1912 Moline Touring

Moline Automobile Company, East Moline, Illinois.
This company grew out of the Root & Vandervoort Engineering Company which had made stationary and portable engines since 1899. The men behind it were Orlando J. Root and W. H. Vandervoort whose names would appear in the R.& V.Knight which succeeded the Moline-Knight in 1920. The first Moline car had a 12hp 2 cylinder engine, epicyclic transmission, chain drive and a 4 seat tonneau body. It was joined by the 18/20hp 4 cylinder Model B for 1905, and a the cars grew in size, reaching a 40hp four by 1909. The last year for the twins was 1907. Because of their performance in reliability trials the 1912-13 models, tourers and a roadster, were known as "Dreadnoughts".
For 1914 Moline adopted the Knight sleeve-valve engine, and the cars were henceforth known as Moline-Knights, Though a poppet valve Moline was made alongside the new model in 1914 only. The Knight engine was a50hp monobloc 4 cylinder unit used in conjunction with a 4 speed gearbox. At the time the Moline's Knignt engine was the only American sleeve valve to be cast en bloc. For the first time Moline offered closed bodywork on this model, a sedan and a limousine. The Moline-Knights were made with little change up to 1919, in two sizes of engine, 3.6 and 5 litres. For 1920 the design continued as the R. & V. Knight.