile Company

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FAL advertising leaflet (1910)
FAL Motor Company share dated August 11, 1910

The Fal Automobile Company , emerged from the Fal Motor Company , was an American automobile manufacturer based in Chicago, Illinois . They produced automobiles with the brand name FAL from 1909 to 1914 . This designation was derived from the names of the three founders, TS Fauntleroy (Chairman of the Board), HR Averill (Sales Manager) and EH Lowe (Managing Director).

history

The cars were the successor to the Reliable Dayton , in whose company building production was set up. All FAL were four-cylinder models with initially 30 bhp (22 kW), later 40 bhp (29 kW), power. The engines came from Buda Engine Co.

No name - but 30 bhp (1909)

Initially, the car was sold as A Car Without a Name . This should allow buyers to label the cars with their own name, an idea that apparently didn't catch on. The car had a four-cylinder in-line engine with 30 bhp (22 kW) power.

FAL 35/40 hp (1910-1913)

The three founders soon decided to use the first letters of their surnames to describe the automobile. The cars got a slightly more powerful engine and were now called 35/40 hp. The mid-range cars sold quite well, but the finances of the three founders were soon exhausted. One tried to attract different investors. NH van Sicklen got in and soon left, EH Marhoefer could also be won, but could not prevent bankruptcy in August 1911.

At the beginning of 1912, the company was rebuilt as FAL Automobile Company under CJ Marhoefer , the brother of the aforementioned EH Marhoefer. Production of the 35/40 hp was resumed and continued until 1913.

FAL Grayhound (1913-1914)

In late 1913, Marhoefer introduced a new model called the Grayhound. The car, only available as a 2-seater roadster, was more elegantly designed than its predecessor, but had only a single headlight in the middle. It was the first car with “reclining seats”: the seat cushion could be pushed forward into the footwell and served as a pillow; the sleeper's legs were in the back of the car. The narrow “bed” was - according to contemporary advertising - at least 2438 mm long.

Even the Grayhound could not turn the company's fortunes. In the spring of 1914, the buildings and machines were auctioned.

A total of around 65,000 vehicles are said to have been built.

Models

model Construction period cylinder power wheelbase
A car without a name 1909 4 row 30 bhp (22 kW) 2946 mm
FAL 1910-1913 4 row 40 bhp (29 kW) 2946 mm
FAL Grayhound 1913-1914 4 row 40 bhp (29 kW) 2896 mm

literature

  • Beverly Rae Kimes, Henry Austin Clark Jr .: Standard catalog of American Cars. 1805-1942. Digital edition . 3. Edition. Krause Publications, Iola 2013, ISBN 978-1-4402-3778-2 , pp. 556 (English).
  • George Nicholas Georgano (Ed.): The Beaulieu Encyclopedia of the Automobile . Volume 1: A-F . Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, Chicago 2001, ISBN 1-57958-293-1 , pp. 522 (English).
  • David Burgess Wise: The New Illustrated Encyclopedia of Automobiles . Greenwich Editions, London 2004, ISBN 978-0-86288-258-7 (English).

Web links

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