Oldsmobile Curved Dash |
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Wikipedia: Oldsmobile Curved Dash
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History
The following section is an excerpt from Wikipedia's Oldsmobile Curved Dash page on 13 July 2016, text available via the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
The gasoline powered Curved Dash Oldsmobile is credited as being the first mass-produced automobile, meaning that it was built on an assembly line using interchangeable parts. It was introduced by the Oldsmobile company in 1901 and produced through 1907. 425 were produced the first year, 2,500 in 1902, with over 19,000 built in all. When General Motors assumed operations from Mr. Olds on November 12, 1908, GM introduced the Oldsmobile Model 20, which was the 1908 Buick Model 10 with a stretched wheelbase and minor exterior changes.
It was a runabout model, could seat two passengers, and sold for US$650. While competitive, due to high volume, and priced below the US$850 2-seat Ford Model C "Doctor's Car", it was more expensive than the Western 1905 Gale Model A roadster at US$500. The Black went as low as $375, and the Success hit the amazingly low US$250.
The flat-mounted water-cooled single-cylinder engine, situated at the center of the car, produced 5 hp (3.7 kW), relying on a brass gravity feed carburetor. The transmission was a semi-automatic design with two forward speeds and one reverse. The low-speed forward and reverse gear system are a planetary type (epicyclic). The car weighed 850 lb (390 kg) and used Concord springs. It had a top speed of 20 mph (32 km/h).
The car’s success was partially by accident — in 1901 a fire destroyed a number of other models before they were approved for production, leaving the Curved Dash the only one intact.
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Horse-Drawn to Horseless Carriage Artist: Ken Eberts Car: 1905 Oldsmobile Curved Dash Image courtesy 
View "Horse-Drawn to Horseless Carriage" - 1905 Oldsmobile Curved Dash Art - 112KB |
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News and Events: For the Stamp Collector New Zealand recently issued an attractive set of six antique car stamps to help celebrate the 13th International Car Rally held in New Zealand in February. The six cars illustrate the development of the motor car from the earliest pioneering period to the introduction of the light economy car. The three cent stamp shows an 1895 Benz; the four cent a 1904 Oldsmobile; the five cent a 1914 Model T Ford; the six cent a 1915 Cadillac service car; the eight cent a 1924 Chrysler and the ten cent shows a 1923 Austin 7. The background scenes are appropriate to both the time and eras in which the cars were used. Antique Automobile: March-April 1972 View photo of 1904 Oldsmobile New Zealand Stamp - 2.7MB |
