The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1919-02-28
SEES HUGE DEMAND
FOR MOTOR CARS
MAXWELL Chalmerw Sales Head Even
Sees Premium Prices
Perhaps.
ny r. J. TONER,
Dtrectsr Of sales MAXWELL Chalmers
Meter Com panies.

q OF Ansrlyk tounH ,,ss,f Ssss.es,sk.,
In something OF ~ ze q. sse statian
platform. so to speak suitcase In
hand--just back from long trip away
from home
All the world knows now that 1t had
been away to war, and when I say it
went away to get into war mean that
1t not only got In but It got clear in.
No industry back of Uncle Sam gave
more than the automobile industry, and
our industry gave doubly. since 1t gave
quickly and effectively.
What the aggregate production OF
the motor car factories amounted to In
turning the tide to victory already Is
pretty generally known. II was big
Job we'll done.
SometAinE to Remember.
So much has been said about it, how
ever, that the average man In the street
probably has lost sight Of one factor
which has been of transcendant I'M
portance during the last ten wee>Z
mean this.
In those weeks, from the middle OF
November to the present day, the auto
mobile industry has face and conquered
task as huge, In many OF the
aspects, as war our work Of crowd
ing the lighting fronts with his in
strnments that brought success to our
armies.
That Ia. we have made ready for
peacc-time production and have switch
ed our plants from war work to
schedule Of regular production which
we hope will be sufficient to keep up
with the demand for passenger cars
and trucks until we have mastered the
next big task ahead OF us, which Is TO
further expand our manufacturing re-
sources to meet the demands that win
accrue from the greatest era of pros
"a IT, 49,
question right now IL there Is
another predominant industry In the
country that has grasped the task of
reconstruction and reimbursement with
in itself and accomplished IL as our in
custry has, The automobile industry
has marched steadily on--ninus the
boat of the martial air but in step
with the spirit of the day and pretty
we'll keyed up right now for the de-
mands of the future
shortage of 100000 Cars.
We had some time TO prepare our
seivea for war production, but for this
second task we had none. what the
ID amounted to can best be r-asped by
citing the fact that right now this coun-
try is short from 100000 to 10000 au-
tomohiies---cars which would have been
made and readily taken by American
buyers had war not interrupted every
thing In England today thousands Of
car buyers are so an% Gus 70 get new
automobiles that they are making de-
posits with dealers with the under
standing that they are IN get their
cars H. MS md when the factories pro-
duce them The price is not stated,
and the best dealers can DO is 10 guess
at some approximate price. That state
Of Affairs could easily have obtained
here were IL not for the resourceful-
ness of the automobile industry as a
whole.
with peace arriving Just at the be-
ginning OF winter II was possibly for
the factories TO keep up with dealer de-
rnsnds during the succeeding two
months after the armistice. although
we knew that volcanic demand for
more cars was Just under the surface
Of general condtions-ready to burst
into action when the public had had
few weeks In which to recover it's potse.
The great demand now rs on From
an almost certain knowledge OF what
lies ahead OF us in the next few months
diet that the New York show this
week VIII see the greatest degree of
interest that those events have ever
known.
why Thfs Demand 4. SURE.
There are various logical reasons for
this belief which any we'll Informed OBJ
server OF conditions car discern II
automobiles and natural ttaf the buy
lag demand should begin TO make IT.
self felt at about this time Of the year.
and that applies particularly to this
spring because OF the world happen
inEs OF the last few months.
Sees Premium Prices.
Now add TO that the certainty OF the
greatest era Of rad building the world
has ever known and you VIII be sble
TO see at a not too distant date a state
OF affairs in the United States--a ma
tional demand for automobiles. In fact
that will bring about a return of
the condition of fey years ago. when
not few makes Of cars brought pre-
MUM prices In the retail market I
can see hundreds of buyers paying pre-
MUM prices for practically all good
makes of cars before many more
months roll by.
We were able successfully to cope
with the Job we found ourselves facing
when the arynistice came, and we
jumped into the task of reconvertin~
our plants TO our regular output. but
! make no prediction that we will be
able TO keep our plants organized from
month to month on a basis permitting
an expansion of output sufficient to
keep pace with the spring and summer
demand for cars. II Is a good sized
Job for the MAXWELL and Chalmers
plants to turn out 10000 complete an-
tomobiles and trucks the first year
after war. and that Is the task ahead
Of rs right now. The demand for our
product. form all present indications.
which ara not guessed at but definitely
known. win call for at least twice that
production
There has been another great inn
provement In marketing conditions
which win have a noticeable effect
henceforth That is In the changed at
titude OF bankers throughout the coun-
try toward better financial dealings
with motor car distributors.
Bankers Eyes Opened.
We. have gone into this quite ex-
and we have found that
bankers everywhere have learned--as
every one else has learned through the
war--that tn motor car is the coun-
ry's next important instrument of
utility after the railroads. Where we
formerly found difficulties sometimes
in persuading local bankers to carry
the automobile dealer as he carried
the farm implement dealer we now