Boyett: Pent-up demand for new cars practically exploded after World War II ended
World War II was barely over when American consumers began trying to scratch an itch that had been driving them crazy for several years.
But it took awhile before they could inhale the smell of a new car, feel its smooth power on the road, and bask in the admiring looks of their neighbors.
American car manufacturers switched to military production quickly after the attack on Pearl Harbor. And not all of them were making vehicles. During the war many of them were making things that were far afield of their core industry.
Civilian car production resumed in July 1945, but there were bottlenecks. Probably all manufacturers began gearing up for civilian production as the war drew to a close, but Ford Motor Co. was the first to get its new models into the showrooms. The Gleaner of Oct. 24, 1945, carried a story saying Ford had long planned to be first, and that demonstration models could be seen in the Sugg & Co. showroom at Second and Green streets.
“An automotive public that has not seen a new car since the war will get the first opportunity to view the 1946 Fords today,” although prices had not yet been approved by the federal Office of Price Administration.
An advertisement – with a photo showing the 1946 Ford – appeared in the Oct. 28 edition. “Advancements everywhere you look. Rich and roomy two-tone interiors. Horsepower stepped up from 90 to 100. New performance and ease of handling. New springing for a full-cushioned ride. Brakes are newly designed hydraulics, extra large for quick, smooth, quiet stops.”
But nobody was driving a new Ford away from Sugg & Co. because the local dealer couldn’t get the manufacturer to deliver. But J. Carroll Sugg was glad to take your order.
And so were other dealers as 1946 opened. The Gleaner of Feb. 3 noted its reporter had contacted all 10 local dealers to gauge the craving for cars. “The 10 auto firms said they had orders for a total of 414 new automobiles, but that cars are coming to the local markets in dribbles.”
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But it wasn’t just passenger cars they wanted. “Farmers have placed advance orders for more than 125 tractors, and more than 60 pick-up bailers. Plows are an important item on the farmers’ waiting lists.
“Most dealers said GI orders for farm equipment would be handled first.”
The Gleaner of Feb. 2 noted one World War II icon was being converted to civilian use. Woodring Fryer, who would later have his own car dealership here, drove the first civilian Jeep into town, where he went immediately to The Gleaner office to pick up his first passenger, publisher Leigh Harris.
“The Jeep … is converted to peacetime functions ready to plow corn or any old farm chores. An interesting feature is the power applied to all four wheels.”
Between January and March 1946 The Gleaner published several advertisements for new cars. The bulk of them were for cars that are no longer made. Only Ford and Jeep continue.
The Jan. 11 edition noted Forest D. Tapp had contracted to be the dealer for the new Kaiser and Frazer autos, which were offering some new designs instead of the warmed over models from the Big Three automakers.
“A complete line of farm equipment will be carried also. A Frazer tractor and the revolutionary machine, the Rototiller, which does the work of the plow, disc and harrow” was on its way. “The manufacturers are making every effort to have this line ready for the spring market.”
I’m a little puzzled whether Henderson actually had a post-war Kaiser-Frazer dealership because The Gleaner also carried an advertisement for the Sutton & Hare Motor Co. saying it was going to carry those brands at its new facility at 1215-19 Second St. “We now have a large new garage and the new Kaiser-Frazer cars.”
There is no mention of either the Forest D. Tapp or the Sutton & Hare dealerships in the 1947 city directory’s auto dealer listings.
The Gleaner of Feb. 10 carried an ad from C&M Motors at 1300 S. Green St., which said “the new Hudsons are here … and a new Hudson dealer to serve you.” The Hudson company had a venerable reputation that began in 1909. It dominated stock car racing 1951-54, but merged with Nash-Kelvinator in 1954 to form American Motors.
“It’s a real pleasure to announce our appointment as a Hudson dealer,” the ad says. “We are proud to be able to sell such great cars.” The ad also said it could provide a three-quarter-ton Hudson pickup truck “with the famous 102 horsepower Super Six engine.”
