Oldsmobile History Part 1

The Innovator
Oldsmobile, meanwhile, began a new life under new owner William Durant who folded the company under the General Motors tent. However, it was Alfred Sloan's visionary strokes that brought Oldsmobile to the forefront, albeit as a secondary marque after Buick. Cadillac was the pinnacle, then Buick, while the two bottom rungs of the ladder were Pontiac and ultimately, Chevrolet. Oldsmobile was positioned somewhere in the middle. Regrettably, it would be this strategy that would eventually prove to be the marque's undoing.


Nevertheless, Oldsmobile earned respect within GM and among consumers as it was considered an innovative brand, albeit conservative, but capable of performance and offering buyers something different. Indeed, in 1925, Oldsmobile took credit for being the first car manufacturer to offer chrome plating, incorporated as trim pieces initially, used on the radiator shell. It was an important styling consideration, and brought much attention to the company.


In 1940, Oldsmobile's models featured Hydra-Matic, the first such vehicles with a fully automatic transmission. A number of other initiatives came from the company, including the first to manufacturer a car to meet the needs of the physically impaired, an important factor following World War II, in terms of offering a vehicle to wounded veterans. The OHV Rocket V8 was introduced in 1949 and proved to be a smashing success. It was termed the Rocket 88 engine and became almost a fashion trend, with songs written about it and racers winning with it. An Oldsmobile 88 convertible paced the Indianapolis 500 that same year.


Other innovations and technical achievements followed. By the 1960s, Oldsmobile's position was solid and its designers and marketers were moving in different directions from their colleagues. When Chevrolet was developing the first Corvette, Oldsmobile stylists created the F-88, a two-seater convertible that looked very similar to Chevy's proposed sports car. However, it was not approved and the Corvette went on to legendary status.


The history of Olds continues to be told in part two of "A True Roll Model."