1925 Franklin Series 11 Limousine

This car was built to introduce the J. Frank de Causse designed Series 11-A cars, which featured a faux radiator shell, and a 32 horsepower inline 6-cylinder air-cooled engine. American Limousine Company built this limousine.

The Franklin Motor Car Company produced automobiles from 1902 to 1934 in Syracuse, New York. Unique among Franklins, is all of their cars were air-cooled. The company felt that this allowed them to be more reliable and lighter weight. Forgotten by many, early Franklins were very technologically advanced. They were the first with six cylinders, the first with an automatic spark plug advance, and the undisputed leader in air-cooled cars. The company sold about 150,000 cars over its 30 years of existence. John Wilkinson left the Franklin company (he designed the air-cooled engine) and some say it was because of the design of J. Frank Causse. With a fake radiator grill that looked out of place, and its added weight made the car less efficient and not as appealing. H.H. Franklin, president of the Company, liked to say that Franklin's cars are economical, wore less on the tires, and consumed less gas. H.H. Franklin founded the company in 1893 and hired the fore mentioned chief engineer John Wilkinson. Together they formed a team that created a luxury brand that thrived until, like many companies, the Great Depression hit. This Limousine is a great example of the Franklin brand.