C&M Motors was also the dealership for International Harvester trucks.
The March 3 Gleaner carried a flashy ad – by 1946 standards -- for the new Oldsmobile, which was offered locally by Meyer Bros. Motor Co. at 131 Second St.
“Look to Olds for all that’s new!” proclaimed the ad, which said the new model was in the showroom. “Look to America’s oldest motor car manufacturer for the newest, smartest thing in 1946 models – and the newest, simplest way to drive,” which was General Motors’ automatic transmission that had first been introduced in 1939. “Gears shift automatically through all four forward speeds, and there’s not even a clutch pedal in the car!”
That early automatic transmission was awful when it came to gas mileage and performance, but the ad touted that it had been “thoroughly battle-proved in fast Army tanks during the war.”
The Chrysler plant in Evansville that had converted to war production was once again starting to build Plymouths, according to The Gleaner of April 13. The first Plymouth came off the line April 4 and on April 12 the plant produced 13 of them. Normal production was expected to be 400 cars daily. (Henderson had three Plymouth dealers in 1946.)
Plant manager Frank DeCavitte estimated “that full production will be reached about July 1, assuming nothing happens to interrupt the flow of materials to the plant here and elsewhere.”
But there was a monkey wrench in the machinery that kept many Americans from getting new cars for several years. A May 17 Associated Press story reported parts and material shortages, compounded by a national coal strike that was hampering steel production. Production had been 8,000 to 10,000 cars per day before those problems slowed the assembly lines.
That AP story was part of an ad in the May 19 Gleaner that had been paid for by eight of the local car dealers. “Order a new car if you can BUT hold on to the old one,” the ad advised. “New cars can only be delivered as they are received. If you sell your old car before the new one arrives, you will be without a car. Play safe. Hold on to the old one until the new car is available.”
A few days later, on May 23, Sugg & Co. ran an ad advising car owners to take good care of their old cars. “Good service now means a good trade-in later. That’s the way to keep it rolling smoothly, safely, economically. Proper attention also protects your trade-in value.”
The May 19 ad made the same point. “Your present car, in good shape, will be a powerful factor in persuading your dealer to deliver a new one in trade when it becomes available to him…. Used vehicles are in shorter supply than at any time in the industry’s history. Many used car dealers also have waiting lists.”
Additional local car dealerships in 1946 -- other than the ones already listed -- included Scott-McGaw Motor Co., which sold Buicks and Pontiacs at 8 N. Green St.; Hart Motor Co., which sold DeSotos and Plymouths at 232 N. Main St. although it was at 1014 N. Green by 1947; Argabrite Chevrolet Co. at 214-16 N. Green St.; Hartmetz Bros., which sold the Dodge-Plymouth lineup at 116 Second St.; Higgins Service Garage, which sold Willys-Jeep at 323-25 Second St.; and the J.V. Gasser Garage at 119-21 N. Green St., which offered Chryslers and Plymouths.
100 YEARS AGO
Three cases of smallpox were discovered within the city, according to The Gleaner of Feb. 2, 1921, and within a day or two there were five, according to the Feb. 4 edition.
Schoolchildren were all examined to ensure their inoculations had taken effect, and in some cases second shots were required. The Gleaner of Feb. 5 reported the situation under control, however.
50 YEARS AGO
About 140 employees of the Audubon Hosiery Mills Inc. were locked out after the company’s labor contract with the Textile Workers of America expired, according to The Gleaner of Feb. 2, 1971.
They were back at work the next day, according to the Feb. 3 edition.
25 YEARS AGO
A six-month experiment to see if curbside recycling would work locally began Feb. 5, 1996, according to Gleaner articles in the Feb. 3 and Feb. 6 editions.
The pilot project focused on a small North End neighborhood of about 340 households. About 36 households participated the first day, which collected about 1,100 pounds of material.
Participation had gone up to 85 households after a month, according to the March 10 edition.
Readers of The Gleaner can reach Frank Boyett at YesNews42@yahoo.com or on Twitter at @BoyettFrank.