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Ransom Eli Olds (June 3, 1864 – August 26, 1950) was a pioneer of the American automotive industry, after whom the Oldsmobile and REO brands were named. He claimed to have built his first steam car as early as 1887 and his first gasoline-powered car in 1896.
Olds's new venture produced the Reo, which was introduced in 1905, and its plant would turn out a record number of cars between 1905 and 1909. They also sold a runabout for around $650, and a more powerful touring car for almost twice that amount.
Mar 31, 2020 · Ransom Eli Olds founded the Olds Motor Vehicle Company in 1897, but sold it to an investor, Samuel L. Smith, within two years. Disagreements between the two persuaded Olds to leave the successful venture in 1904 and cash out his stock.
May 10, 2021 · Six hundred models were sold in the first year of production, with that number jumping to 3,000 in 1902. In 1904, over 4,000 Oldsmobiles were sold. This was also the first instance of production via the stationary assembly line method, which was patented by Olds in 1901. Advertisement.
He sold his company in 1899 and relocated from Lansing to Detroit, renaming his company the Olds Motor Works. In 1901, Ransom designed the legendary Curved Dash Oldsmobile, the first commercially successful car mass-produced on an assembly line in the U.S. It sold for $650.
At the end of 1901 Olds had produced 425 Curved Dashes in the temporary foundry assembly plant. He also had two new plants ready to make cars at the unheard of rate of 20 cars/day in each location.
By 1893, Olds filled the first order for his car, and in 1897 formed the Olds Motor Vehicle Company in Lansing. The company was incorporated in 1899 with a working capital of $150,000. The company built a plant in Detroit and began producing a car built to sell for $1250.
