GM is 100 Years Old This Year!

It will be hard not to know GM is 100 years old this year as the world’s largest automaker will use this historical event as the catalyst for celebratory sales events over the weeks and months to come. I will write about the history of GM in a series of Did You Know articles over the next several weeks. Facts about GM’s roots in Americana should amaze you as they did me in my research. I hope you enjoy.

GM was founded in 1908 as a holding company for Buick Motor Company by William C. (Billy) Durant in Flint Michigan. But Buick dates back to 1899 when David Dunbar Buick built the first Buick Motorcar. David Buick was regarded as a dreamer at the time, but one year after it’s incorporation in 1903, Buick became the best selling car in the U.S. Buick, a company that actually started as a gasoline engine manufacturer, developed the first overhead valve engine that delivered an incredible 29 horsepower. Buick rose to prominence in race car circles with dominant horsepower and a race car driver by the name of Louis Chevrolet. Chevrolet would become GM’s post war president and CEO, and together with Durant would found the company bearing his name.

As a division of General Motors, Buick would be known as an innovator in technology and became famous for the first mass production V6 engine. The 231 cubic inch V6 developed by Buick is still the basic design used in today’s GM V6 engines.

GM was founded on September 16, 1908 in Flint, Michigan, and acquired Oldsmobile later that year. The next year Durant brought in Cadillac, Cartercar, Elmore, Ewing, and Oakland (later known as Pontiac). In 1909 GM also acquired the Reliance Motor Truck Company of Owosso, Michigan, and the Rapid Motor Vehicle Company of Pontiac, Michigan, the predecessors of GMC Truck. A Rapid became the first truck to conquer Pikes Peak in 1909. Welch and Rainer were added to the ever-growing list of companies. In 1910 Durant lost control of the company to Bankers Trust due to the vast debt incurred through his acquisitions. Durant left to form Chevrolet with Race Car Driver Louis Chevrolet.

In 1916 with the backing of Pierre S. DuPont, Durant after a brilliant stock purchase scheme took the helm of GM once again. DuPont became the Chairman of the Board and the corporate acquisitions resumed on both sides of the ocean.

This is where I will pick it up next week. Until then, drive safely. Visit our website at www.gmgiant.com. Much of the information in this article came from Wikipedia.org.