General Motors has been the largest automotive company in the world for the past 75 years. GM manufactures and sells several brands including Chevrolet, Pontiac, Buick, GMC Trucks and their top end luxury line Cadillac. A few years ago GM discontinued the Oldsmobile brand.
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General Motors (GM) was founded on September 16, 1908 in Flint, Michigan, as a holding company for Buick, then controlled by William C. Durant, and acquired Oldsmobile later that year. The next year, Durant brought in Cadillac, Elmore, Oakland (later known as Pontiac) and several others. |
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| The first Buick in 1904, was priced at $850.00 and like most of the cars of the day was minimal transportation.. | |||
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| In 1909, General Motors acquired the Reliance Motor Truck Company of Owosso, Michigan, and the Rapid Motor Vehicle Company of Pontiac, Michigan, the predecessors of GMC Truck. |
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| Within a few years General Motors was producing a variety of body styles including coupes, convertibles, turtlebacks and touring cars. The Buick brand was evolving into an entry level luxury brand. | |||
| William Durant lost control of GM in 1910 to a bankers' trust, because of the large amount of debt taken on in its acquisitions coupled with a collapse in new vehicle sales. | |||
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A few years later, Durant would start the Chevrolet Motor car company and through this he secretly purchased a controlling interest in GM. Durant took back control of the company after one of the most dramatic proxy wars in American business history. Shortly after, he again lost control for good after the new vehicle market collapsed.
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| Alfred Sloan was picked to take charge of the corporation and led it to its post war global dominance. This unprecedented growth of GM would last through the late 70's and into the early 80's. |
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| The 1937 Pontiac 5 window coupe makes a nice street rod. | |||
| The 1938 Chevrolet had what is called a "butterfly" hood. Named for the way it opens. | |||
| A "butterfly" hood is hinged down the middle and both sides open upward. | |||
| One modifcation popular with today's street rod builders is changing the hinges on the hood to tilt forward. | |||
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The 1938 Oldsmobiles came off the assembly line at a very fast pace. | ||
| The 1938 Buick was probably not available in the color of our example, but it had stunning lines. | |||
| One rare model from this era is the 4 door convertible, like this 1938 Buick. | |||
| By 1948 Buicks have eliminated the running boards and produced body styles popular today for building custom rides. | |||
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| Pastel colors were popular with some car makers in the 1950's. This '50 model Oldsmobile in a solid color is more conservative than some of the 2 and 3 tone cars. | |||
| In 1953 Chevrolet introduced America's first true sportscar the Corvette. | |||
| One of the most sought after cars today are the "Tri-Fives", 1955, '56 and '57Chevrolets. These are the cars many baby boomers remember from high school. | |||
| 1955 Chevrolet trucks are popular candidates for restoration. | |||
| Panel trucks from General Motors, including this 1952 Chevrolet, are also gaining popularity for restoration. | |||
| Many builders prefer working with a true truck chassis for these types of hot rods. | |||
| Classics of all types are getting makeovers, like this 1956 Cadillac. | |||
| More early General Motors photos and info coming... | |||
| We've just started this site so please be patient while we try to remember stuff.. there's more to come. | |||
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