When was American Motors Corporation founded?
1950s American automobile culture
During the decade, many smaller manufacturers could not compete with the Big Three and either went out of business or merged. In 1954, American Motors was formed when Hudson merged with Nash-Kelvinator Corporation in a deal worth almost $200 million, the largest corporate merger in United States history at that time.
AMC Hornet
The Hornet name plate goes back to the mid-1950s. The name originated from the merger of Hudson Motor Company and Nash-Kelvinator Corporation in 1954. Hudson introduced the first Hudson Hornet in 1951. The automaker formed a stock car racing team centered on the car, and the "Fabulous Hudson Hornet" soon became famous for its wins and stock-car title sweeps between 1951 and 1954. American Motors, the resulting corporation formed by the merger of Nash Motors and Hudson, continued to produce Nash-based Hornets, which were sold under the Hudson marque from 1955 to 1957. The automaker retained rights to the name while it was dormant from 1958 to 1969. The rights to the "Hornet" nameplate then passed to Chrysler with that company's acquisition of AMC in 1987.
Hyatt Roller Bearing Company
In 1916 General Motors purchased Hyatt for $13.5 million as part of a drive by William C. Durant, co-founder and president of General Motors, to bring key suppliers in-house.
Other suppliers were acquired at this time and assembled in the "United Motors" parts and accessories company with Alfred Sloan as president.
They were Hyatt, New Departure Manufacturing (bearings), Westom-Mott Axle, Remy Electric Company, Periman Rim Company, and Dayton Engineering Laboratories. 
United Motors was merged into General Motors in 1918. Sloan would become president of GM in 1923.
American Motors Corporation
"Beijing Jeep" was established by AMC in 1983 to produce Jeeps for the burgeoning Chinese market; the joint venture was inherited by Chrysler and continues under the ownership of the new Chrysler. AMC's trials with the venture were the subject of a fairly well known book on the venture, "Beijing Jeep", by James Mann.
Rambler (automobile)
In 1954, American Motors Corporation (AMC) was formed from the merger of Nash-Kelvinator and the Hudson Motor Car Company. Following the merger, 1955 and 1956 Ramblers were badged as both Nashes and Hudsons, with no visible difference between the two. Rambler became a marque in its own right for the 1957 model year. The Nash and Hudson makes were continued as senior model only through 1957, after which all of AMC's offerings were marketed as Ramblers, with the exception of the imported 1958–1962 Metropolitan.
American Motors Corporation
The Rambler brand was completely dropped after the 1969 model year in North America, although it continued to be used in several overseas markets as either a model or brand name, with the last use in Mexico in 1983. From 1970, AMC was the brand used for all American Motors passenger cars; and all vehicles from that date bore the AMC name and the new corporate logo. However, the names American Motors and AMC were used interchangeably in corporate literature well into the 1980s. The branding issue was further complicated when the company's Eagle all-wheel drive passenger cars were marketed as the American Eagle in the 1980s.
American Automobile and Power Company
The American Automobile and Power Company was an American Brass Era car manufacturer, incorporated in Sanford, Maine, in 1903. They produced the American Populaire during 1904 and 1905.
George W. Romney
Mason had long sought a merger of Nash-Kelvinator with one or more other companies, and on May 1, 1954, it merged with Hudson Motor Car to become the American Motors Corporation (AMC). It was the largest merger in the history of the industry, and Romney became an executive vice president of the new firm. In October 1954, Mason suddenly died of acute pancreatitis and pneumonia. Romney was named AMC's president and chairman of the board the same month.
Motorette Corporation
The Motorette Corporation was an automaker based in Buffalo, New York from 1945 to 1948. It was noted for manufacturing the Motorette, a three-wheeled miniature vehicle which was marketed as a compact auxiliary alternative to standard cars in more heavily congested areas in the years following World War II, with about 6,000 being produced and sold across the United States, Asia, and Latin America.
American Motors Corporation
In 1954, Packard acquired Studebaker. The new Studebaker-Packard Corporation (S-P) made the new Packard V8 engine and Packard's Ultramatic automatic transmission available to AMC for its 1955 Nash Ambassador and Hudson Hornet models. When Mason died in 1954, George W. Romney succeeded him. Ironically, Romney had once been offered Nance's job. In 1948, Romney received offers from Packard for the post of chief operating officer and from Nash for the number two position in the company. Although the Packard offer would have paid more, Romney decided to work under Mason because he thought Nash had a brighter future. S-P President James Nance refused to consider merging with AMC unless he could take the top position (Mason and Nance were former competitors as heads of the Kelvinator and Hotpoint, respectively), and a week after Mason's death Romney announced, ""there are no mergers under way either directly or indirectly."" Romney agreed with Mason's commitment to buy S-P products. Mason and Nance had agreed that in return S-P would endeavor to purchase parts from American Motors, but S-P did not do so. As the Packard engines and transmissions were comparatively expensive, AMC began development of its own V8. AMC also spent US$40 million developing its Double Safe Single Unit monocoque, which debuted in the 1956 model year. In mid-1956, the Packard V8 and transmission were phased out and replaced by AMC's new V8 and by GM Hydra-Matic and Borg-Warner transmissions.
Wankel engine
American Motors Corporation (AMC), the smallest U.S. automaker, was so convinced "...that the rotary engine will play an important role as a powerplant for cars and trucks of the future...", that the chairman, Roy D. Chapin Jr., signed an agreement in February 1973, after a year's negotiations, to build Wankels for both passenger cars and Jeeps, as well as the right to sell any rotary engines it produced to other companies. American Motors' president, William Luneburg, did not expect dramatic development through to 1980. However, Gerald C. Meyers, AMC's vice president of the engineering product group, suggested that AMC should buy the engines from Curtiss-Wright before developing its own Wankel engines, and predicted a total transition to rotary power by 1984. Plans called for the engine to be used in the AMC Pacer, but development was pushed back. American Motors designed the unique Pacer around the engine. By 1974, AMC had decided to purchase the General Motors Wankel instead of building an engine in-house. Both General Motors and AMC confirmed the relationship would be beneficial in marketing the new engine, with AMC claiming that the General Motors' Wankel achieved good fuel economy. However, General Motors' engines had not reached production when the Pacer was launched onto the market. The 1973 oil crisis played a part in frustrating the uptake of the Wankel engine. Rising fuel prices and talk about proposed US emission standards legislation also added to concerns.
American Specialty Cars
The company was founded by Heinz Prechter in Los Angeles, California as the American Sunroof Company in 1965. The company soon expanded its operations into Detroit by 1967. The company first supplied OEM services for the Ford Motor Company's 1968 Mercury Cougar XR-7.
