Perth Amboy evening news., 1920-02-28
TIME To ORDER
YOUR AUTO NOW
Great Danger in Delaying Pur-
chase Of 1920 Automobile
BY RAY w. SHERMAN d.
Editor Of MOtGa. World.

49,
Every year along about this time
the average man goes to the automo-
bile show with more or dess fndeclslon
as to whether or not he should buy a
car or wait until later. This idea OF
waiting before purchasing a car is q
habit which seems to have become
a part of the business of buying auto
mobiles.
A. motor car Is. of course, a large
piece of merchandise. 1t is one of the
biggest things the average man buys,
ranking probably second in the list OF
purchases, the home being the hrst
and largest investment for the average
individual. Because of its inlpor-
lance from the standpoint of price,
one naturally wants to make sure that
he is making the best possible invest
ment. and therefore he is inclined to
cogitate considerably and do a max
lmum amount of investigating before
ieciding what. type or brand or car
he shall buy. Coupled with all tins
precaution, however, goes natural
amount of hesitation, which is found
ed oftentimes upon real grounds, but
which too often is entirely a odu
of the imagination.
At this particular time the public
is probably expecting that the prlce
OF cars is going to be reduced con-
siderably, and without doubt many
DrOSDSCllNe plN 10 ~ "iAIN 49,"
defer placing their orders because
they believe that later on they will be
able to get the same car, or its equlVa-
lent, at a lower price.
The best Judgment of those who
are in position to know conditions,
however, is that there is not likely
to be any reduction in price what
soever for some time to come, On the
contrary, a raise in price is more
likely than a decline. At the present
time materials are high and labor Is
high, and there does not seem any
possibility that there can be much or
q decrease If m at all in these items
of cost.
The only other factor which can
bring down price is production. and
it\will be some time before produc-
lion will be able to effect any saving
that Is at all commensurate with the
increase in cost due to the raise in the
price of labor and materials.
How production affects car prices Is
indicated in the decline about the
time the war began in 1914. AT that
time prices were falling, and they con
tinued to fall, but as soon as the cost
OF materials began to rise, and the
price of labor went up, the cost OF
the car went up AS the wal progress
ed, production decreased In quantity,
so that we had several factors tend
ing to make the price OF cars higher.
II will be some time before any real
reduction a be effected. Where
fore, the man who contemplates buy-
ing within the next.year might just as
we'll buy now SO far as price is con-
cerned.
Furthermore, cars are going to be
scarce during 1920. They will be
more plentiful in 1921 and 1927 thar
they are now, but during the next IL
months there IL going to be a real
shortage. 1t has not been possible for
the manufacturers to supply as many
cars as the country wanted for the
last two years. and the last halI OF
1913 has been spent by this INDUSTRY
in ~endeavoring to supply the demand
vhioh had accumulated while produc-
ton was at q low ebb because or the
var work which the factories were
doing. This demand is not entirely
supplied yet, and on top of it there
comes the new normal demand winch
is created every year. All or THESE
things taken together will cause tht
countr i demand more cars during
1920 than the factories can produce
and this means that dealers Will be
sold out early in the year, and tina
there Will be a long waiting list or
the order books. :.
The man who wants a car wants /
when he can use It and, smu a!
he is going to buy 1t. he really Is max
inc . noor Investment If he does no
get the car when he desires TO hove
it Wherefore, the mar who Nigh
have n car on the fret of Anril
h"t who docs not get it unit
the first of june. has rendered himself
a real injury. and the only way t6
make srro of having a car when sum
mer -orring begins is t~o,arrange fol
it ut tbs time. IT Is fairly possible
that it Is even now too late to MAKE
arrangements for q new car.