ansom Eli Olds (1864-1950) gave his name to two different automobile marques, Oldsmobile and Reo.He built a few steam and electric-powered experimental automobiles while working at the company of his father, Pliny F. Olds, but when he started manufacturing automobiles with internal combustion engines, he started a separate company, Olds Motor Vehicle Company in August 1897.

A few cars had been produced even before the company was founded. The total number of vehicles produced by the little company at the town of Lansing probably remained at five.In May 1899 a new company, Olds Motor Works was founded in Detroit and soon gained success with a small car known as the Oldsmobile Curved Dash. Formerly the company's product had been known as Olds.

When the company funders and share holders demanded more expensive models to accompany the Curved Dash, Ransom E. Olds left in January 1904 and started a new company at Lansing, naming it REO after his initials.

he Olds company was sold to William C. Durant for three million dollars in November 1908. Charles W. Nash became the general manager of Oldsmobile in 1913. Like other GM marques, Oldsmobile got its subsidiary marque in 1929 but the Viking only survived until the following year.

A long-standing insignia for Oldsmobile is the globe surrounded by a ring (not unlike that of Saturn).