Sheridan (automobile)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Sheridan was a brand of American
automobile A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods. The year 1886 is regarde ...
manufactured from 1920 to 1921. Manufacture of the car was based in Muncie, Indiana. The Sheridan nameplate has the distinction of being the first automotive brand started from scratch by General Motors. Prior to the Sheridan, General Motors, under William (Billy) Durant, grew its automotive marques Chevrolet, Oakland,
Oldsmobile Oldsmobile or formally the Oldsmobile Division of General Motors was a brand of American automobiles, produced for most of its existence by General Motors. Originally established as "Olds Motor Vehicle Company" by Ransom E. Olds in 1897, it pro ...
, Buick and Cadillac, by acquiring independent manufacturers and then folding their operations into the GM structure.TIME MACHINES: GM'S FORGOTTEN MARQUE
on Autonet, 7 Jul 2013


History

Throughout his years at GM, Billy Durant was interested acquiring outside companies and new products to grow the GM empire, many times without great success. When Buick's D. A. Burke approached Durant about the idea of designing a car from the ground up,
at Golden Era Automobile Association (archived, 26 Jun 2010)
and then marketing the brand in 2 ranges: one as a bridge vehicle between GM's established divisions of Chevrolet and Oakland (a four-cylinder range) and the other between Buick and Cadillac (an eight-cylinder 8range). Both engines were to be supplied by GM's Northway engine-making division. Durant approved the project and the Inter-State Automobile factory in Muncie, Indiana, which had been idle since 1918, was purchased.Sheridan historia
on Auto Pasión website
To market the Sheridan, Burke hired
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...
Eddie Rickenbacker Edward Vernon Rickenbacker or Eddie Rickenbacker (October 8, 1890 – July 23, 1973) was an American fighter pilot in World War I and a Medal of Honor recipient. Just as production began to ramp up, Durant was fired for the second and final time from General Motors. Since the Sheridan was a Durant pet project, GM, now under
Alfred Sloan Alfred Pritchard Sloan Jr. ( ; May 23, 1875February 17, 1966) was an American business executive in the automotive industry. He was a long-time president, chairman and CEO of General Motors Corporation. Sloan, first as a senior executive and l ...
, was left with Sheridan, one of Durant’s more costly but viable caprices. Durant on the other hand knew that the vehicle was soundly engineered and knew what GM paid for the Muncie facility. In May 1921, Durant purchased the rights to the Sheridan and to the Muncie plant, with the intent on using the facility to continue building the Sheridan and Durant’s new project, the Durant and Princeton automobiles, now to be built by
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 who financed GM. Corporate relationships Durant Motors attempted t ...
. Despite a backlog of orders that went unfulfilled, production was wound down to begin production of the Durant automobile. Rickenbacker abandoned his role as the spokesman for the company, and the Sheridan ceased to exist by September, 1921.


External links


Time Machines:GMs forgotten marque- archive copy


References

{{Durant Motors Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of the United States Durant Motors Economy of Indiana Motor vehicle manufacturers based in Indiana Defunct manufacturing companies based in Indiana Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1920 Vehicle manufacturing companies disestablished in 1921 Cars introduced in 1920 1920s cars Vintage vehicles