New-York tribune., 1922-01-08
Improvement
To OBeCradua1.
SaysC.W. Nash
Car Manufacturers Must
Sense Public Pulse if
The. Survive, He Thinks:
Sees SNOW as an Aid
Stable Policies Are Best
Nash Motors Head Points to
Loss Of S25O,OOO.OOO ON
Used Autos by Dealers

Automobile manufacturers who sense
the public pulse rightly may expect to
sell more motor cars this year than
they did in 1921, c. W. Nash, president
Of the Nash Motors Company, believes.
He thinks the improvement will be
gradual and that success will be for
those manufacturers. dealers and dis
trbutors who are we'll intrenched and
who prove in the test that they are
business men,
Conditions in the East are already
much better than they were a few
months ago" says Mr.. Nash. "This
improved condition is gradually moving
West, as it always does. | expect to
see marked Improvement in the auto
mobile industry immediately after the
shows. and this Improvement probably
Will continue at least until fall"
However, he adds, the real success
for manufacturer or dealer during the
who are we'll entrenched, "who conduct
their business on real business prn-
ciples, who give to the customer real
value for every dollar expended, and
who do business themselves on fair
margin of profit and with their houses
so in order that they can assure them
selves of that fair profit" He con-
tinues:
The time is here when both manu-
facturer and dealer are being put to
the real test and only the fit can re-
main. Now is the time that the auto
mobile business offers its greatest op-
portuntes to men of real business
ability. combining the proper proper
ton OF courage and conservatism, and
right now is an excellent time for
men of this class to become automo-
bile merchants.
Much Depends on Dealer.
"But it is also time when the manu-
iscturer must choose his dealers care
fully, and when the dealers success is
TO be absolutely determined by the kind
Of factory connection he holds This
is the time when only the manufacturer
with stable policy. with sound
finances. with clean and efficient busi-
ness methods. with fairness always in
mind to both dealer and car owner.
can survive. 1t is the time the manu-
facturer must have a complete line of
automobiles, because the dealers sue.
cess is more and more dependent upon
such line, and the manufacturer who
oyerlooks the dealer and fair profit for
the dealer is bound to fail. On the |
other hand. a factory with that sort of
background and with those policies is
the only one with which a dealer can
afford to associate himself
"The successful manufacturer must
have stable policy. and the more close
ly knit his organization, the more close
ly his stock is held and the more Sc
cure the management is the more the !
dealer can be assured of real stable, |
dependable dealer policy. and the more
confident the owner may be of real
transportation service.
The factory dominated by this sort
Of policy, and only one 50 dominated
can make cars that are bound to have
table resale value. And this brings
US to the second hand car problem
which is one of the big prob ems, if not
the biggest problem. offered the retail
quite. Of the automobile industry to-
day And this is the time at which we
must face problems Of this kind.
Big Loss on Used Cars
Last year there was g loss Of
quarter Of billion dollars on used
cars by automobile dealers in the
United States. This cannot continue
ms condition must be changed. and
changed rloht now not in two or three
years tlr1e-or most of the retailers I
IN the country Will be out of business. |
and without the retailer there can be |
no automobile industry.
Many plans have been suggested !
70 control the second hand car market, I
pu' an that have been proposed are too I
complicated. depending upon the CO.
operation Of too many conflicting in
forests Finally the problem will be I
, oEed ny the common sense of the !
ono OF the reasons for bad cond- I
.1,'.i .,C'.s ~ the retail outlet, Mr. Nash /
i .ni'AS' IS the practice of certain fac
,oi'es IN urging their dealers to take
Ym secondhand cars and go into ap
auSomooile trading business on an un-
'pa1n'aoie ''a basis merely to get factory
oi1'ne. ne Inns policy may temporarily |
~elp Ihe factory. but it is bad business !
lor the dealer and a menace to the |