Cars Built in Oklahoma
The Geronimo
"Power to loan your neighbor" and "Speed you'll never dare to use." These were the advertising slogans in 1918 for the Geronimo automobile. The Geronimo was manufactured in Enid, Oklahoma, from 1918 to 1920. They built over 600 cars and a few trucks and tractors.
The car had an interesting accessory. It had a built-in air pump to refill flat tires. There was an air hose attached to the car to get the air to the tire. If one of the tires went flat, the driver would start the engine to get power to the air pump, then he would unreel the air hose and refill the flat tire.
There was an interesting way to see how much gasoline was in the gas tank. The procedure that was given in the owner's manual was to stop the car, get out, go to the gas tank and give it a good kick. Then get back into the car and see what the gas guage says.
The cars were built for only two years because there was a fire in the paint shop of the factory. The fire caused so much damage that they were not able to build any more cars.
The Tulsa Four
The Tulsa Four was an automobile that was manufactured in Tulsa. It was called the Tulsa Four because it has a four-cylinder engine, whereas many other cars had six-cylinder engines.
It was built for a particular use. The Tulsa Four was made to be used in the oil fields. The roads in the oil fields were bad, and in some places, there was no road at all. The car had to be able to carry heavy loads of drilling equipment and take it into the lumpy, bumpy land of the oil fields without breaking down.
These cars were built from 1917 to 1922. Their engines had a power of 37 horsepower. In other words, its power was equal to the strength of 37 horses. The average car today has over 200 horsepower. The Tulsa Four's top speed was 52 miles per hour. Brand new the car cost $1,000.
Just as with the Geronimo Company, the Tulsa Four Company came to an early end because of a major fire.
General Motors
From 1979-2005 General Motors built automobiles in OKlahoma City in the largest plant that had ever been built by GM. The plant built several different kinds of cars over the years, including the Chevrolet Citation. About 5,000 people worked at GM; of those 5,000, there was a larger share of women than there was at any other GM plant.
MG Motors
MG Motors North America, Inc. purchased MG, the British carmaker. The MG is a line of sports cars that have been popular in the United States for generations. The company will be located in Oklahoma where the MG TF will be built. The headquarters employing 150 people will be in Oklahoma City. The manufacturing plant employing 325 people will be in Ardmore, and a research facility employing 35 people will be located in Norman. MG will provide jobs for 550 people in Oklahoma
Information provided by Walter Eskridge, Curator of Education