Cars became inexpensive, and very easy to make. In the 1920’s, the automobile industry started a revolution that we continue to see today. In 1913 Henry Ford invented and installed the first conveyor –belt assembly line in his car plant in Michigan. The assembly line reduced the cost of production for cars by decreasing the assembly time. Henry Ford’s goal was a low priced car that many people in all walks of life could afford.
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The assembly line could produce a car in an hour and half . The cost of a car decreased to 400$ the lowest price of any care ever sold.
He sold over 15 million cars and the race between Ford and GM began. General Motors Company was formed and founded by William C. Durant in 1908 . GM was the major competitor for Ford. The President of GM Alfred Sloan began realizing that they had and advantage over Ford Motor Company. Ford only had one body style car. GM had several different varieties of cars. GM began making four, six, and eight cylinder cars. GM started doing inventory control, and discontinued any line cars that were not popular with consumers. GM began making annual model changes and began advertising.
GM was able to defeat Ford Motor company due to the changes that Sloan had made. In 1921 General Motors sold over 457,000 cars and profited over 61 million. A group of companies that merged into what is now known as Chrysler became the next competitor. Chrysler Corporation new that they did not have the manufacturing resources to build a low priced car, and did not have the financial resourses to build a new plant. The solution came when Dodge Brothers Manufacturing Company was put on the market. The Dodge Brothers had become victims of the Influenza epidemic. The heirs decided to sell the company.
Chrysler purchased the company which had the resources they needed. The Dodge sales organization was considered to be one of the best in the country. With all the resources that Chrysler acquired they were able to develop the Plymouth in 1928. Chrysler then became the developing structure in America . GM and Ford began establishing manufacturing plants in Europe and throughout the world. Automobile manufacturing was the largest in the country. The employment in automobile factories was 250 million in 1922 and in excess of 400 million in 1929; the amount of paid wages doubled from 400 million to 800 million.
Before automobiles we had horses. Horses travel on dirt and grass. Automobiles travel on highways. The automobile also led to highway construction, gas services, and repair. These industries employed about the 1,2 million people. In The motor vehicle also increased the sale of rubber, steel, glass, and petroleum products. The total effect of the invention of the Motor Vehicle on American life has yet to be measured. The invention of the automobile gave America superiority. Today 41 million vehicles are produced every year. Gasoline shortages, and car wrecks will always be a factor.
The automobile industry improved social status, and increased your financial status. Americans were given the means to travel farther, faster, and more freely. Americans can travel to their favorite fast food restaurant, favorite park, favorite beach, and still have time to go to work.
Works cited Gourley, Catherine. Wheels Of Time : A Biography Of Henry Ford. [N. p. ]: Millbrook Press, 1997. eBook Collection (EBSCOhost). Web. 21 Apr. 2013. “American AutoIndustry in the 1920s. ” Articlesbase. com. Articlesbase. com, 5 Oct. 2009. Web. 21 Apr. 2013.
