Brand: Ruxton

William J. Muller was a development engineer at Budd and Briggs, an automotive body building contractor, and a proponent of the front wheel drive system. It was common practice for coachbuilding companies such as Budd and Briggs to demonstrate new ideas and capabilities to major manufacturers to stimulate business.

The Ruxton was conceived by Muller with designs created in 1926 and a prototype version completed two years later. It had a proprietary chassis with a Studebaker six-cylinder engine and Warner gearbox. The prototype was brought to New York in 1929 where it generated much interest and curiosity. The front-drive system allowed the car to sit very low, around 10-inches lower than most of its competitors. In the front center of the vehicle was the emblem created by Budd. It was an oval with a '?' in its center.

The front-drive prototype interested Archie M. Andrews who quickly formed New Era Motors, Inc., with the intent to build it with assistance from Muller. The car was named the Ruxton, in hopes of landing financial backing from William V.C. Ruxton, an influential businessman living in New York. Unfortunately, the businessman was not interested.

A few short months after the formation of the New Era Motors, the production version was complete. The drive-train was completely different, now being powered by a Continental 18S eight-cylinder unit. The engine was mounted further forward in the engine bay which aided in weight distribution. The move forward was made possible by splitting the transmission with the low and reverse in front of the differential. Second and third was placed behind it. Also, the crown and pinion gearing was replaced by worm drive.

The Ruxton had only one other front-wheel drive competitor at the time: the Cord L-29 which had been introduced in late 1929. In comparison, the Ruxton was lower, had better balance, lighter, had better unsprung weight, and had better ride and handling. Cord, on the other hand, had its own manufacturing plant and an established dealer network. Muller and Andrews were still searching for interested personnel to produce their vehicle. Many established manufacturers were approached but most declined. The list included Gardner in St. Lous, Hupp Manufacturing, and Indianapolis-based Marmon.

The car was eventually produced by Moon while manufacture of the transaxles and several complete cars were subcontracted to Wisconsin-based Kissel Company.

The Ruxton's were doomed from the start; the demise of the economy due to the Great Depression plus the lack of an established dealer-network meant only a handful would ever be created. It is unknown exactly how many examples were created, though it is believed that around 500 were created. Other estimates put that number much lower, at around 100. In modern times, fewer than ten are known to exist.

Source: Conceptcarz, Rmsothebys, Sportscarmarket, other