[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 155 (Friday, December 15, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Pages S11814-S11815]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       THE HISTORY OF OLDSMOBILE

  Mr. ABRAHAM. Mr. President, today I rise to comment on a development 
that took place in my State this week. It was with great sadness that I 
heard of the phasing out of the Oldsmobile line of cars within the 
General Motors family. Over the last 105 years, Oldsmobile has been a 
Lansing, MI, and a State institution and, obviously, a national and 
international one as well. It was started 105 years ago when Ransom Eli 
Olds of Lansing, MI, teamed with Frank Clark, the son of a small 
carriage shop operator, to achieve what many believed impossible. They 
successfully produced a self-contained gasoline-powered carriage, and 
with it Oldsmobile was officially born in 1897.
  Throughout its history, Oldsmobile has enjoyed a number of firsts: 
the first assembly line; and with the production of the curved dash, 
the first mass producer of gasoline cars; in 1905, two Oldsmobiles 
finished the very first transcontinental race from New York to 
Portland, OR, in 45 days; in 1940, models featured the Hydra-Matic 
drive, making this lineup the first vehicles with fully automatic 
transmissions; in 1966, Oldsmobile introduced the Toronado, the first 
modern-day front-wheel drive car; in 1974, that Toronado became the 
first American car to offer a driver's side airbag.
  Millions of Americans have come to love their Oldsmobiles. An Olds 
convertible was the standard for transporting a Homecoming queen or a 
float parade when I was growing up. And an Oldsmobile sedan was the 
epitome of the middle-class family dream. All of this was made possible 
by the hard work and the commitment to affordable quality that was the 
hallmark of Oldsmobile in that division of General Motors.
  On a personal level, I have a special stake in all of this, as well. 
Not only did I grow up in Lansing, MI, the home of Oldsmobile, but for 
almost 20 years my dad worked on the line at the Oldsmobile main 
assembly plant there. It is

[[Page S11815]]

where he got his start, where my family came to truly appreciate how 
much the automobile industry means, not just to families such as ours 
but to our State, and especially how much the Oldsmobile meant to 
Michigan--Lansing, in particular.
  I am sad, therefore, to see the Oldsmobile go, as we have known it, 
but I am confident General Motors will continue to make quality, safe 
automobiles for generations to come. As we bring down the curtain on 
the Oldsmobile, I rise today to offer my praise to that company, to 
those who started it, and their families and descendents who still 
remain in the Lansing area and in Michigan; also, to all those workers 
who, as my father, worked over the years for that Oldsmobile division 
of General Motors. I think each and every one of them took to their 
jobs a great satisfaction, a commitment to hard work, and a tremendous 
pride in the craftsmanship that went into making the automobile for 
many generations one of this country's favorite lines of vehicles.
  I yield the floor and I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. ABRAHAM. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. ABRAHAM. Mr. President, I inquire of the Chair, are we still in 
morning business?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Chair informs the Senator from Michigan we 
are in a period of morning business until the hour of 2:30.

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