Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1916-01-08
President of Overland
Company Reviews Big Show

at is intensely interesting to COM
pare the questions Of motor enthusi-
asts who are attending the show this
season with the questions asked by
visitors of former years" remarked
John n. WHY'S, president of the
Willys-Overland Company, of Toledo,
Ohio. after overhearing the remarks
of several visitors TO statesmen in the
Overland booth at the Grand Central
Palace.
LAS 7 stood there listening a mo-
ment ago | could not help thinking of
the tremendous changes which have
taken place in the automobile industry
in com paratively short time, changes
beneficial TO both the general public
and the motor car manufacturers.
at has only been within the last
year or so that the purchase of an au-
tomobile has been considered from the
standpoint of business investment.
big. heavy cars. costing up in the
thousands of dollars, were all that
would formerly interest people, even
of moderate means. and as for those
who could afford a high-priced car
they would no more think of driving
anything else than walking.
"A striking evidence of the trend
of the times is shown in two sales
reported by Overland dealers within
the last few weeks. in both cases
chased by men to whom price was a
matter of little moment. One is a
prominent United States senator, the
other president of one of the best
known western railroads.
But the manufacturer doing bust
ness on a large production scale has
been the revolutionary influence in the
automobile industry. He is the indi-
vidual who has demonstrated that a
motor car of pleasing appearance, pos
sessng good riding qualities and which
will give good service can be sold for
very moderate price when manufac-
tured in large quantities.
ITO my way of thinking, the fea-
ture which is really responsible for
the success of the medium priced au-
tomobile is its low uplIeep expense.
"The best way to attract a mans
attention is to hit him in his pocket
book Whether you reduce or increase
the amount of money in it merely
determines the kind of an expression
on his face. The medium priced car
puts money into the owners pocket
because of it's low upkeep cost, and
this more than anything else changed
public opinion from its old habit of
judging automobiles solely by the
amount of the price tags.
at was evident to the most casual
observer that those people who were
just in looking at Overland cars could
affo rd any kind of an automobile they
fancied," confined Mr.. Willys. but
the questions they asked indicated
what is uppermost in the minds of
people who are buying cars this year.
Economy in weight, fuel consump-
ton and upkeep eXpense-these are
the important questions people want
answered In detail. They have learned
that tn initial cost of an automobile,
MI nnFfant consideration IG
not the determining factor in choos-
ing a car. The expense of keeping the
car in operation is the thing which
every automobile buyer knows will
determine the saneness of his invest
ment from a business standpoint.
'In other words, the public realizes
more than ever before that a light
weight, medium priced car. produced
on large production scale and backed
by a reputable concern, is the most
sensible automobile investment that
can be made"