It was a deficiency of capital , not gift , that kept the 1953 Paxton PhoenixConvertibleCoupe from ever accept wing . Robert Paxton McCulloch is most far-famed for thechain sawsthat bear his last name . In the early 50 , he set up an automotive section using his middle name .

The Paxton supercharger was the division ’s most successful product and was factory install in Kaisers and Studebakers . However , a prototype for a luxury steamcarwas Paxton ’s most interesting utilization .

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McCulloch envisioned a coupe selling for about $ 10,000 . A Porsche 356 was purchase and inspired the four - wheel independent contortion - stripe abatement . Power was to be provided either by a supercharged two - cycle gasolineengineor by steam . Steam was favour and McCulloch turn to an expert . What Shakespeare was to lit , Abner Doble was to steam vehicles .

Early steamers could take more than half an hour to get up steam and had to make frequent halt for body of water . The Doble steam gondola of the Twenties could be ready to go in less than a min , journey 400 miles on a gallon of water , and transcend 90 mph . High purchase price and shaky funding killed the Doble car.­ Doble ’s design for the Paxtonsteam enginepromised to be smooth , quiet , and powerful . However , full exploitation of a postwar steam locomotive would have been prohibitively expensive . The steam unit was quiz on a dynamometer and in a Ford chassis , but was never installed in the Phoenix . The four - piston chamber Porsche melodic phrase - cooled railway locomotive , left over from the sample 356 , was finally installed in the Phoenix ’s rear engine bay .

Brooks Stevens , the talented industrial couturier responsible for the Jeep Wagoneer and a skillful 1962 lift of the Studebaker Hawk , title the Phoenix . He design a four - rider coupe with a clever index - retractable top . Rather than folding , the top slid back and cover the similarly shaped rear pack of cards . This simple , elegant solution was space - effective and unbelievable to leak .

The body was fibreglass – even the chrome - plated bumper – keeping weight down to a light 2,200 pounds . Other unparalleled features were a telescop- ing steering wheel and top executive doorway untier .

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