In 1907, Durant agreed to supply motors to R. David Buick sold his stock upon departure in 1906, making him a wealthy man, but he died in modest circumstances 25 years later. The Jackson plant continued production with Buick trucks through 1912. Buick continued car production in Jackson through 1907, when Factory #1 was completed in Flint. Durant moved most Buick production to the former Durant-Dort Imperial Wheel plant in Jackson, Michigan in 1905. Durant built a few more model B's in 1904, stepped up production for the model C in 1905, and spent the next four years turning Buick into the biggest-selling automobile brand in the US.ĭuring the 19th century, Durant had made his fortune as co-owner, also in Flint, with Josiah Dallas Dort, of the Durant-Dort Carriage Company, which by 1904 was the largest carriage-making company in the country and one of the largest in the world. Durant that year as controlling investor. Whiting built only a few automobiles in 1904, the Model B, before running out of operating capital, causing him to bring in William C. Louis Chevrolet in his Buick 60 Special (aka 'Buick Bug') in 1910 The engine Buick and Marr developed for this automobile was a two-cylinder valve-in-head engine of 159 cubic inches, with each cylinder horizontal and opposed to the other by 180 degrees. David Buick stayed on as a manager and re-hired Walter Marr as chief engineer. Whiting moved Buick to Flint, to a location across the street from his factory, with the idea of adding Buick's engines to his wagons. Whiting, of Flint Wagon Works, in Flint, Michigan. Buick had been financed by a friend and fellow automobile enthusiast, Benjamin Briscoe, who in September 1903 sold control of the business to James H. ĭavid Buick incorporated his company as the Buick Motor Company on May 19, 1903, in Detroit, Michigan. That year, 37 Buick automobiles were made, production increasing to 750 in 1905, 1,400 in 1906, 4,641 in 1907, and 8,800 in 1908, taking the number one spot away from close competitors Oldsmobile, Ford, and Maxwell. Marr was rehired in Flint as chief engineer, to begin making automobiles in production. In 1903, the third Buick automobile was made, this time by Richard, but in 1904 Buick, whose company was now called 'Buick Motor Company', moved from Detroit to Flint, Michigan, and Richard stayed behind. His replacement was Eugene Richard, who applied for a patent in 1902 for Marr's valve-in-head ( overhead valve) engine, which patent, number 771,095, was awarded to Richard in the name of Buick in 1904. The first two Buick automobiles were made in 18 at the 'Buick Auto-Vim and Power Company' by chief engineer Walter Marr, but company owner David Dunbar Buick was reluctant to begin making automobiles, being satisfied with stationary and marine engine production, so Marr left Buick in 1901 to found his own automobile company under his own name. The first logo of Buick (1904), with an image of the Uncle Sam and the legend 'known all over the world' Buicks are also sold in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. The main market is now China, where 80% of Buick-branded automobiles are sold. In 2017, Buick sold more than 1.4 million vehicles worldwide, a record for the brand.

Buick engines, with few exceptions, have always used overhead valves which the company pioneered in the 1904 Buick Model B. The first Buick V8 was introduced in 1953, then in 1962, the Buick V6 was introduced for the compact Special model. During this same time period, many manufacturers were introducing V8 engines in their high-end models, while Buick used a straight-8 for all models starting in 1931. Buick's current target demographic according to The Detroit News is 'a successful executive with family.' Īfter securing its market position in the late 1930s, when junior companion brand Marquette and Cadillac junior brand LaSalle were discontinued, Buick was positioned as an upscale luxury car below the Cadillac. In the North American market, Buick has been mostly marketed as a premium automobile brand, selling luxury vehicles positioned above GM's mainstream brands, while below the flagship luxury Cadillac division. Durant had served as Buick's general manager and major investor. Before the establishment of General Motors, GM founder William C. Started by automotive pioneer David Dunbar Buick in 1899, it was among the first American marques of automobiles, and was the company that established General Motors in 1908. Buick ( / ˈ b juː ɪ k/) or formally the Buick Motor Division of General Motors, is a division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM).

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