I found this quarter page ad in the July 17, 1915 edition of Automobile Digest and Register. Don't ask me what I was doing there. Anyhow, I hadn't heard of this early V8 and naturally Wikipedia doesn't mention it. It was able to climb one of San Fran's steeper streets in high (supposedly). The price looks cheap. Too bad it was around only for two years. Anyone seen one?
Never heard of it. Fairly early V8 and at a reasonable price. Here is the text:
AUTOMOBILE DIGEST AND REGISTERTHE ROSS “EIGHT”.The Ross “eight” is now on display at the salesroom of the Auto Utilities Corporation, No. 1,700 Broadway. Unknown in the East, the Ross is widely known in the Middle West, being made by the Ross & Young Machine Company of Detroit.Unlike those of a majority of eight cylinder cars the Ross motor is built complete in the plant of the company. This new plant occupies a whole block and is fitted with the most modern appliances. While the usual type of two sets for four cylinders each, attached to the crank case at an angle of 90 degrees, the motor has been refined to an unusual degree and is a fine example of “clean” practice. The V between the two sets of cylinders has been left clear of non-essential parts, so that the valves can be easily and quickly reached.The cylinder bore is three inches and the stroke four and a half inches. Lubrication is obtained by the force feed system with sight feed on the instrument board. The intake manifolds are so arranged as to supply exactly the same amount of gas to each cylinder, and the exhaust pipes pass from the motor and beneath it to the rear, thus keeping the heat entirely away from the toe board, where usually there is an uncomfortably high temperature in hot weather. The starter is a single unit system, also built in the parent plant, and is located on the transmission case.The Ross “eight” body is of the streamline type and seats five passengers comfortably. The upholstery is of the best buffed Spanish leather. Wine color is used for the body and upholstery and black for the fenders. The car sells at $1,350. In the opinion of Albert Roren, manager of the Auto Utilities Corporation, it will be one of the motor sensations of the year.
Was 1915 the last year for them? Maybe a long shot, but could they have been related to the King Eight that came out in 1916?
Probably. The newspaper chatter was limited to a couple of years.
From what I could see they started with a V8 by Herschell-Spillman and in 1916 they converted to a Continental 6 and then went back to a V8 but unclear if this was sourced elsewhere. It seems neat that they offered a V8 for much less than the usual competitors of the age: Cadillac, Cole, Cunningham. Probably, as always, it was a problem with capitalization, maybe supply chain and market issues as well. I'd be curious to see what the original V8 looked like.
Looking back at the history of different car manufactures even dummies like me see why they didn't survive. Which management guy thought it was a good idea to zig zag on the powerplant every other year?