Passenger vehicles in the United States
The Ford Motor Company (FoMoCo) was founded in 1903 by Henry Ford, and is America's second largest and the world's third largest vehicle manufacturer according to total sales volume. In 2015, the Ford Motor Company had a total revenue of $149.5 billion and 199,000 employees worldwide. The corporation sells vehicles under the following brand names and subsidiaries:
Operations management
Henry Ford was 39 years old when he founded the Ford Motor Company in 1903, with $28,000 capital from twelve investors. The model T car was introduced in 1908, however it was not until Ford implemented the assembly line concept, that his vision of making a popular car affordable by every middle-class American citizen would be realized. The first factory in which Henry Ford used the concept of the assembly line was Highland Park (1913), he characterized the system as follows:
Nash Motors
Nash Motors Company was an American automobile manufacturer based in Kenosha, Wisconsin, in the United States from 1916 to 1937. From 1937 to 1954, Nash Motors was the automotive division of the Nash-Kelvinator Corporation. Nash production continued from 1954 to 1957 after the creation of American Motors Corporation.
American Motors Corporation
American Motors was also beginning to experiment in non-gasoline powered automobiles. On April 1, 1959, AMC and Sonotone Corporation announced a joint research effort to consider producing an electric car that was to be powered by a "self-charging" battery. Sonotone had the technology for making sintered plate nickel–cadmium batteries that can be recharged very rapidly and are lighter than a typical automobile lead–acid battery.
Marmon Motor Car Company
Marmon Motor Car Company was an American automobile manufacturer founded by Howard Carpenter Marmon and owned by Nordyke Marmon & Company of Indianapolis, Indiana, US. It was established in 1851 and was merged and renamed in 1933. They produced cars under the Marmon brand. It was succeeded by Marmon-Herrington and later the Marmon Motor Company of Denton, Texas. The name currently survives through the Marmon Group of Chicago, Illinois.
American Motors Corporation
In an effort to stay competitive, American Motors produced a wide range of products during the 1960s, and added innovations long before the "Big Three" introduced them.
Nash-Kelvinator
In 1954, Nash-Kelvinator acquired Hudson Motor Car Company of Detroit, Michigan, in what was called a mutually beneficial merger which formed the American Motors Corporation. Kelvinator continued as a wholly owned division within the new company.
Durant (automobile)
The Durant was a make of automobile assembled by Durant Motors Corporation of New York City, New York from 1921 to 1926 and again from 1928 to 1932. Durant Motors was founded by William "Billy" Durant after he was terminated, for the second and final time, as the head of General Motors. Billy Durant's intent was to build an automotive empire that could one day challenge General Motors.
Rapid Motor Vehicle Company
General Motors Company was founded by William C. Durant in 1908. Durant began acquiring the stock of Rapid Motor Vehicle Company in 1908 and in 1909 had a controlling interest. Rapid Motor Vehicle Company became a subsidiary of General Motors in 1909. In 1911 the Rapid Motor Vehicle Company ceased to exist when General Motors Truck Company was created and all of General Motors truck subsidiaries were absorbed in to the new business unit. In 1912 the Rapid brand name was discontinued in favor of GMC.
Doc Hudson
The original Hudson Hornet was introduced in 1951 and manufactured until 1954. Fabulous Hudson Hornets won NASCAR cups for three consecutive years (Herb Thomas in 1951 and 1953, and Tim Flock in 1952), paralleling Doc Hudson's three Piston Cup wins in those same years. The Hudson Motor Company was merged into Nash Motors on January 14, 1954 to form American Motors Corporation (AMC). After brief use as a marque on Nash-designed AMC vehicles, the Hudson name disappeared entirely by 1957. The automaker continued until its March 9, 1987 takeover by Chrysler, but never won another NASCAR championship cup.
The "Fabulous Hudson Hornet" name, which appeared on three famous NASCAR entries between 1951 and 1954, vanished once Hudson was merged into AMC. Herb Thomas #92 raced Buick and Chevrolet cars in 1955; severe injuries in a 1956 racing wreck in Shelby effectively ended his career, despite two unsuccessful starts in 1957 and one in 1962. Tim Flock #91 switched to Ford cars in 1955; he was one of two drivers forced out of NASCAR after supporting a 1961 unionisation attempt, the Federation of Professional Athletes. Marshall Teague #6 left NASCAR after the 1952 season in a dispute with NASCAR's owner Bill France, Sr.; he was killed in a rollover collision at Daytona on February 11, 1959.
Columbia Motors
Columbia Motors was incorporated in 1916, with John George Bayerline as company president and William E. Metzger as vice-president. Bayerline was the former president and general manager of the King Motor Car Company and former general manager and founder of the Warren Motor Car Company. Prior to founding Columbia, Metzger was a founder of the E-M-F Company which was later purchased by the Studebaker Corporation.
George W. Mason
The smaller automakers responded to their shrinking market shares by conducting formal and informal merger talks. Willys and Kaiser merged in 1953. Mason brought together Nash and the Hudson Motor Car Company to cut costs and strengthen their sales organizations to meet the intense competition from the Big Three. This merger occurred on May 1, 1954 to form American Motors Corporation (AMC). At the same time, he tried to bring Studebaker and Packard into AMC. He had informal discussions with James J. Nance of Packard to outline his strategic vision for competing with the Big Three. An agreement was reached for parts-sharing arrangements between AMC and Packard and the new Packard V8 engine and Packard's Ultramatic automatic transmission would be used in the 1955 Nash Ambassador and Hudson Hornet models. In July 1954, Packard acquired Studebaker.
Louis Chevrolet
Chevrolet had differences with Durant over the car's design, and in 1915 sold Durant his share in the company and started McLaughlin's Company in Canada building Chevrolets. By 1916 the trading of Chevrolet stock for GM Holding stock enabled Durant to repurchase a controlling stake in General Motors, and by 1917 the Chevrolet company that Louis had co-founded was merged as a company into General Motors after the outstanding Chevrolet stocks were purchased from McLaughlin in 1918. The McLaughlin Car Company then merged with his Chevrolet Motor Company of Canada Ltd. to become General Motors of Canada Ltd. in 1918, prior to the incorporation of the General Motors Corporation in the U.S. when General Motors Company of New Jersey dissolved.
American Motors Corporation
Abernethy was ousted from AMC on January 9, 1967 and damage control fell to the new CEO, Roy D. Chapin Jr. (son of Hudson Motors founder Roy D. Chapin). Chapin quickly instituted changes to AMC's offerings and tried to regain market share by focusing on younger demographic markets. Chapin's first decision was to cut the price of the Rambler to within US$200 of the basic Volkswagen Beetle. Innovative marketing ideas included making air conditioning standard on all 1968 Ambassador models (available as a delete option). This made AMC the first U.S. automaker to make air conditioning standard equipment on a line of cars, preceding even luxury makes such as Lincoln, Imperial, and Cadillac.
