Ross Auto Engineering Ltd was established in 1949 and were based in Southport. It was set up by Victor Electrics, a manufacturer of milk floats who were based at Burscough Bridge, Lancashire.
Their involvement in a major project in 1955 is a little unclear. TH Lewis of London built Lewis Electruk milk floats for Express Dairies, but in 1955, the demand for Rider Pram models exceeded Lewis's production capacity. An order for 168 extra vehicles was therefore placed with Ross, who were given the plans for the Lewis 10 cwt model. When delivered, the vehicles were almost indistinguishable from the Lewis model. However, they all carried chassis plates indicating that the chassis at least had been built by Helecs Vehicles Ltd, who were based in South Manchester. Helecs Vehicles had been formed in early 1955 when Hindle Smart re-organised, but Ross took over the production of all Helecs vehicles later that year, and the Helecs companies ceased trading in late 1956 and were liquidated in early 1957.
A Helecs 10 Rider Pram on display at The Transport Museum, Wythall. These vehicles were officially built by Ross Auto Engineering, but carried chassis plates for Helecs Vehicles Ltd.
In 1956 they launched the Ross Auto 25, which could carry a payload of 25 cwt when fitted with a milk float body, but with a low frame height of just 1.5 feet (0.46 m), could also be fitted with a refuse collection body, or could be used as a tractor unit, when it could carry 1 ton and pull a 1-ton trailer. It was 4 feet 1.5 inches (1.257 m) wide, and came fitted with a 2.6 hp (1.9 kW) motor, which was mounted on Metalastic rubber bushes, to reduce shock loads to the transmission system. Two racks of batteries were mounted either side of the chassis, and battery capacities of 161 Amp-hours to 240 Amp-hours could be accommodated, depending on the use to which the vehicle would be put. The batteries were designed so that they could easily be replaced with fully charged batteries if they became flat. Control was by a two or three speed fully automatic controller and contactor assembly. The vehicle was extremely manoeuvrable, having a turning circle of only 20 feet (6.1 m), and depending on the gear ratio of the back axle, had a top speed of 8 or 16 miles per hour (13 or 26 km/h).
Ross exhibited a four-wheel ride-on float with a vertical steering wheel at the 1958 Dairy Show. It was the first time they had attended the show, and the 20 cwt vehicle had a range of 12 – 20 miles and a speed of 10–12 mph.
