Established in 1907, the Oakland Motor Car Company was the descendant of the Pontiac Buggy Company, located in the Michigan community of the same name. On April 9, 1909, Oakland was acquired by William C. 'Billy' Durant, the man who created General Motors, which had been organized just seven months earlier. It was about that time that Oakland adopted a truly unique sales slogan: 'The Car with a Conscience.' Under GM, Oakland became an upper-medium priced car that sold well during the teens and into the 1920s.
The Model 43 was built on a 116-inch wheelbase chassis and was powered by a four-cylinder motor. The car features a self-starter and electric lights (introduced in 1913) and a distinctive - and attractive - vee-shaped radiator. Its price new in 1914 was $2,700.
Oakland's success was a bright spot in Durant's tumultuous empire, but not bright enough. With GM seriously overextended, in 1910, the board of directors called for Durant to step aside. Like other GM divisions, Oakland spawned a subsidiary brand, in 1926, named Pontiac. Unlike the others, the subsidiary survived the parent, and in 1931 the Oakland brand was discontinued.