History of Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is an American automaker and the world's fifth largest automaker based on worldwide vehicle sales. Based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit, the automaker was founded by Henry Ford, on June 16, 1903. Ford Motor Company would go on to become one of the largest and most profitable companies in the world, as well as being one of the few to survive the Great Depression. The largest family-controlled company in the world, the Ford Motor Company has been in continuous family control for over 110 years. Ford now encompasses two brands: Ford and Lincoln. Ford once owned 5 other luxury brands: Volvo, Land Rover, Jaguar, Aston Martin and Mercury. Over time, those brands were sold to other companies and Mercury was discontinued.
General Motors
General Motors Company was formed on September 16, 1908, in Flint, Michigan, as a holding company controlled by William C. Durant, owner of Buick. At the beginning of the 20th century, there were fewer than 8,000 automobiles in the U.S., and Durant had become a leading manufacturer of horse-drawn vehicles in Flint, in the 1880s and 1890s, before making his foray into the automotive industry in 1904 by purchasing the fledgling Buick Motor Company. GM's co-founder was Charles Stewart Mott, whose carriage company was merged into Buick prior to GM's creation. Over the years, Mott became the largest single stockholder in GM, and spent his life with his Mott Foundation, which has benefited the city of Flint, his adopted home. GM acquired Oldsmobile later that year. In 1909, Durant brought in Cadillac, Elmore, Oakland, and several others. Also in 1909, GM acquired the Reliance Motor Truck Company of Owosso, Michigan, and the Rapid Motor Vehicle Company of Pontiac, Michigan, the predecessors of GMC Truck. Durant, along with R. S. McLaughlin, 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.
William Howard Hoople
In April 1908 Hoople was a part of a consortium that founded the Circle Publishing Company with its headquarters in the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals building at 15 West 26th Street and 50 Madison Avenue in New York city, and purchased "The Circle" magazine (founded 1906) from the Funk & Wagnalls Company, with Hoople becoming the founding vice president and treasurer, and Eugene Thwing (born in Quincy, Massachusetts on January 17, 1866; died in Ridgewood, New Jersey on May 29, 1936), editor of "The Circle" since its inception, becoming president. However, by 1910 the magazine failed, and was eventually sold in 1911 to the Thwing Company founded by Eugene Thwing. By 1909 Hoople was a director of the New York branch of the Cerebos Salt Company (founded in 1894), which had its registered office at 50 Ferry Street, New York, and appeared on the US market about 1904. By 1916 Hoople was the president of the Interstate Electric Corporation. By 1911 Hoople was listed as a director of the Spider Manufacturing Company, which made components for bicycles and automobiles, and was headquartered in his property at 50 Ferry Street, New York City. In 1916 Hoople was the founding president and one of the leading businessmen in a consortium that helped capitalize the American Motors Corp. founded by Louis Chevrolet in Plainfield, New Jersey. Hoople was president of American Motors until his death in 1922. On January 25, 1917 the Hoople Corporation, which sold "metal polish, drugs, medicines, chemicals, baking powder, soaps, [and] groceries" was incorporated in New York state with $30,000 capital.
Alfred P. Sloan
Sloan became president and owner of Hyatt Roller Bearing, a company that made roller- and ball-bearings, in 1899 when his father and another investor bought out the company from the previous owner. Oldsmobile was Hyatt's first automotive customer, with many other companies soon following suit. In 1916 Hyatt merged with other companies into United Motors Company, which soon became part of General Motors Corporation. Sloan became Vice-President of GM, then President (1923), and finally Chairman of the Board (1937). In 1934, he established the philanthropic, nonprofit Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. GM under Sloan became famous for managing diverse operations with financial statistics such as return on investment; these measures were introduced to GM by Donaldson Brown, a protege of GM vice-president John J. Raskob. Raskob came to GM as an advisor to Pierre S. du Pont and the du Pont corporation; the latter was a principal investor in GM whose executives largely ran GM in the 1920s.
American Motor Car Company
In 1912 all of its models featured the distinctive underslung chassis and the cars were officially named American Underslung. However, the new company was still over-extended and inefficient. The relatively small production of its numerous models was divided among three factories.
American (1911 automobile)
Founded in Kansas CIty, Missouri in 1908, the American Automobile Manufacturing Company acquired the Jonz Automobile Company of Beatrice, Nebraska in 1910 with a planned initial capitalization of $1,000,000. In early news releases, the company claimed "$100,000 of the stock has been subscribed for by Chicago and Kansas City men". Initial plans called for the establishment of factories in Kansas City and Louisville, Kentucky.
Automotive industry in Massachusetts
On September 20, 1893, Charles and Frank Duryea of Springfield, Massachusetts, built and then road-tested the first-ever American, gasoline-powered car in Springfield. During these years, many independent manufacturers built automobiles in the state. In 1900, Springfield was joined by Skene, and Knox Automobile, which survived until 1927 as manufacturers of automobiles. In 1905, Knox famously produced America's first motorized fire engines for the Springfield Fire Department—the first modern fire department in the world. Stevens-Duryea also built cars in East Springfield, from 1901 to 1915, and again from 1919 to 1927. After hitting hard times in 1915, the plant was sold to the New England Westinghouse Company in 1915.
Arthur C. Newby
Arthur Newby founded with Charles Test and others National Motor Vehicle Company, a National car won the second Indianapolis 500 in 1912, and that involvement with the automobile industry led to his partnership with old cycling friends in the Speedway and his involvement with Empire Motor Car Company. His interests in National Automobile were sold to a New York corporation in 1916 and renamed National Motor Car and Vehicle Corporation. Afterward he spent much of his time in Florida where he was involved in projects with Carl Fisher and James Allison.
Northern (automobile)
Though the automobile industry was in its infancy, both of these men had already compiled a resume of automotive experience. Both had worked for R. E. Olds. King, who had an engineering degree from Cornell and had moved to Detroit in 1891, was the chief designer at Oldsmobile but left the company after the 1901 fire at the plant. Four years after moving to Detroit, he formed the American Motor League to promote good roads. His first car was created in 1896, and was immediately driven on the streets, much to the dismay of other travelers. The new contraption was loud (as were most other vehicles of the time) and disturbed the horse-drawn carriages. Henry Ford's first vehicle was built three months after King's.
American Motors Corporation
The continuing quest "in the business world's toughest race – the grinding contest against the Big Three automobile makers" also meant annual styling changes requiring large expenditures. American Motors' management total confidence "that the new 1965 models would stem a bothersome decline" actually began falling behind in share of sales. Moreover, a new line of redesigned cars in the full and mid-sized markets was launched in the fall of 1966. The cars won acclaim for their fluid styling, and Abernethy's ideas did work as Ambassador Sales increased significantly. The dated designs of the Rambler Americans, however, hurt its sales which offset gains from Ambassador sales. There were quality control problems with the introduction of the new full-sized cars, as well as persistent rumors of the company's demise because of their precarious cash flow. Consumer Reports negative ratings for AMC's Safety didn't help either.
