Rainier Motor Car Company was an American automobile manufacturer founded in 1905 by John T. Rainier in Flushing,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

and from 1908 produced in Saginaw, Michigan. The company specialized in manufacturing large and luxurious automobiles. In 1909, the company was bought by

General Motors The General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest automaker in the United States and ...

who maintained the brand until 1911.The Rainier Automobile & The Rainier Motor Car Co.
/ref>

History

Rainiers were big, conventional and solidly built powerful automobiles. They earned local success with hill climbs and mountain races. The company was also one of the first who offered a limited one-year guarantee on "use without repair expenses". They were first headquartered in John Rainier's dealership for Vehicle Equipment (V .E.) Automobiles. James G. Heaslet became chief engineer for Rainier, a position which he held for the whole time of production. Rainiers received their final assembly in Flushing. Chassis were delivered by the Garford Company of Elyria, Ohio which specialized in automobile components and built chassis for several car manufacturers, most prominently

Studebaker Studebaker was an American wagon and automobile manufacturer based in South Bend, Indiana, with a building at 1600 Broadway, Times Square, Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Founded in 1852 and incorporated in 1868 as the Studebaker Brothers M ...

. During 1907 it became obvious that Garford and Studebaker would intensify their cooperation and that delivery of frames for Rainier was not secure. Rainier decided to build its cars completely in-house. A new plant was erected in Saginaw, Michigan which already was considered an early center of automobile manufacturing. It opened in time for the production of 1908 models. Rainier during the

Panic of 1907 The Panic of 1907, also known as the 1907 Bankers' Panic or Knickerbocker Crisis, was a financial crisis that took place in the United States over a three-week period starting in mid-October, when the New York Stock Exchange fell almost 50% from ...

was hit by a cash shortage. After the assembly of 300 automobiles in Saginaw, Rainier was petitioned into involuntary bankruptcy because as General Manager Paul Lineberger explained, there was not enough cash to meet wages and material cost, even though assets were in excess of liabilities. The company was auctioned on January 25, 1909 and went for $20,000 to attorney George C. Comstock who represented John Rainier. John Rainer could not raise the money to save his business, and William C. Durant bought it from Comstock for

. GM organized the Marquette Motor Company in Saginaw to manufacture the Rainier and parts for the other recently acquired luxury car, the Welch Motor Car Company and it's less expensive companion make, the Welch-Detroit. Marquette business was under the control of GM's Buick Motor Company management. In September, 1910, Durant had to leave GM after financial trouble arose after his aggressive policy of acquisitions of many companies. GM management practiced a course of consolidation which led to the demise of several makes including the Welch. The Rainer automobile was produced until 1911, then production of the Welch-Detroit, was transferred from

Pontiac, Michigan Pontiac ( ') is a city in and the county seat of Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 61,606. A northern suburb of Metro Detroit, Pontiac is about northwest of Detroit. Founde ...

to Rainier's Saginaw factory. For 1912 a last attempt was tried by developing new models that used parts of both the Welch-Detroit Model S, 45/50 HP, and the Rainier Model F, 50 HP. They were marketed as the Marquette 40 HP and 45 HP, respectively, and sold for prices that started at $3,000 and $4,000. The very last cars were then offered as Peninsular, but production ceased at the end of 1912. GM would use the brand name Marquette again for a junior Buick automobile in 1930, and would use the "Rainier" name on the rebranded Oldsmobile Bravada/ Buick Rainier when Oldsmobile was discontinued in 2003. John T. Rainier set up the Rainier Motor Truck Company in New York City soon after he returned from Saginaw in 1910. The Rainier Motor Corporation was organized in 1916 and moved back to Flushing in 1917. Rainier trucks were produced until 1927.

Gallery

File:Rainier cars 1906 ad.jpg, 1906 Rainier Model B advertisement File:Stahls Automotive Collection December 2021 027 (1907 Rainier Model C Limo).jpg, 1907 Rainier Model C Limousine at

Stahls Automotive Collection Stahls Automotive Collection is a private automotive collection in Chesterfield Township, Michigan, US. It is the personal collection of Detroit native Ted Stahl, the chairman of fabric-based heat printer GroupeSTAHL in St. Clair Shores. The col ...

File:Joan cuneo posing in rainier.jpg, Racing driver,

Joan Newton Cuneo Joan Newton Cuneo (born Joan Carter Newton, July 22, 1876 – March 24, 1934) was an American racing driver. Between 1905 and 1912, Cuneo was successful in races against both male and female racers until the racing associations restricted races ...

with a 1908 Rainier Model D File:Rainier minkermotor 1910.jpg, A 1910 Rainier with a service body for Minker Motor Co.

Model overview

External links

1907 Rainier Model C at Stahls Automotive Collection

1908 Rainier Model E sold by Bonhams

Detroit Public Library - Rainier Motor car images

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rainier Motor Car Company General Motors marques Former General Motors subsidiaries American companies established in 1905 American companies disestablished in 1911 1905 establishments in New York City 1911 disestablishments in New York (state) Motor vehicle manufacturers based in Michigan Motor vehicle manufacturers based in New York (state) Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of the United States Defunct manufacturing companies based in New York City Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1905 Vehicle manufacturing companies disestablished in 1911 Luxury motor vehicle manufacturers Luxury vehicles Brass Era vehicles 1900s cars 1910s cars Cars introduced in 1905