Roosevelt_(automobile)

Roosevelt (automobile)

Roosevelt (automobile)

Defunct American motor vehicle manufacturer


Roosevelt was a Vintage era marque of an American automobile that was manufactured by the Marmon Motor Car Company of Indianapolis, Indiana, during the 1929 and 1930 model years.[1]

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1929 Roosevelt advertisement in Amsterdam

History

The Roosevelt was named after President Theodore Roosevelt and designed to be priced as an "affordable" automobile, and advertising used the tag line Smart Transportation for the Thrifty.[2] The Roosevelt was the first automobile in America with a straight-eight engine to be priced under $1,000, with the sedan and coupe selling for $995, equivalent to $17,655 in 2023.[3]

Although the Roosevelt name did not appear for the 1931 range of Marmon models, the car was refined into the new Model 70 Marmon.[1]

Sales in 1929 approached 24,500 automobiles, considered an excellent first year for a new marque. One of the unique features of the Roosevelt was the horn button. It served 3 purposes. Push down and it would honk, pull up and it was the starter, and turn it, to turn the head lights on and off. It also had a cameo of Theodore Roosevelt, black and white, on the front top middle of the radiator.[4][1]


References

  1. Kimes, Beverly Rae (1996). The Standard Catalog of American Cars: 1805-1942. Iola, IA: Krause Publications. p. 1612. ISBN 0873414284.
  2. "The Roosevelt". Pittsburgh Press. April 21, 1929. Retrieved 8 December 2012.
  3. "Marmon-Built Roosevelt Auto On Display Here". Schenectady Gazette. March 27, 1929. Retrieved 8 December 2012.
  4. Georgano, Nick (2001). The Beaulieu Encyclopedia of the Automobile (3 vol. ed.). Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers. ISBN 1-57958-293-1.

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