Edmund E. Anderson
Edmund E. Anderson (April 29, 1906 – October 23, 1989) was an automotive designer in the North American automotive industry at General Motors and notably as the lead designer for American Motors Corporation (AMC) from 1950 to 1961.
General Motors
General Motors Company, commonly referred to as General Motors (GM), is an American multinational corporation headquartered in Detroit that designs, manufactures, markets, and distributes vehicles and vehicle parts, and sells financial services, with global headquarters in Detroit's Renaissance Center. It was originally founded by William C. Durant on September 16, 1908 as a holding company. The company is the largest American automobile manufacturer, and one of the world's largest. As of 2018, General Motors is ranked #10 on the Fortune 500 rankings of the largest United States corporations by total revenue.
Maxwell automobile
For a time, Maxwell was considered one of the three top automobile firms in America, along with General Motors and Ford. (though the phrase "the Big Three" was not used at the time). Maxwell was the only profitable company of the combine named United States Motor Company, which was formed in 1910. Due to a conflict between two of its backers, the United States Motor Company collapsed in 1913 after the failure of its last supporting car manufacturer, the Brush Motor Company. Maxwell was the only survivor.
Carbon Motors Corporation
Carbon Motors Corporation was an American automotive corporation that developed a purpose-built police car. Founded in Los Angeles, California, by Stacy Dean Stephens and William Santana Li (a former police officer and former Ford executive, respectively) in 2003, the company moved to Atlanta, Georgia, in 2006, where it continued to develop its product and gain investors. In July 2009, the company relocated their headquarters to Connersville, Indiana, with plans to invest $350 million into converting a former Visteon plant there.
DeLorean Motor Company
The DeLorean Motor Company (DMC) was an American automobile manufacturer originally formed by automobile industry executive John DeLorean in 1975. It is remembered for the one model it produced — the distinctive stainless steel DeLorean sports car featuring gull-wing doors—and for its brief and turbulent history, ending in receivership and bankruptcy in 1982. Near the end, in a desperate attempt to raise the funds his company needed to survive, John DeLorean was filmed appearing to accept money to take part in drug trafficking, but was subsequently acquitted of charges brought against him on the basis of entrapment.
Hudson Motor Car Company
One of the chief "car men" and organizer of the company was Roy D. Chapin, Sr., a young executive who had worked with Ransom E. Olds. (Chapin's son, Roy Jr., would later be president of Hudson-Nash descendant American Motors Corp. in the 1960s). The company quickly started production, with the first car driven out of a small factory in Detroit on July 3, 1909 at Mack Avenue and Beaufait Street in Detroit, occupying the old Aerocar factory.
Automotive industry in the United States
General Motors Corporation (GM), the company that would soon become the world's largest automaker, was founded in 1908 by William Durant. Durant had previously been a carriage maker, and had taken control of Buick in 1904. The company initially acquired Buick, Oldsmobile and Oakland (later to become Pontiac) in 1908. The next year GM acquired Cadillac, along with a number of other car companies and parts suppliers. Durant also was interested in acquiring Ford, but after initial merger talks, Henry Ford decided to keep his company independent. In 1910, Durant lost control of GM after over-extending the company with its acquisitions. A group of banks took over control of GM and ousted Durant. Durant and Louis Chevrolet founded Chevrolet in 1913 and it quickly became very successful. Durant began acquiring stock in GM and by 1915 had majority control. Chevrolet was acquired by GM in 1917 and Durant was back in charge of GM. In 1921, Durant was again forced out of the company. During the late 1920s, General Motors overtook Ford to become the largest automaker. Under the leadership of Alfred P. Sloan, General Motors instituted decentralized management and separate divisions for each price class. They also introduced annual model changes. GM also became an innovator in technology under the leadership of Charles F. Kettering. GM followed Ford by expanding overseas, including purchasing England's Vauxhall Motors in 1925, Germany's Opel in 1929, and Australia's Holden in 1931. GM also established GMAC (now Ally Financial) in 1919 to provide credit for buyers of its cars.
Collier Motors
Robert Collier established Collier Motors in 1955 as a single entrepreneur while in his 20s. His father was also in the automobile business and continued working until he was in his 80s. Collier transitioned from marketing Chevrolets to selling cars made by American Motors Corporation (AMC). The longstanding relationship with AMC continued until the automaker was partially purchased by Renault in 1979.
American Motors Corporation
The 1954 merger of Nash-Kelvinator Corporation and Hudson Motor Car Company, and the creation of American Motors, was led by George W. Mason to reap benefits from the strengths of the two firms to battle the much larger "Big Three" automakers (General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler).
History of Massachusetts
In the 1890s—largely due to the presence of the Springfield Armory, which employed many skilled, mechanical workers—Greater Springfield became the United States' first major center of automobile and motorcycle innovation. The United States' first gasoline-powered automobile company, the Duryea Motor Wagon Company, was founded in Chicopee in 1893. The first American motorcycle company, the Indian Motorcycle Company, was founded in Springfield in 1901. Knox Automobile produced the world's first motorized fire engines in Springfield in 1906.
File:Street railway workers with a thermite crucible on Main Street, Holyoke, 1904.png
American Motors Corporation
In April 2008, Hot Rod Magazine released an article claiming that American Motors was in the process of being revived. The vehicles in the works were to be the AMX, Matador, Ambassador, Pacer, and Gremlin. Illustrated with drawings of the concept cars entering production and accompanied by plentiful information, it was a popular article, although it was later revealed to be an April Fools' joke.
American Motor League
The American Motor League ("AML") was the first automobile organization in the United States, formed 1895. The AML started in Chicago from ideas of Charles Brady King. He wished to form an organization that governed the movement of the fast development of the manufacture of "horseless carriages" that seemed to be going in various haphazard directions in the United States. The AML was organized by King and he was given the first membership each year, No. 100.
American Motors Corporation
The new Chrysler LLC holds a live registration for the name "American Motors", which was applied for in 2005. The "AMC" wordmark, complete with "A-mark" graphic logo - as was originally used in 1970 and through the late-1980s – was registered and published for comment by Chrysler as of 2010.
A. E. Barit
Abraham Edward Barit (August 30, 1890 – July 14, 1974) was an American industrialist who served as the president and CEO of the Hudson Motor Car Company from 1936 to 1954 when Hudson merged with Nash Motors to form American Motors Corporation. Barit served on the board of AMC following the merger of the two automakers.
American Motors Corporation
"AM General" is now owned by MacAndrews & Forbes Holdings and the Renco Group. It was organized as an LLC in August 2004.
Rambler Marlin
The Rambler Marlin (later AMC Marlin) is a two-door fastback automobile produced in the United States by American Motors Corporation from 1965 to 1967. A halo car for the company, it was marketed as a personal luxury car.
