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There was no hope for that until the buyer's market had brought something like prewar sales conditions. Charles Erwin Wilson did not look for it until the prices of late-model used cars were at least 25% under new car prices. That seemed some time off; despite the used-car slump, most G.M., Ford and Chrysler "new" used cars were still selling at over the list prices last week. Thus, most automakers thought that car prices would stay where they were for a long time. As for Wilson, who wanted prices to come down, too, he said: "I don't expect to see Chevrolet selling [again] for $500 or $600 in my lifetime." And C.E., like G.M., appears to be in the best of health.
* Force of habit and force of salesmanship, as much as ability to pay, determine which car is bought. Over the years Buick has become the "doctor's car" because it looks prosperous but doesn't sound too expensive. Between Chevrolet, Pontiac and Olds, the choice is often dictated by the necessity of keeping up with the Joneses. And the snob appeal that sells many Cadillacs can work in reverse: many a man who can afford one buys a Buick instead, for fear the neighbors will think he is putting on airs.
* Meaning that the air-fuel mixture in the cylinder fills 7.25 times more space before it is compressed by the piston than after it is compressed for ignition by the sparkplug.
*Including (besides autos) Diesel locomotives, AC Spark Plug, Delco-Remy, Frigidaire, Hyatt Bearings, 26 others.