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For the nation's 77.9 million drivers, it was the week to do their Christmas window-shopping early. Detroit rolled its 1958 models and began to croon its annual siren sales song to the U.S. public. Out came a whole fleet of new cars in a blizzard of announcements promising "jet intakes," "bubble windshields," "flight-pitch transmissions," "Marauder engines"—even an ICBM look. There were downswept snouts, upswept fins and outswept taillights ; all were ablaze with dazzling colors and gleaming chrome brighter than any Christmas tree. Sighed a Detroit secretary, rapturously examining a trailerload of new 1958s; "Chrome is my favorite color."
Detroit's new .cars were not only big news to the industry and its faithful public; they were even bigger news to the U.S. economy. From Wall Street to Main Street, the hopes and fears of those fretting about a business slowdown (see Wall Street) focused around the new models and gave renewed emphasis to the old saying: "As the new cars go, so goes the new year." Exaggerated as that might be, the eagerness with which the public buys the new cars may well mean the difference between a good or a great year for U.S. business in 1958. One out of every seven U.S. workers—10.3 million in all—is dependent in some way on the auto industry. It consumes 22% of the nation's steel, 13.6% of its nickel, 62% of its rubber for tires alone, 36% of its annual radio production. A boom in autos is a boom for scores of other industries.
The automakers, who spent $1.5 billion to retool for the 1958 lines, are doing their best to make 1958 a great year. Hoping to sell at least 6,000,000 cars, they have visions of even juicier sugarplums. So many motorists have paid off the debt on their present cars that 1,000,000 more potential buyers than this year will be able to buy again in 1958—maybe even enough for a 7,000,000-car year.
What Is Style? As always, there would be complaints that Detroit's new chromium chariots are too long, too heavy, too bold, too brassy. Yet the inescapable fact, as every automan knows, is that flash, dash and dazzle—what automen call style—are the attractions that sell new cars. Those brave enough, and successful enough, to produce startling new styles that catch the public fancy, as Chrysler discovered in 1957, can suddenly boost profits from $6,000,000 to $103 million (and rise from 15.9% to 19.5% of the market) in a single year. Conservatives who fall behind, as General Motors learned in 1957, can see profit figures change from $640 million to $602 million (and tumble from 51.4% to 45.5% of the market). And the car that can combine just the right amount of change with the continuity that preserves used-car values can build up year after year until finally it leads them all.
For the first time in 21 years, Ford in 1957 headed the pack with a 45,000-car sales lead over Chevrolet at the eight-month mark. Ford earnings showed it: $229.5 million for 1957's first nine months v. $145.2 million last year. And Ford is determined to do even better in 1958.