On November 15, 1926, press releases issued
from Detroit announced a new company to manufacture a Knight sleeve-valve
engine automobile to sell in the $1000 bracket. Almost daily, through
December 1926, announcements were issued on the progress of the new company.
On November 29, John North Willys issued a statement saying that the announcement
of the new company had been premature and that his involvement was "entirely
for the benefit of Willys-Overland stockholders". Willys, of course,
was the largest W-O stockholder. On November 20, it was announced
that John A. Nichols Jr., a former Dodge Vice President, would be President
of the new company. Nichols brought several Dodge and Chrysler executives
with him.
Announcement of the company name - Falcon Motors
Corporation - and the name of the car - Falcon Knight was made on December
11, and a week later it was announced that the car would be built in the
former Garford Truck plant in Elyria, Ohio. This plant was owned
by W-O and Willys Knight engines had been made there until that work was
transferred to Wilson Foundry and Machine in Pontiac, Michigan. Falcon
Knight corporate headquarters were maintained in Detroit. By mid-January
1927, the first Falcon Knight, the Model 10, began appearing at auto shows,
two months after the first announcements. This has to be some sort
of record for getting a new car on the road, and perhaps one of the main
reasons for this is that the Falcon Knight was a virtual copy, body-wise,
of the Whippet 6 Model 93A which W-O had ready in the fall of 1926. Almost
all sheet metal parts and many chassis parts are interchangeable between
the 1927 Falcon Knight and Whippet 93A. Most part numbers in the
Falcon Knight parts book begin with 7. Change this 7 to a 3 and you have
the regular W-O part numbers. There are a few numbers beginning with
8 which corresponds to 4 in W-O part numbers.
The official introduction of the Falcon Knight
was on March 15, 1927, with a 4-door Sedan and a 2-door Brougham being
introduced. Price of the Sedan was $1095 and the Brougham $995. Landau
Sedan, 2-passenger Coupe, and 4-passenger Roadster bodies were introduced
shortly thereafter. Some speculation exists as to whether a Touring
may have been offered for the US domestic market or not. Although
drawings and specifications exist, there is no mention of a Touring body
in the parts book, nor in any 1927 or 1928 sales literature. Overseas
markets such as Australia are of course a different matter, but even then
its likely such cars received the same Touring body as Whippet 93A.
The Falcon Knight engine, at 2 15/16 x 3 7/8
bore and stroke, is smaller than the Willys Knight 70A engine, but looks
very similar and many parts interchange. The engine develops 46 bhp
at 2800 rpm with an RAC Horsepower rating of 20.7. Except for the
engine, and 3-shoe internal brakes all around, the Falcon Knight chassis
matches the Whippet 93A.
In August 1927, Falcon Knight introduced its
new Sports Roadster - the "Gray Ghost", in two-tone gray paint, wire wheels,
and a detachable rumble seat soft top. The Gray Ghost was originally
priced at $1250, $100 less than the Willys Knight 70A Roadster.
In January 1928, the new Falcon Knight Model
12 was announced. Some exterior appearance changes took place, most
notable in the sun visor and hood panels. The integral roof/sun visor
of 1927 was replaced by an adjustable cadet-type visor on the closed cars.
The hood louvres were changed from verticals to three groups of horizontals
as used on the Willys Knight 66A. Fenders were changed from the panel
crown type to full, plain crown type in keeping with the Willys Knight
and Whippet changes. Bodies were redesigned and enlarged very slightly,
and the instrument panel was redesigned. A rare sales folder depicts
Sedan, Coach, Coupe and Roadster so it seems as if the “Brougham” terminology
was changed to “Coach”. It would appear that the Landau and Grey
Ghost bodies were dropped. Engine changes involved adopting Nelson
invar-strut rods and 4-ring pistons. The rear axle was changed from
the split type to banjo type. Very few chassis changes were made,
none of consequence.
Perhaps John North Willys and others involved
with the Falcon Knight had a feeling that the car would not make it in
the marketplace, for at the time of announcement of the 1928 Model 12 Falcon
Knight, W-O announced its new Willys Knight Model
56, an almost identical car in the same price range. No doubt,
this fact had an immediate impact on Falcon-Knight sales, but production
continued throughout 1928, in fact, some "leftover" assembly work continued
into early 1929. In March 1929, the Elyria work force switched to
making truck components for W-O, and Falcon Motors was absorbed by W-O.
1927 |
1000 - 11426
|
1928 |
12000 - 18423
|
Assuming all these numbers were used, at most only 16,851 could have
been built. A large portion of Falcon Knights were exported, mainly to
Scandinavia, Australia, and New Zealand.
Coach |
23
|
Sedan |
37
|
Tourer |
581
|
Roadster |
36
|