The Owen was a

brass era The Brass Era is an American term for the early period of automotive manufacturing, named for the prominent brass fittings used during this time for such features as lights and radiator (engine cooling), radiators. It is generally considered to ...

luxury automobile built in

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

by the Owen Motor Car Company from 1910 to 1912.

History

The Owen designed by Ralph Owen was a luxury automobile with a 50-hp, four-cylinder engine. It had progressive features such as left-hand steering, a central gear change, and was placed on a lowered

chassis A chassis (, ; plural ''chassis'' from French châssis ) is the load-bearing framework of a manufactured object, which structurally supports the object in its construction and function. An example of a chassis is a vehicle frame, the underpart ...

with 42-inch tires, which gave it a similar appearance to the Oldsmobile Limited. The

touring car 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 ...

style sold for $3,200 () while the

limousine A limousine ( or ), or limo () for short, is a large, chauffeur-driven luxury vehicle with a partition between the driver compartment and the passenger compartment which can be operated mechanically by hand or by a button electronically. A luxu ...

cost $4,800, {{Inflation, US, 4800, 1910, fmt=eq. Ralph Owen contracted with his brothers Raymond M. Owen to market the car through the R. M. Owen & Company. The company were dealers for the Reo Motor Car, and Reo decided to purchase the Owen Motor Car Company. Reo finished constructing 35 Owen automobiles and then closed the company. The Owen factory was sold to the Krit Motor Car Company. In 1912, Ralph Owen began work on a new car that would become the

Owen Magnetic file:1920 Owen Magnetic Touring Car ad.jpg, 1920 Owen Magnetic Touring Car ad, from ''House Beautiful'' magazine The Owen Magnetic was a pioneering American brand of Hybrid electric vehicle, hybrid electric luxury automobile manufactured between 19 ...

File:1910 Owen Advertisement in Horseless Age.jpg, 1910 Owen Motor Car Advertisement in the Horseless Age Magazine File:1911 Owen Advertisement - Cycle and Auto Trade Journal.jpg, 1910 Owen Motor Car advertisement in the Cycle and Automobile Trade Journal File:1911 Owen Advertisement - McClures Magazine.jpg, 1911 Owen Motor Car advertisement in McClure's Magazine

References

Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of the United States Motor vehicle manufacturers based in Michigan Defunct manufacturing companies based in Michigan Brass Era vehicles 1910s cars Luxury vehicles Luxury motor vehicle manufacturers

History

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References