Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1933-07-23
Last Days of July Indicate
Little Tapering Off Before
Autumn.
FORD PLANTS RETURN
TO OLD-TIME STRIDE
Company Sales, Slow to Join Re.
covery, Now Mounting Rapidly
and Farm Outlook Stirs Hopes.
BY EDWARD w. MORRISON.

Special Dispatch to The Star.
DETROIT, July 22-The belief is
growing in Detroit that the heaviest
production schedules Of 1898 are still
to be realized in the automobile In
dustry
Predictions were made two months
ago that June would furnish the peak
OF operations, contrary to other years,
when April and May were the busiest
days in and around Detroit. June
passed, however, without any noticeable
contraction in the early Summer pace
q pace that served to bring cheer to De-
troit and other industrial centers closely
allied with the automobile world.
As the industry swings into the last
days OF July. it is obvious there Is to be
hardly any tapering of in the rate of
ativity for Detroit plants before Au-
tumn. July production figures will be
somewhere around the June totals-in
the neighborhood Of 225,o00 or 230, 900
units.
August Record Expected.
The August trend should be upward
probably to new mark for the year.
The reason is to be found in the sharp
expansion in Ford operations. Ford has
shown signs In the last two weeks Of
hitting the oldtime stride. The Ford
furnaces are beginning to blaze with
their ancient fury. The Ford lights are
burning with their former brilliance at
night. Overtime sheets are finding use
again and old employees are being added
to the pay roll by the hundreds
From all indications Ford now is
ready to push his plans for q new light
car Tho model rroho h1y will he a W
early in the Fall
Ford sales are feeling the impetus of
the rapidly increasing purchasing power
OF the public, for one thing. To some
extent. Ford sales did not react to i'm
proved business conditions SO quickly as
those Of some of his competitors. The
Ford march appars now to be on. how
ever. The general prospect that the
pocketbooks of the farmers will be
heavier this Fall. is promising outlook.
Of course. for Ford.
The upward sweep Of Ford sales prob
ably will mean that the third quarter
will be the heaviest production period
Of the year for the whole industry. At
in view of the fact that there has been
no reduction Of schedules elsewhere. -.
Plants Run Day and Night.
Detroit body plants continue to run
day and night. Such manufacturers as
Chevrolet, Dodge and Plymouth are
maintaining employment list at tops for
the year. Buick will proceed on the
basis Of present operations until Sep
TENDER, when work will begin on 1894
models.
Manufacturers here take the view.
almost to q man, that as individual
wages are increased, the first thing
majority Of families think about is the
need for a new car At the end of
1882. So per cent of the automobiles
on the road were more than 5a years
old. The percentage probably has in
creased since last December. To the
automobile manufacturers this means
that there are almost IA ,000. DOOR In
need Of immediate replacement.
Last December, 24,136,879 automo-
biles were registered in the United
States This was q decline Of 1884 ,564
from the 1929 registration peak Of 26,-
sol, 443.
In other words, more than 1000, 900
potential automobile owners are to be
found among the persons who. Tor one
reason or another, discarded the use OF
q car during the last four years.
One authority in Detroit has gone
so far as to estimate the total potential
market for new cars as high as IT,,
600, 600 cars Such an estimate Is based
on the fact that the average age Of
all the cars on the road Is AZ years.
Figured any way at all, in the face Of re-
stored buying power, the automotive in
dustry still has many busy months
downright, 1889