Origins and Early Development The company was founded by engineer Ross W. Judson and his brother-in-law, businessman Arthur W. Tobin in Chicago in 1902. Judson designed Continental’s first commercial engine, an L-head four-cylinder, which debuted at the 1903 Chicago Automobile Show. This was then shortly renamed Continental Motor & Manufacturing Co. in February 1905 to avoid confusion with another automaker
Starting in the Auto Industry Continental first built a major plant in
Muskegon, Michigan in 1905, and later expanded to Detroit. Early customers included many “assembled car” manufacturers (i.e. independent automakers who purchased major components from suppliers rather than producing them in-house). None of these met with success in the depression era economy. At this same time,
Dominion Motors Ltd. of Canada was building the same Flyer and Beacon cars under arrangement with Continental for sale in the Canadian market, and importing the larger Ace models. Dominion then converted to building
Reo brand trucks. The Ace and Flyer models were discontinued at the close of the 1933 model year. Finding that its cars were unprofitable, Continental stopped assembling even Beacon automobiles in 1934.
Aircraft and Tank Industries In August 1929, the Continental Motors Company formed the
Continental Aircraft Engine Company as a subsidiary to develop and produce its aircraft engines. Continental was a major manufacturer of horizontally opposed 'flat four' airplane engines and supplied a similar engine for Sherman tanks during World War II. Apparently the United States government contracts continued during the Korean War. As the jet engine began to replace piston engine powered airplanes, Continental began losing their military contracts. The jet engine technology thus led to an understandable end to Continental's military prosperity. When the Korean War ended, Kaiser Corporation, who used Continental engines in all their vehicles, was able to gain ownership of a Continental engine factory. It was during that time of downsizing Continental's operations that many Continental employees dispersed to find jobs elsewhere in the industry— those engineers finding new jobs at other companies like the newly-formed American Motors, even Chevrolet. Kaiser, working with a Continental-designed engine, introduced the USA's first mass-produced
overhead camshaft (OHC) inline six-cylinder engine. It debuted in Kaiser-owned Jeep Corporation vehicles in the mid-1960s. However, Stutz built both single- and dual-overhead cam inline six-cylinder engines in, respectively, the late 1920s and early 1930s (SOHC) and the early 1930s (DOHC). Moreover, these were fitted in Stutz production cars, though their numbers were comparatively small. Particular models of John Deere tractors are currently being supplied by Continental since the ownership transfer to Korea, as stated on the tractor engine identification plates. ==Engines==