Omaha daily bee., 1909-11-28

LEST THE PUBLIC TAKE o SERIOUSLY the re-
ports diligently circulated by our esteemed competitors
and swamp US with orders for immediate delivery OF EN-
F-"30" cars, we deem it advisable to make a definite state
ment on this subject-thereby adopting a course dlfterent
from that of other concerns who have raised the price OF
their cars without giving prospective buyers due notice
ditons which obtain and the results that must accrue
that have, in several cases, already appeared. Fortunately
we are in a position to do this without injury to ourselves
while Others are, for reasons that will be obvious, just as
anxious to keep to themselves some things they know.
DURING THE PAST SIXTY DAYS prices of several
makes of cars have been increased $50 to $500 over prev
announced-more have not. It's rather a difficult situation
to handle and some Of them don't know Just how to do it
without admitting a deplorable lack Of foresight or limited
financial backing.
raised the price, Of their cars-in most cases they had no
choice in the matter: Tried to compete with our match,
less organization aad faciities-set their price to try and
meet ours-and simply couldn't, that's all.
OUR FACILITIES ARE NOT EQUALED by any others
in the industry. Nor Our distributing organization which
places a car in the hands of the user for about half what
it costs other makers to make the transfer from factory
to ultimate user.
IRIS RATHER SURPRISING, BY THE WAY, that
just when the wiseacres were predicting lower prices for
automobiles, lol up they go. Fact is, there was no foun-
wise to the true situation. Based their predictions on the
fact that E-M-F-|SoI had set a pace and OF course others
you have just as fast a conveyance-that is, you may
follow, but you can't keep up.
THAT'S WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW to most of them.
1t will happen to more-better bear that in mind before buy
reputation than Studebakers, which goes with E-M-F"30".
Your guaranty" will be worth the paper it's printed on,
you know, when the concern that Assembled" your car is
no more. But we are anticipating.
THERE ARE SEVERAL REASONS for the increase of
prices and, so you will be able to apply your own judg-
ment to the matter, we'll tell you the more important ones
One OF which NAV even force us about February 1St to
add 800 to the price OF Studebaker-E-M-F"So"
FIRST: THERE'S A BIGGER HoRTA of automo-
biles of all kinds this year than ever before. Last years
shortage was as nothing by comparison. And every day
it grows greater. Perhaps you haven't noticed it yet.
70 will when you 60 to buy a e9r-that is to say a car
man you'll hardly consider any other.
COULD YOU REAL OUR CORRESPONDING of the
last neutrality-suspicious. from over ten thousand dealers
anxious to handle the S~tudebaker line you'd appre-
clate that there exists today a condition almost UNI
psralleled in commercial history. And the condition grows
more acute daily.
WON'T BE N CAR FOR EVERY FoUR prospective
buyers. That's the estimate of the best informed-its our
estimate also since General Manager Eames' tour, just
finished during which he travelled $4,000 miles and visited
every important centre in every state in the Union. Con-
diuon is unprecedented.
SHORTAGE ALONE WOULD BE SUFFICIENT grounds
for increasing the price of a car like E-M-F"3O"-only it
doesn't Mt in with our policy On the same grounds we
the hrst-always has been four times as great demand as
supply for this car. But our entire plan is based on guam
thy production OF a quality car with margin so small as
to place the price where it will create its own quantity
demand.
SECOND REASON is MORE IMPORTANT brief as
follows: Eight-tenths of the automobiles built in this
country are what are known in the trade as assembled
cars That is to say the various parts, as motor, trans
mission, frame, axles, steering gears, bodies, etc, are made
in small machine shops all over the country and assembled
by the concern whose name-plate appears on the car.
Only investment the so-caled manufacturer" has is a big
assembling building-or shed. He can pull out" of the
automobile business at short notice, take his cream" with
him and-wel, where the buyers of his cars get off at is
the unanswefable question.
EMAND FOR PARTS" EXCEEDS SUPPLY s.vsr.,
times over. As a result these assemblers" have for
months past been bidding against each other for parts
Think of that-and trying at the same time to compete
with facilities such as we have! What's bound to happen
is easy to predict
MMaAMM4gf