Rolling on 42-inch wheels and powered by a 707 cubic-inch engine, the Oldsmobile Limited was a giant of the road in 1910-12.
The early years of the Olds Motor Works are remembered mainly for the petite and popular Curved Dash Olds. Introduced in 1901, it was America’s first volume-production car. But actually, Oldsmobile produced all kinds of vehicles its first few decades: small, medium, and large, even trucks, powered by fours, sixes, and V8s. It seems that founder Ransom E. Olds left the company in 1904 due in part to its lack of direction.
Easily the most remarkable of these digressions was the 1910-12 Limited, a giant machine that rode on massive 42-inch wheels and was eventually powered by a 707 cubic-inch engine. If you’ve ever seen an Olds Limited at a vintage car meet, you certainly remember it. With the top erected, it stands eight feet tall.
First constructed as a prototype in 1908, the Limited was ostensibly named in honor of the New York Central Railroad’s famed 20th Century Limited, which debuted in 1902 and ran the Water Level Route from New York City to Chicago in 20 hours. It’s said that an Olds Limited raced the high-speed express train from Albany to New York and beat its time. Of course, the astounding performance came at a price: $4,600 to $5,800, which placed the Limited in Packard, Peerless, and Pierce-Arrow territory.
When production began in 1909-10, the Limited was available in touring, roadster, and sedan body styles on a 130 or 140-inch wheelbase chassis. The impressive 42-inch wheels were standard on all Limiteds and one of the prominent selling points in Olds advertising. In 1911, the short-wheelbase version was dropped and the six-cylinder engine was enlarged from 505 to 707 cubic inches, but the claimed output remained unchanged at 60 horsepower. A T-head design (separate camshafts on each side of the block for intake and exhaust) with its iron cylinders cast in pairs, the 707 CID six sported a bore and stroke of 5.0 by 6.0 inches.
To promote its brand, the Olds Motor Works (acquired by General Motors in late 1908) commissioned the noted artist and illustrator William Harnden Foster (1886-1941) to paint a scene depicting the Limited racing against its namesake, titled Setting the Pace. The painting (below) was used in Olds advertising for years after the Limited was discontinued in 1912 and the automaker was offering more ordinary machinery. It’s unclear how many Limiteds were produced as estimates vary, but it seems only a dozen or so still exist.
I had the pleasure of seeing one of these (1912) last year and it was as massive as expected. Then a 1913 Pierce-Arrow Sixty-Six pulled in and made the Olds look like a mid-size car.
Great story. In some ways this is the age of the giants with our 20 ft long, 6,000 lb pickups and SUVs.
A good friend is a retired master plumber, now in his 80s. One of his fellow plumbers, Bill Zerega (who had a Stanley Steamer that his son apparently now has that he used to drive around the Washington DC area) used to say that he considered one of his life’s greatest accomplishments was saving a Limited from being scrapped in the ’60s. The detail that has been lost to time is which one it is, if anyone knows. No info has passed down as to what body style.
Once There Were Giants: The 1910-12 Oldsmobile Limited is a fascinating look at a remarkable piece of automotive history. The craftsmanship and innovation of the Oldsmobile Limited truly set it apart in its time. It’s amazing to see how far we’ve come in car design while still appreciating the elegance of these early giants. A must-read for car enthusiasts!