San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1925-09-27
NE-YEAR-CAR
REPLACED BY
8 AND 10
Motor Trend Moves To-
ward Permanently and
More Service.
By JOHN w. WILLYS
President MiIlys. Overland Company.

ny JSIlIN w. WILL y
President WHY'S. Overland Company.
Trend in motor car body and me-
chanical design throughout the in
dustry in late years has been towards
longevity. Motor experts state that
the average life Of cars now produced
is eight years. Manufacturers fea-
ture the fact in their advertising and
sales data that their cars will stand
up for eight to ten years with rea-
sonable care.
The day of the so-called "one-year
car" has long since passed. Your
far-sighted manufacturer is working
with the thought in mind Of giving
the public q car that will not only
stand up satisfactorily as long as the
gloss of newness is upon it, but will
serve the owner FOR good many
seasons and a good many thousands
of miles.
GOES 100000 MILES.
Our sales and service departments
have innumerable records of cars
which have been in use for this length
Of time. We have a Willys-Knight
engine which has travelled more than
100000 miles in police and fire SER
vice in Toledo and is now being used
in a truck. Out in California there
is Willys-Knight coupe which has
passed through the hands of three
owners and has travelled more than
100000 miles without once having
the cylinder head removed. A taxi
cab operator in Chicago drove
Willys-Knight cab moro than 10000
to 10000 miles to the complete sat
isfaction of their owners.
Only just the other day we received
word from n driver OF an Overland
car of the year 1908 who had just
given his seventeen year old vehicle
a fresh coat Of paint. Last year this
car carried him from Wichita, Kan,
to Pixies Peak and back again.
DESIGN STANDARD.
Motor car design has become more
and more standardized. In the
earlier days Of the INDUSTRY expert
ment and development succeeded each
other at such rapid pace that new
models were brought out every few
months to take care of these. Gradual
~ this system was altered so that
it became the vogue to bring out a
new model each year. Some manu-
facturers still adhere to this policy.
But the greater number Of standard
motor car builders today bring out
new models only when it is felt that
the changes are of such radical ma
ture or so numerous as to warrant
designation of the car by a new model
number or letter.
LITTLE CHANGE.
For instance, Willys-Overland prod
ucts for the past six years have been
well standardized. In 1919 We first
brought out the Overland and WHY'S
Knight four-cylinder models which
have served as the basis of our pro-
ductions ever since. Naturally, over
a period Of six years there arc bound
TO be new developments and refine
ments. These have been included in
our product. Body lines have been
altered to meet newer styles. In
provements in motor and chassis con-
struction have taken place. Demand
for balloon tires swept through the
industry and this meant redesigning
OF the chassis to take care Of this
equipment.
But fundamentally there has been
little change. The wheel base, spring
suspension and general design of the
two cars is much the same.
BUYERS INSURANCE.
Willys-Overland's experience is anal.
ogous to that of the majority Of IS.
tablished automobile builders. Take
1910 model of any standard make.
Compare it with 1911 model Of the
same make. Then compare the mod.
els Of each succeeding year until 1915,
Compare 1916 cars with 1919 and
1920 and then compare the models Of
1920 with 1925. Scarcely without ex-
ception you will motto greater changes
in appearance and mechanical speci-
fications in each year from 1910 to
1915 than you note in the periods OF
1916 TO 1919 and from 1920 to 1925. |
A 1920 model Overland or WHY'S |
knight is by no means rs out of date
in appearance today as 1870 model
was in 1911.
This trend is becoming more and
more definite and its continuance is
almost bound to insure n new car
buyer Of 1925 that his car will still |
not only be in style. but will continue
to render him satisfactory service in
five years from the time he Sas bought |
his car.