Read
Read was a short-lived American automobile marque produced by the Read Motor Company in Detroit from 1913 to 1914.
Last updated August 26, 2026
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Overview
Read was an early American automobile marque associated with the Read Motor Company of Detroit, Michigan. The company was established by Ray J. Read, Joseph Beatty, and Roy Herald to manufacture a conventional four-cylinder touring car. Its principal model was designated the Model X, reflecting the small-scale and clearly defined product strategy of a new independent automobile maker entering the highly competitive American market during the 1910s. The Model X used a four-cylinder engine rated at 20 horsepower and was built on a 115-inch wheelbase. It was offered as a touring car, a body style that was widely used by American manufacturers of the period because it provided open passenger accommodation and could serve both recreational and general transportation purposes. Contemporary product descriptions identified the car by a gray body with white striping, giving the marque a restrained but recognizable visual presentation. The listed price was $850 at the time, placing the car within the market for relatively accessible American touring automobiles, although Read lacked the production scale and longevity of better-established competitors. Read maintained offices and showrooms at 541 Woodward Avenue in Detroit, while its factory operated at 68 Champlain Street. The Detroit location placed the company in the center of the American automobile industry, but proximity to established manufacturers did not translate into commercial durability. In December 1913, the company was petitioned into bankruptcy. Production ended in 1914, making Read one of the numerous brief automobile ventures that appeared during the industry's formative period and disappeared before building a sustained model range or dealer network. Because the marque operated for only a short period and is documented primarily through historical automotive references, information about sales volumes, distribution, advertising, management after the founding, and surviving vehicles is limited. Read is therefore best understood as a defunct early automobile brand rather than a continuing consumer brand. Its historical significance lies in illustrating the crowded Detroit automobile market of the 1910s and the financial risks faced by independent manufacturers attempting to bring a single touring-car design into production.
History
The Read Motor Company was formed in Detroit by Ray J. Read, Joseph Beatty, and Roy Herald to manufacture an American touring car. Its planned product was a four-cylinder automobile with a stated output of 20 horsepower and a 115-inch wheelbase. The resulting car was known as the Model X and represented the type of straightforward, open touring automobile commonly associated with the American market in the early 1910s. Read established its offices and showrooms at 541 Woodward Avenue in Detroit and operated a factory at 68 Champlain Street. The company presented the Model X with a gray body and white striping. Its price was listed as $850, indicating an effort to compete in the broad market for practical American touring cars rather than position the vehicle as a luxury product. There is no reliable evidence in the supplied historical record of a broader product range, substantial production volume, export program, or long-term dealer organization. The company’s commercial life was brief. In December 1913, the Read Motor Company was petitioned into bankruptcy. Although the marque is associated with the 1913–1914 period, the bankruptcy petition curtailed its operations, and automobile production ended in 1914. Read consequently joined the large number of independent automobile manufacturers that emerged during the early development of the American motor industry but failed to survive its financial and competitive pressures. The surviving record is limited, so the brand’s later ownership, any formal liquidation process, the number of vehicles built, and the fate of its facilities cannot be established from the available reference material. Read is documented primarily as a short-lived Detroit automobile marque centered on one four-cylinder touring-car model.
- 1914
Production discontinued
[1]Read automobile production ceased, ending the marque’s short operating history.
- 1913
Read Motor Company established
[1]Ray J. Read, Joseph Beatty, and Roy Herald established the Read Motor Company in Detroit to manufacture a four-cylinder touring car.
- 1913
Model X introduced
[1]The company’s automobile was designated the Model X, a 20-horsepower, four-cylinder touring car on a 115-inch wheelbase.
- 1913
Bankruptcy petition
[1]The company was petitioned into bankruptcy in December, placing the young marque under severe financial pressure.
Products and positioning
An independent early-1910s American automobile maker offering a relatively accessible four-cylinder touring car.
Touring car · 1913
Read Model X
The Model X was Read’s documented production automobile. It was a four-cylinder touring car rated at 20 horsepower and built on a 115-inch wheelbase. The car was described with a gray body and white striping and carried a listed price of $850. It was the central and apparently only documented Read model before the company’s bankruptcy and the cessation of production.
Brand decisions
1913
Company entered bankruptcy proceedingsOtherBackground
Read was a newly established independent automobile manufacturer operating in Detroit with a single documented touring-car model.
Action taken
The Read Motor Company was petitioned into bankruptcy in December 1913.
Aftermath
Production ended in 1914, and the Read marque became defunct.
Recent events
- 1914
Read automobile production ended[1]
Other
Production of Read automobiles ceased in 1914 after the company entered financial difficulty.
- 1913
Read Motor Company petitioned into bankruptcy[1]
Bankruptcy
The Read Motor Company was petitioned into bankruptcy in December 1913, interrupting the young marque's attempt to establish production in Detroit.
Sources2 sources
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