Having established its reputation with a series of highly successful single- and twin-cylinder runabouts, Oldsmobile introduced its first multi-cylinder car, the Model S four, for the 1906 season.

Only two years later the company introduced its first six, the Series Z, which was replaced for 1910 by the Series 27 Limited.

Its engine displacing 8¼ litres (later 11½), the Limited was one of the largest, most powerful and most talked about American cars of its day.

This leviathan was replaced for 1913 by a smaller (6¼-litre) model that lasted through 1915.

After a year without a six-cylinder car in the range, Oldsmobile returned for 1917 with the Model 37, a more modest vehicle with an engine of only 177ci (2.9 litres), which would stand the company in good stead until the end of 1921.

This Oldsmobile Model 37 was purchased from New Zealand circa 2007 and had already been fitted with its 4.0-litre six-cylinder Buick E-49 engine dating from 1918.

Ian Ferguson rebuilt the engine using...