REO Royale History

The REO Royale arrived for 1931 as the marque's flagship, with coachwork by Amos Northup of the Murray Corporation. Its flowing, integrated forms are credited with helping to establish true automotive streamlining in the American market, anticipating the look that would dominate later in the decade. It was powered by a 125-horsepower straight-eight with a nine-bearing crankshaft, one-shot lubrication, and thermostatically controlled radiator shutters.

The eight-cylinder Royale was sold with minor updates through 1933, after which the name was applied to a lower-priced six-cylinder model through 1935. From 1933 the Royale could be ordered with REO's semi-automatic Self-Shifter transmission, an early automatic-clutch system that proved unreliable in service.