The Genesee was an American

automobile A car, or an automobile, is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of cars state that they run primarily on roads, Car seat, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport private transport#Personal transport, peopl ...

manufactured in

Batavia, New York Batavia is a city in and the county seat of Genesee County, New York, United States. It is located near the center of the county, surrounded by the Town of Batavia, which is a separate municipality. Batavia's population, as of the 2020 census, ...

in 1911. The car was named after Genesee County, in which Batavia was located. The Genesee was one of the largest cars available in the United States at the time, featuring a

wheelbase In both road and rail vehicles, the wheelbase is the horizontal distance between the centers of the front and rear wheels. For road vehicles with more than two axles (e.g. some trucks), the wheelbase is the distance between the steering (front ...

and a

six-cylinder engine The engine configuration describes the fundamental operating principles by which internal combustion engines are categorized. Piston engines are often categorized by their cylinder layout, valves and camshafts. Wankel engines are often categoriz ...

developing 96 horsepower. A 7-passenger

tourer Touring car and tourer are both terms for open cars (i.e. cars without a fixed roof). "Touring car" is a style of open car built in the United States which seats four or more people. The style was popular from the early 1900s to the 1930s. The ...

body was fitted, painted and upholstered in black with gold trimming and leather. Plans were made to produce a range of body styles, with prices ranging from $7,000 to $10,000, but production never eventuated. The Genesee was too big and cumbersome to be a practical vehicle. One of the people behind the building of the Genesee prototype was Dr. Harvey Burkhart, who was elected mayor of Batavia when it became a city in 1915. Burkhart used the Genesee prototype as his private car for many years.

References

Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of the United States Motor vehicle manufacturers based in New York (state) Cars introduced in 1911 {{Brass-auto-stub