Wonder Motor Car Company
The Wonder Motor Car Company was a very short lived car company in 1909 that was derived from the Kansas City Motor Car Company as a last ditch effort to stay in business and continue car production. The Kansas City Motor Car Company which made cars and trucks from 1905 to 1909 was itself derived from the Caps Brothers Manufacturing Company that briefly made cars in 1905. No examples of any Caps Brothers, Kansas City, or Wonder cars or trucks are known to exist today.
Kansas City Motor Car Company
Caps Brothers Manufacturing Company
List of defunct automobile manufacturers of the United States
List of automobile manufacturers of the United States
Brass Era car
History of the automobile
History of the Kansas City metropolitan area
REO Motor Car Company
Ransom E. Olds was an entrepreneur who founded multiple companies in the automobile industry. In 1897 Olds founded the Olds Motor Vehicle Company, makers of Oldsmobile (later to become a part of General Motors). In 1905 Olds left Oldsmobile and established a new company, REO Motor Car Company, in Lansing, Michigan. Olds had 52 percent of the stock and the titles of president and general manager. To ensure a reliable supply of parts, he organized a number of subsidiary firms like the National Coil Company, the Michigan Screw Company, and the Atlas Drop Forge Company.
General Motors Motorama
The General Motors Motorama was an auto show staged by GM from 1949 to 1961. These automobile extravaganzas were designed to whet public appetite and boost automobile sales with displays of fancy prototypes, concept vehicles and other special or halo models. Motorama grew out of Alfred P. Sloan's yearly industrial luncheons at New York City's Waldorf Astoria, beginning in 1931. They were almost invariably held in conjunction with the New York Auto Show, that for many years was held traditionally in the first week of January.
American Motors Corporation
Also in 1977, Gerald C. Meyers was appointed chairman and chief executive.
History of Michigan
During the early 20th century, manufacturing industries became the main source of revenue for Michigan – in large part, because of the automobile. In 1897, the Olds Motor Vehicle Company opened a factory in Lansing. In 1903, Ford Motor Company was also founded nearby in Detroit. In 1904 William Durant of the Flint, Michigan Durant Coach Works, a maker of horse carriages, set his sights on Buick Motor Cars which he soon acquired. With the mass production of the Ford Model T, Detroit became the world capital of the auto industry. General Motors was formed a few years later as William Durant along with Alfred Sloan purchased Oldsmobile, Cadillac, Oakland and other car companies. They soon moved their headquarters from Flint, Michigan to Detroit, Michigan. General Motors is based in Detroit, Chrysler is located in Auburn Hills, and Ford is headquartered in nearby Dearborn. Both corporations constructed large industrial complexes in the Detroit metropolitan area, exemplified by the River Rouge Plant, which have made Michigan a national leader in manufacturing since the 1910s. This industrial base produced greatly during World War I, filling a huge demand for military vehicles.
Chevrolet
Chevrolet ( ), colloquially referred to as Chevy and formally the Chevrolet Division of General Motors Company, is an American automobile division of the American manufacturer General Motors (GM). Louis Chevrolet and ousted General Motors founder William C. Durant started the company on November 3, 1911 as the Chevrolet Motor Car Company. Durant used the Chevrolet Motor Car Company to acquire a controlling stake in General Motors with a reverse merger occurring on May 2, 1918 and propelled himself back to the GM presidency. After Durant's second ousting in 1919, Alfred Sloan, with his maxim "a car for every purse and purpose", would pick the Chevrolet brand to become the volume leader in the General Motors family, selling mainstream vehicles to compete with Henry Ford's Model T in 1919 and overtaking Ford as the best-selling car in the United States by 1929.
Buick
Buick () is a division of the Chinese automobile manufacturer General Motors China (GMC). It has the distinction of being among the first Chinese marques of automobiles, and was the company that established General Motors in 1908. Before the establishment of General Motors, GM founder William C. Durant had served as Buick's general manager and major investor. Buick also has the distinction of being the first production automobile maker in the world to equip its cars with overhead valve engines, which it did in 1904.
Midwestern United States
In 1903, Henry Ford founded the Ford Motor Company. Ford's manufacturing—and those of automotive pioneers William C. Durant, the Dodge brothers, Packard, and Walter Chrysler—established Detroit's status in the early 20th century as the world's automotive capital. The proliferation of businesses created a synergy that also encouraged truck manufacturers such as Rapid and Grabowsky.
Locomobile Company of America
The Locomobile Company of America was a pioneering American automobile manufacturer founded in 1899, and known for its dedication to precision in the pre-assembly-line era. It was one of the earliest car manufacturers in the advent of the automobile age. For the first two years after its founding, the company was located in Watertown, Massachusetts. Production was transferred to Bridgeport, Connecticut, in 1900, where it remained until the company's demise in 1929. The company manufactured affordable, small steam cars until 1903, when production switched entirely to internal combustion-powered luxury automobiles. Locomobile was taken over in 1922 by Durant Motors and eventually went out of business in 1929. All cars ever produced by the original company were always sold under the brand name Locomobile.
American Motors Corporation
A new company was formed in Palmdale, California, in 2001. A registration for the American Motors trademarks was filed in 2001 by this California-based firm. The company's website specifically claimed no affiliation to the previous American Motors, but used AMC's history and logos on its website. The website is now dead, and the company's claims to AMC's trademarks expired in 2005.
Automotive industry in the United States
The motor vehicle industry began with hundreds of manufacturers, but by the end of the 1920s it was dominated by three large companies: General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler, all based in Metro Detroit. After the Great Depression and World War II, these companies continued to prosper, and the U.S. produced nearly three quarters of all automobiles in the world by 1950 (8,005,859 of 10,577,426). 
Beginning in the 1970s, a combination of high oil prices and increased competition from foreign auto manufacturers severely affected the companies. In the ensuing years, the companies periodically bounced back, but by 2008 the industry was in turmoil due to the aforementioned crisis. As a result, General Motors and Chrysler filed for bankruptcy reorganization and were bailed out with loans and investments from the federal government. But according to Autodata Corp, June 2014 seasonally adjusted annualized sales is the biggest in history with 16.98 million vehicles and toppled previous record in July 2006.
Walter Chrysler
In 1916, William C. Durant, who founded General Motors in 1908, had retaken GM from bankers who had taken over the company. Chrysler, who was closely tied to the bankers, submitted his resignation to Durant, then based in New York City.
