An ad for the 1926 Oakland

The Oakland was a brand of automobile manufactured between 1907-1909 by the Oakland Motor Car Company of Pontiac, Michigan and between 1909 and 1931 by the Oakland Motors Division of General Motors Corporation. Oakland’s principle founder was Edward P. Murphy, who sold half the company to GM in January 1909; when Murphy died in the summer of 1909, GM acquired the remaining rights to Oakland. 1907 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... 1909 was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... Pontiac is a city located in Oakland County, Michigan. ... 1931 is a common year starting on Thursday. ... GM redirects here. ...

As originally conceived and introduced, the first Oakland used a vertical two cylinder engine that rotated counter-clockwise. This design by Alanson Brush (inventor of the Brush Runabout]] lasted one year and was replaced by a more standard 4 cylinder engine and sales increased to approximately 5,000 automobiles per year.

Under General Motors, Oakland was slotted above price leader Chevrolet and below the more premium Oldsmobile and Buick brand cars. Oakland initially flourished, however by the early 1920 production and quality control problems began to plague the division. In 1921 under new General Manager Fred Hannum, a consistent production schedule was underway and the quality of the cars improved. One marketing tactic was the employment of a quick drying bright blue automotive lacquer by Duco (a DuPont brand product) – leading to Oakland being marketed as the “True Blue Oakland.” 1920 is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar) Events January January 7 - Forces of Russian White admiral Kolchak surrender in Krasnoyarsk. ... 1921 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... In a general sense, lacquer is a paint or varnish that produces a hard, durable finish that can be polished to a very high gloss, and gives the illusion of depth. ... Duco was a trade name assigned to a product line of automotive lacquer developed by the DuPont Company in the 1920s. ... This article is about the DuPont company. ...

Impact of General Motors “Companion Make” Program

General Motors pioneered the idea that consumers would aspire to buy up an automotive product ladder if a company met certain price points. As general motors entered the 1920s, the product ladder started with the price leading Chevrolet marque, and then progressed upward in price, power and appointments to Oakland, Oldsmobile, Buick and ultimately to the luxury Cadillac marque. Chevrolet, or Chevy, is a brand of automobile, now part of the General Motors group. ... Oldsmobile (or Olds) was a brand of automobile produced in the United States from 1897 to 2004. ... Buick is a brand of automobile built in the United States and China by General Motors. ... Cadillac is a brand of luxury automobile, part of the General Motors corporation since 1909, produced and mostly sold in the USA; outside of North America, they have been less successful. ...

However by the mid 1920s, a sizable price gap had been created between Chevrolet and Oakland, while the difference between an Oldsmobile and a Buick was even wider. There was also a product gap between Buick and Cadillac. To solve this, General Motors authorized the introduction of four companion marques priced and designed to fill the gaps. Cadillac would introduce the La Salle to fill the gap between Buick and Cadillac. Buick would introduce the Marquette to handle the higher end of the gap between Buick and Oldsmobile. Oldsmobile would introduce the Viking, which took the lower half of the spread between Oldsmobile and Buick. This is often referred to as General Motors Companion Make Program. Centuries: 19th century - 20th century - 21st century Decades: 1870s 1880s 1890s 1900s 1910s - 1920s - 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s Years: 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 Referred to as the Roaring 20s. ... Places named La Salle or LaSalle Canada LaSalle, Ontario LaSalle, Quebec, borough of Montreal LaSalle—Émard federal electoral district, Quebec France La Salle, Saône-et-Loire, a commune in the Saône-et-Loire département La Salle, Vosges, a commune in the Vosges département La Salle-de-Vihiers, a commune in...

Oakland’s part in this plan was the 1926 Pontiac, a shorter wheelbase "light six" priced to sell at a 4 cylinder car’s price point. Pontiac was the first of the companion marques introduced, and in its first year outsold the heavier larger Oakland. By 1929, GM sold 163,000+ more Pontiacs than Oaklands. The end of Oakland was announced in 1931 and the Oakland Motor Car Company was changed to the Pontiac Motor Company by its owner GM. The Pontiac would be the only one of General Motors companion makes to survive beyond 1940. 1926 was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... Categories: Automobile stubs | Pontiac ... 1929 was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Categories: Automobile stubs | Pontiac ... 1940 was a leap year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ...

Reference

• Kimes, Beverly R., Editor. Clark, Henry A. (1996). The Standard Catalog of American Cars 1805-1945. Kraus Publications. ISBN 0-87341-428-4.

External Links

Pontiac Oakland Club International (http://www.poci.org)