Autocrat (Hartford)

Autocrat Manufacturing Company was organized in Hartford, Connecticut, in 1899 specifically to develop a compressed-air automobile. Its prototype placed three pneumatic reservoirs beneath the floor: the publicized process moved air from atmospheric intake through an intermediate stage quoted at 700 psi to final storage as high as 3,000 psi. Autocrat claimed that dedicated filling connections could recharge the vehicle in three seconds and projected 40–50 miles of range. Trials were disappointing, however, with a maximum speed of only about 10 mph, while dependence on a planned central Hartford filling station would have reduced practical range further. The company built no customer cars and no second model is documented. This American experimental identity is geographically and chronologically distinct from Birmingham's 1913–1926 Autocrat Light Car Company and from the Oldsmobile Series 28/32 marketed as Autocrat in 1911–1912.

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