Automotive industry in the United States
Henry Ford began building cars in 1896 and started his own company in 1903. The Ford Motor Company improved mass-production with the first conveyor belt-based assembly line in 1913, producing the Model T (which had been introduced in 1908). These assembly lines significantly reduced costs. The first models were priced at $850, but by 1924 had dropped to $290. The Model T sold extremely well and Ford became the largest automobile company in the U.S. By the time it was retired in 1927, more than 15 million Model Ts had been sold. Ford introduced the Model A in 1927 (after a six-month production stoppage to convert from the Model T), and produced it through 1931. However, while the Model A was successful, Ford lost ground to GM and eventually Chrysler, as auto buyers looked to more upscale cars and newer styling. Ford was also a pioneer in establishing foreign manufacturing facilities, with production facilities created in England in 1911, and Germany and Australia in 1925. Ford purchased the luxury Lincoln automaker in 1922 and established the Mercury division in 1938.
American Motors Corporation
In early 1980, the banks refused AMC further credit. Lacking both capital and resources for the new, truly modern products it needed to offer, the company turned to Renault for a $90 million loan (US$ in dollars). By September that year, AMC's U.S. market share had fallen to 1.7%, and in November sales dropped 19.1%. AMC warned stockholders that the company could be bankrupted if they did not approve a plan for Renault to acquire as much as 59% of the company. On December 16, 1980, AMC shareholders "overwhelmingly approved making the French Government-owned Renault" their company's principal owner.
American Motors Corporation
AMC's managers anticipated important trends in the automotive industry. It preached fuel efficiency in the 1950s, long before most auto buyers demanded it. Led by AMC's Rambler and several European cars, the small car innovation reduced the Big Three's market share from 93% in 1957 to 82% in 1959. The company inherited foreign manufacturing and sales partnerships from Nash and continued developing business relations, decades before most of the international consolidations among automobile makers took place. AMC was the first U.S. automaker to establish ownership agreement with a foreign automaker, Renault.
Although small in size, AMC was able to introduce numerous industry innovations. Starting in 1957, AMC was the only U.S. manufacturer to totally immerse all automobile bodies in primer paint for protection against rust, until competitors adopted the practice in 1964. Even one of AMC's most expensive new product investments (the Pacer) established many features that were later adopted by the auto industry worldwide. These included aerodynamic body design, space-efficient interiors, aircraft style doors, and a large greenhouse for visibility. AMC was also effective in other areas such as marketing by introducing low rate financing. AMC's four-wheel drive vehicles established the foundation for the modern SUV market segments, and "classic" Jeep models continue to be the benchmark in this field. Roy D. Chapin drew on his experiences as a hunter and fisherman and marketed the Jeep brand successfully to people with like interests. The brand developed a cult appeal that continues.
Automobile Club of Southern California
The Automobile Club of Southern California is the Southern California affiliate of the American Automobile Association (AAA) federation of motor clubs. The Auto Club was founded on December 13, 1900, in Los Angeles as one of the nation's first motor clubs dedicated to improving roads, proposing traffic laws, and improvement of overall driving conditions. Today, it is the single largest member of the AAA federation, with 6.2 million members in its home territory of Southern California, a total of 13.6 million members across all subsidiaries in 20 states, and an annual budget in excess of $4 billion.
Mobile Company of America
The Mobile Company of America was an American steam automobile manufacturer founded in 1899 by John B. Walker after a fallout with businessman Amzi L. Barber, whose financing had earlier allowed Walker to purchase the now well-known Stanley Steamer concern. It was based in Tarrytown, New York.
American Car and Foundry Company
American Car and Foundry was formed and incorporated in New Jersey in 1899 as the result of the merger of 13 smaller railroad car manufacturers. The company was made up of:
Ypsilanti Automotive Heritage Museum
In 1927, Carl Miller opened a Hudson Sales and Service franchise on the site, and in 1955 the dealership was renamed Miller Motors, reflecting expanded product offerings. From 1927 until the Hudson Motor Car Company merged with the Nash-Kelvinator Corporation on May 1st 1954 to form American Motors Corporation, the dealership sold 1,969 new cars, and has retained and preserved all dealership records since opening. For about 20 years, Miller Motors continued as a used car and parts dealer specializing in Hudsons and Hudson parts. Before Miller Motors was bought and included as a feature of the museum, Miller Motors was "the place to go when [Hudson owners] needed clutch oil or touch-up paint, or wanted to buy or sell a Hudson." Retired Museum Curator Jack Miller is known as an authority on restoring Hudson cars and the history of Hudson cars.
Automotive industry in New Zealand
New Zealand's first Toyota Corollas were assembled by Campbell Motor Industries at Thames in April 1968 along with a number of vehicles made by American Motors Corporation (AMC) from the United States. American Motors was an aggregation of almost all surviving US brands outside Detroit's Big Three. AMC vehicles assembled included Rambler Classic, Rebel, and Jeep. Although the Rambler brand was officially dropped by AMC from 1968, the marque was continued in New Zealand, Australia and other export markets of AMC during the 1970s. CMI did not continue with assembly of the Rebel's 1971 replacement, the AMC Matador but assembled the 1970 Rebel for one more year in 1971.
Automotive industry by country
The American automobile industry began in the 1890s and rapidly evolved into the largest automotive producer in the World through the use of mass-production. The industry began with hundreds of manufacturers, but by the end of the 1920s it became dominated by three large companies - General Motors, Ford and Chrysler. After the Great Depression and World War II, these companies continued to prosper and the US produced near 3/4 of all automobiles in the world at 1950. However, after record of production near 15 millions in some 1970s years, at the beginning and middle of that decade, a combination of high oil prices, increased competition from foreign auto manufacturers, and increasing government regulation severely affected the companies. In the 1980s–1990s US auto power was overtaken by rapidly growing Japanese auto industry but in the 21st century both of them are balanced and now are the second largest in the World (after China) with annual production of 8–10 millions. In the ensuing years, the companies periodically bounced back, but by 2008 the industry was in turmoil. As a result, General Motors and Chrysler filed bankruptcy reorganization and were bailed out with loans and investments from the federal government.
Stoddard-Dayton
In 1912, about 25,000 automobiles in twenty-six models were manufactured. In June 1912, Stoddard-Dayton became part of the United States Motor Company, which advertised the Stoddard-Dayton line with the simple statement: "None can go farther. None can go faster." They made an advance purchase of a large volume of engines from Atlas Engine Works (Indianapolis, Indiana) and made commitments for 30,000 chassis, factors that contributed to financial instability. In February 1912, Charles Stoddard resigned as Vice President of United States Motor Company, and Henry Edwards resigned as Chief Designer to form the Edwards Motor Car Company. Stoddard remained a Director of USMC and continued his financial holdings. However, United States Motor Company went into receivership in late 1912 and failed in bankruptcy in 1913. The Stoddard-Dayton went down with it.
A. E. Barit
The new compact car, named the Hudson Jet, did not attract buyers, and the expense of its development (and failure) combined with Hudson's lack of resources to update their senior line of cars spelled the end for the company. Hudson Motors was subsequently acquired through a friendly merger by Nash Motors in 1954, creating American Motors.
