Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-03-24

Nothing has contributed more to the
expansion Of the automobile trade of the
country than the gradual reduction in the
pr-ce of cars which has come about in
the past few years. AS the experience
of car designers has brought them more
nearly to the ideal car the necessity for
continual changes has been overcome
and this, in turn. has permitted the man.
ufacturers to standardize their machinery
and thus reduce the cost of manufacture
The result of all this has been that the
manufacturer is now able to build cars
which will sell at from $7oO to S1,J0o
which are comparable in quality with cars
that formerly cost from S1,Joo to 81 800
All of this has brought the automobile
to untold thousands of Americans who
could not afford them under former price
scales
How important in the extension of the
automobile industry this reduction of
price has become may be inferred from
the fact that more than so per cent of
all the cars produced last year were sold
for 81 800 and less. The loW-priced au-
tomobile has met a wonderful sale. One
corporation alone expects 10 turn out
1900 low-prced machines during the
present year. This output will represent
many cars as the entire automobile
industry of England can produce in three
years at the present rate of manufacture.
The English manufacturers have felt q
grave concern over the invasion of the
low-priced American automobile. They
admit that the American manufacturer of
low-priced machines can sell them at
prices that are very much under the
English standard This arises from the
fact that in the production of 10000 iden-
teal cars the cost per car is bound to be
much less than in the production of Il
thousand identical cars. The economies
which may he introduced in large fac
tory are much greater per car than those
which may be used in a small factory
PerhapS the cheapest standard auto
mobile is one which sells for $3.50. These
machines are especially popular with
rural free delivery carriers. One of them
declares that he is able to negotiate fifty
hills every day in the year with his little
machine, and that. with proper care, it
renders him practically much service
as would one costing twice as much.
There are several ma chimes which sell
for $500. and quite number upon which
the price is 500. Conditions in the auto
mobile industry have so adjusted them
selves that one may now purchase a very
sturdy and massive-appearing touring
car for less than thousand dollars.
The average price of automobiles in
1912 will probably range around 1,2OO.
Many more will be sold at a figure lower
than $1,000 than at a figure higher. but
the higher-priced cars will still command
prices ranging between $1,5OO and 5000.
4
The low-priced and moderate priced
car of the 1912 models has nearly all of
the latest i'm
Low Priced Cars prov ments
With improvements. h nroeress
Of automobile engineering Some of them
have the famous sliding sleeve engines,
m mo- FOL n (~hica news
paper man. The experience of this Chi
cagO inventor again demonstrates that a
prophet very often is without honor in his
own country. He could do nothing with
his invention in this county, SO he car
red it to England. Europe was quick to
see its advantages, and very promptly
adopted it as long step forward in auto
mobile engineering Since then the in
ventor has come back to America and
has almost taken the entire automobile
world by the ears.
One of the greatest pitfalls into which
the prospective purchaser of an auto
mobile is in danger of falling is that of
buying car which has not been built by
a reliable concern. There are dozens of
mushroom automobile building concerns
scattered throughout the country, and one
cannot read a single trade journal with
out seeing a failure here and there. AS
soon as these failures take place re-
pairs for the machine built by the in
solvent concern are very difficult to get.
with the result that the automobile owner
finds great difficulty in repla cing broken
or worn parts. Even with the more
stable manufacturers, the price of replac-
ing broken worn parts impresseS the
buyer as excessive. One automobile owner
recently took a catalogue of parts and
found that if he were to assemble all Of
the different parts of his car together
the total price would be nearly three
times that of complete automobile.
Building machines which retail for 81 900
and less is a very profitable proposition,
as is disclosed by the annual balance
sheet of one of the principal manufacture
ing corporations of the automobile in
dustry. This balance sheet shows that
during the past year the net profits of
this one corporation amounted to more
than four million dollars. There are no
recent statistics showing the difference
between the cost of production and sell
ing, but the inquiry, made by the census
bureau in 1909. disclosed the fact that
profits on the 49, 900 cars made that year
amounted to everal hundred dollars each.
The advent of the popular-pr car
has proved a boon to many thousands of
TO-