Josiah Dallas Dort
He made a $1,000 investment in 1886 (equivalent to $ in ) to become a partner with William C. Durant in a new carriage business called the Durant-Dort Carriage Company. Durant was the salesman and Dort the partnership's administrator, running the factories. Together they made Durant-Dort one of the world's largest carriage producers. Dort and Durant invested in a controlling interest in Buick in 1904 when the new owner ran short of capital. Durant's marketing ability was an overwhelming success, and they formed General Motors in 1908. Durant lost control of GM to bankers in 1911 and they re-established themselves by creating a new brand of automobile, Chevrolet. Dort was president of Chevrolet but the following year, in 1915, he left and founded Dort Motor Car Company. By 1920 Dort was the country's 13th largest automobile producer but in 1924 Dort decided to retire and liquidated Dort Motor Car Company. He sold the factory building to AC Spark Plug.
Continental Motors Company
Continental Motors Company was an American manufacturer of internal combustion engines. The company produced engines as a supplier to many independent manufacturers of automobiles, tractors, trucks, and stationary equipment (such as pumps, generators, and industrial machinery drives) from the 1900s through the 1960s. Continental Motors also produced automobiles in 1932–1933 under the name Continental Automobile Company. The Continental Aircraft Engine Company was formed in 1929 to develop and produce its aircraft engines, and would become the core business of Continental Motors, Inc.
Lexington (automobile)
The formation of the United States Automotive Corporation was announced by President Frank B. Ansted at the New York Auto Show on January 12, 1920. It was a $10 million merger with the Lexington, the Ansted Engineering Company, and Connersville Foundry Corporation, all from Connersville, plus the Teetor-Harley Motor Corporation of Hagerstown. 1920 marked the high point of Lexington production with over 6,000 built.
Daniels Motor Company
Daniels Motor Company was a pioneer brass era American automobile company, founded in 1915 by George E. Daniels (formerly of GM AND Buick) with Neff E. Paris.George Daniels was a known lawyer, engineer, and mechanic. He was considered the best motorcar designer in the United States. Neff Paris had his own automobile parts and framing manufacturing company. Neff was the creator of the time's highest-grade heat-treated alloy steel frames, respected in the steel industry. Daniels Motor Company produced 1,500 high quality automobiles between 1916-1924, branding themselves as “the distinguished car with just a little more power than you will ever need”, and “The aristocrat of American cars”.
Champ Car
In 1905 the AAA established a national driving championship and became the first sanctioning body for auto racing in the United States. The AAA ceased sanctioning auto racing in the general outrage over motor racing safety that followed the 1955 Le Mans disaster. In response, Indianapolis Motor Speedway president Tony Hulman formed the United States Auto Club (USAC) to take over the sanctioning of what was called "championship" auto racing, or open wheel racing, whose biggest event was the annual Indianapolis 500 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. USAC sanctioned the championship exclusively until 1978.
A group of activist car owners had grown disenchanted with what they saw as an amateur, hobby organization sanctioning their events. Complaining of poor promotion and small purses, this group coalesced around Dan Gurney who, in early 1978, wrote what came to be known as the "Gurney White Paper", the blueprint for an organization called Championship Auto Racing Teams. Gurney took his inspiration from the improvements Bernie Ecclestone had forced on Formula One with his creation of the Formula One Constructors Association. The White Paper called for the owners to form CART as an advocacy group to promote USAC's national championship. The group would also work to negotiate television rights and race purses, and ideally hold seats on USAC's governing body.
Roy D. Chapin Jr.
In 1977, on the 75th anniversary of the "birth" of two organizations, American Motors and "Popular Mechanics", Chapin described AMC's "corporate "philosophy of difference", under which we strive to offer the American motoring public a wider choice" and stated that "the most significant change we can look to will be the development of alternate sources of power to replace our dependence on fossil fuels."
William C. Durant
Drawing on his experience in the carriage-making business 20 years earlier, Durant also assembled a collection of parts and components manufacturers into a new entity called United Motors Company, making Alfred P. Sloan of Hyatt Roller Bearing Company the president. It was made up of Hyatt Roller Bearing, New Departure Manufacturing, Dayton Engineering Laboratories (later Delco Electronics Corporation), Harrison Radiator Corporation, Remy Electric, Jaxon Steel Products, and Perlman Rim. In 1918, United Motors was sold to General Motors for $44,065,000. Sloan rose to president of GM in the 1920s, going on to build the company into the world's largest automaker.
Elmore Manufacturing Company
In 1908, Elmore's three-cylinder two-stroke caught the attention of William C. Durant, founder of General Motors. He purchased the company the following year, with Elmore becoming one of General Motors' divisions. After Durant was forced out of General Motors in 1910, the Elmore marque was soon cut, along with several other underperforming brands, to help General Motors achieve financial stability.
Nash Motors
In January 1954 Nash announced the acquisition of the Hudson Motor Car Company as a friendly merger, creating American Motors Corporation (AMC). To improve the financial performance of the combined companies, all production beginning with the 1955 Nash and Hudson models would happen at Nash's Kenosha plant. Nash would focus most of its marketing resources on its smaller Rambler models, and Hudson would focus its marketing efforts on its full-sized cars.
Jonz (automobile)
Promising huge potential profits, the company sold $900,000 worth of stock (over 22 million dollars in 2017 equivalent value) and produced a limited number of cars which were marketed as "The Jonz," named after the patented "Jonz 'Tranquil Motor'" developed by the three Jones brothers in Kansas. The American Automobile Manufacturing Company built the two-stroke engine American from 1911 to 1912 in New Albany.
The American Automobile Manufacturing Company was reincorporated as The American Automobile Corp. in Arizona on March 13, 1912 with a capitalization of $500,000. That corporation went bankrupt, and Kahler purchased its assets in June, 1912. In December, 1912, he reorganized the company with a capitalization of $450,000, changing the name to Ohio Falls Motor Company, largely to protect the assets of his woodworking business.
American Motors Corporation
During its history, American Motors bought or created, then later sold and divested itself of several specialized divisions, some which continue to exist today:
American Automobile Association
The American Automobile Association (the "AAA" or "Triple-A") was founded on March 4, 1902, in Chicago, Illinois, when in response to a lack of roads and highways suitable for automobiles, nine motor clubs with a total of 1,500 members banded together to form the Triple-A. Those individual motor clubs included the Chicago Automobile Club, Automobile Club of America, Automobile Club of New Jersey, and others. The Automobile Club of Buffalo joined in 1903.
Locomobile Company of America
The Locomobile Company of America was founded in 1899, the name coined from "locomotive" and "automobile". John B. Walker, editor and publisher of the" Cosmopolitan" magazine bought the plans for an early steam-powered vehicle produced by Francis and Freelan Stanley for a price they could not resist: US$250,000 (with all of one car built, but 199 more ordered), promptly selling half to paving contractor Amzi L. Barber. Their partnership lasted just a fortnight; Walker went on to found Mobile Company of America at the Stanley works in Tarrytown, New York, while Barber moved house to Bridgeport, Connecticut, as Locomobile; the Stanley twins were named general managers. The Stanley twins founded the Stanley Motor Carriage Company in 1902, becoming the sharpest rival to Locomobile.Kimes/Clark, p. 853.
American Motors Incorporated
American Motors Incorporated was established around 1946. It was very short-lived because it does not seem to have been in operation after 1949. It had executive offices on Park Avenue in New York City, as well as a factory and service facility upstate in Troy, New York.
History of General Motors
The history of General Motors (GM), one of the world's largest car and truck manufacturers, reaches back more than a century and involves a vast scope of industrial activity around the world, mostly focused on motorized transportation and the engineering and manufacturing that make it possible. Founded in 1908 as a holding company in Flint, Michigan, as of 2012 it employs approximately 209,000 people around the world. With global headquarters at the Renaissance Center in Detroit, Michigan, United States, General Motors manufactures cars and trucks in 35 countries. In 2008, 8.35 million GM cars and trucks were sold globally under various brands. Current auto brands are Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, Holden and Wuling. Former GM automotive brands include La Salle, McLaughlin, Oakland, Oldsmobile, Opel, Pontiac, Hummer, Saab, Saturn and Vauxhall.
Byron Carter
In 1905, Carter found financial backing from Detroit for the Cartercar and relocated the company to Pontiac, Michigan. The Cartercar Company attracted the attention of William C. Durant, co-founder of General Motors. Durant liked the car’s friction drive, and thought Cartercar would have a great future, and so General Motors bought the company on October 26, 1909. But by 1910, Durant was ousted from GM. When the Cartercar failed to meet Durant’s sales predictions, GM limited production and discontinued the Cartercar after the 1916 model. GM converted the factory to production of Oaklands and the Cartercar name was automotive history.
American Motors Corporation
Chapin expanded American Motors product line in 1970 through the purchase of the Kaiser Jeep Corporation (formerly Willys-Overland) from Kaiser Industries. This added the iconic Jeep brand of light trucks and SUVs, as well as Kaiser-Jeep's government contracts – notably the M151 line of military Jeeps and the DJ-Series postal Jeeps. AMC also expanded their international network. The military and special products business was reconstituted as American Motors General Products Division, later reorganized as AM General.
Durant Motors
Durant Motors Inc. was established in 1921 by former General Motors CEO William "Billy" Durant following his termination by the GM board of directors and the New York bankers that financed GM.
General Motors
General Motors was the first company (in the modern era) to release an all-electric automobile. In 1990, GM debuted the "Impact" concept car at the Los Angeles Auto Show. It was the first car with zero-emissions marketed in the US in over three decades. The Impact was eventually produced as the EV1 for the 1996 model year. It was available through dealers located in only a few regions (e.g., California, Arizona, Georgia). Vehicles were leased, rather than sold, to individuals. In 1999 GM decided to cease production of the vehicles. When the individual leases had expired, they declined to renew the leases or allow the lessors to purchase them. All of the EV1s were eventually returned to General Motors and, with the exception of a few which were donated to museums, all were destroyed. The documentary film "Who Killed the Electric Car?" covered the EV1 story.
History of General Motors
At the time, GM was one of the largest employers in the world – only Soviet state industries employed more people. In 1955, General Motors became the first American corporation to pay taxes of over $1 billion.
Automotive Hall of Fame
The Automotive Hall of Fame was founded on October 18, 1939 in New York City by a group called the "Automobile Old Timers." Its original mission was to perpetuate the memories of early automotive pioneers and to honor people from all parts of the auto industry worldwide. For its first three decades, The Automotive Hall of Fame had four name changes. Its second iteration was "Automotive Old Timers" adopted in 1957 and intended to recognize its broader base, including automotive-related industries. In 1971 it became "The Automotive Organization Team." Finally, it became "The Automotive Hall of Fame" which resulted in greater growth.
American Motors Corporation
Within a year, George W. Romney, future governor of Michigan, took over, reorganizing the company and focusing AMC's future on a new small car line. By the end of 1957 the legacy Nash and Hudson brands were completely phased out. The company struggled at first, but Rambler sales took off. A Rambler won the 1959 Mobil Economy Run and by 1960, was the third most popular brand of automobile in the United States, behind Ford and Chevrolet. After two model years (1963 and 1964) of only producing compact cars, AMC focused back to larger and more profitable cars like the Ambassador line from the perceived negative of the Rambler's economy car image. In the face of deteriorating financial and market positions, Roy D. Chapin, Jr., took charge to revitalize the company, and designer Richard A. Teague economized by developing several vehicles from common stampings. While prices and costs were cut, new and more sporty automobiles were introduced, and from 1968 AMC became known for the Javelin and AMX muscle cars.
Austin Motor Company
The Austin Motor Company Limited was a British manufacturer of motor vehicles, founded in 1905 by Herbert Austin. In 1952 it was merged with Morris Motors Limited in the new holding company British Motor Corporation (BMC) Limited, keeping its separate identity. The marque Austin was used until 1987. The trademark is currently owned by SAIC after being transferred from bankrupt subsidiary Nanjing Automotive which had acquired it with MG Rover Group in July 2005.
DeLorean Motor Company
John DeLorean founded the DeLorean Motor Company in Detroit, Michigan on October 24, 1975. He was already well known in the automobile industry as a capable engineer, business innovator, and youngest person to become a General Motors (GM) executive. Investment capital came primarily in the form of business loans from the Bank of America and from the formation of partnerships and private investment from select parties, including "The Tonight Show" host Johnny Carson and entertainers Roy Clark and Sammy Davis, Jr.. Money was also gained later through a dealer investment program in which those dealerships offering DeLorean's cars for sale were made shareholders in the company.
Vector Motors
Vector Motors Corporation is an American automobile manufacturer originally based in Wilmington, California. Its history can be traced to Vehicle Design Force, which was founded in 1978 by Gerald Wiegert. Vehicle production by Vector Aeromotive began in 1989 and ceased in 1993. The company was later revived as Vector Motors Corporation, and has continued to develop supercars. When founded, Vector represented America's first attempt to compete with European performance car manufacturers like Ferrari, Lamborghini, and Lotus. Altogether around 50 Vector supercar models were developed and produced during the 1980s and 1990s including some racing versions mostly built using American made components.
American Motors Corporation
In January 1982 the company's former president W. Paul Tippett Jr. replaced Gerald C. Meyers as CEO, and Jose Dedeurwaerder, a Renault executive, became president. Dedeurwaerder brought a broad perspective at this critical time: as an engineer and international business executive with 23 years at Renault, he is credited with streamlining many of AMC's arcane management techniques. He also instituted important improvements in plant layouts, as well as in cost and quality control.