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12 THE OSHAWA TIMES, Thursday, March 22, 1962 Car Makers Pleased About 1962 Business By STEWART MacLEOD Canadian Press Staff Wri'-r Canadian automobile manu- facturers are looking to 1962 as a great year for business. Some think it may be the best ever. "There is every reason. to expect more vehicles will be sold in Canada in 1962 than in any previous year,' says Gor- don Grundy, president of the Canadian Automobile Chamber gf Commerce. And he pridicts that Canadian-built cars will capture a bigger slice of the market. A Cross-Canada Survey by The Canadian Press indicated teas Aaalars throuchout the base country share this optimism. The manufacturers ccrtainly do. Says E. H. Walker, president of General Motors of 'anada: "Sales of passenger cars in Canada will set an_ ail-time record . .. and prod: 'ion by the Canadian automotive _in- dustry will reach its Iughest level in six years." SEES RECORD OUTPUT E. K. Brownridge, president of American Motors (Canada) Limited, shares this view. "In 1962 more automobiles wil) be manufacturered in Cana'a than during any previous year." President Karl E. Scott of the Fo: Motor Company of Canada forecasts '"'a modest, bit sub- staztial, improvement." Mr. Grundy, speaking now as president of Studebaker Corp., is "optimistic" about the com- pany's success in 1962. The only uncertain f recast came from President E. W. Todgham of Chrysler Corp. Suc- cess or otherwise, h2_ says, depends on whether the federal government puts inta eifect recommendations of last y_ar's Bladen royal commissicn in- vestigation of the industry It called for removal of the 714-per-cent excise tax on Ca- nadian autos--already doie by the gov-rnment -- anil tu:zed changes in duties on European imports as well as a degree of integration between 'he Cana- dian and U.S. car industries. IMP' ~TS FALL If the recommendations ars implemented, Mr. Todgham says, there will be "marked growth" in the industr7. lf no action was taken there wouid be no "good reasons" for expect- ing marked improvement. An estimated 437,000 pas- senger cars were sold in Can- ada last. year. Imported vehi- cles held 23 per cent of this market, a drop of five per cent from the previous year, and many dealers throughout the country predict a further de- crease for foreign cars this year. They say the Canadian- made compacts are slicing into this corner of the market. The most optimistic dealers of all appear to be in Alberta where they predict sales im- provements ranging from five to 40 per cent. In Edmonton both Chrysler and Rambler dealers predict 40-per-cent in- creases over 1961, and all other dealers, including those hand- ling imports, predict boosts. A buoyant provincial economy is offered as the reason. Quebec dealers are also de- lighted at the prospects. Harold Cummings, a major Montreal dealer, says 'we have sold more 1962 cars so far than in any other previous year." And despite these higher sales, he said, there was no correspond- ing drop in used car sales-- somewhat unusual. LATE SALES PUSH British cars are selling well, he says, although other imports seem to have a smaller turn- over. Henri Desjardins, dealer in French cars, attributes the lower turnover to the fact that publicity campaigns are not begun' until late March. 'We don't experience ups and downs during the winter. The action comes when we start our an- nual push for sales in late March." Dealers in Quebec City are forecasting an '"'excellent" year, and while no comparative fig- ures are available they say there is a definite trend toward Canadian-built cars. "We are North Americans and we like comfort,"' says dealer Raymond Bedard. All city dealers say there have been sharp increases in the sales of compacts. In the Atlantic provinces, the outlook is generally bright. Nova Scotia dealers predict a Getter year than last year, with compacts forging ahead. Dealer Phil Carr-Harris of Dartmouth, N.S., terms the compacts "an astounding success." COMPACTS FARE WELL In New Brunswick, dealer John T. Clark says "we are reasonably optimistic." He, too, predicts higher sales of com- pacts. "This will affect the number of foreign cars but the total of smaller makes will be about the same." Dealers in Prince Edward Island won't make any predic- tion until it is known how much farmers will be receiving for their potatoes this year. In the meantime, dealers see a con- tinuing trend away from im- ported vehicles, even though they may still account for 35-40 per cent of the market. Newfoundland is one province where there is no indication of a drop in imports. Dealer Eric Pinfold says he doesn't know quite why but there has always been a good demand for British cars in the province. Generally, dealers look toward this year's business as a bit better than last. In British Columbia, manager E. T. Orr, of Vancouver Motor Dealers Association, says busi- ness "should remain pretty well the same, but it depends on many things--whether we have an election, or a war, or some- body does something to upset the world applecart.'"' TAX HITS IMPORTS British Columbia last year recorded a remarkable drop in the number of imported cars. While over-all car sales dropped 8.5 per cent, imports dropped 30 per cent. Mr. Orr attrib- utes this to more attractive compacts and the increase in valuation of imported cars for tax purposes. The Saskatchewan picture is still somewhat unclear for the year. Dealer Allen Sangster of Regina says country sales will probably pick up, although there will be certain areas where they will drop. He sees no increase in city sales. Sales dropped 10 per cent in the province last year. In Manitoba, Howard Carter, president of the Winnipeg Auto Dealers Association, says most | dealers are ooking forward to increased sales. European cars have stabilized in their percentage of the mar- Constant Search For Improvement The automobile industry -- and its partners in progress who turn out raw materials and component parts -- are busy de- veloping and testing ideas that will further extend the durabil- ity and reliability of today's cars. An example of the magnitude of this effort is seen at the U.S. Steel Research Centre at Mon- roeville, not far from Pitts- burgh. Gathered here are more than 1,000 scientists and tech- nicians representing the great- est concentration of talent and ket, he says, and have settled at a slightly reduced popularity. Dealer Douglas Everett, also of Winnipeg, predicts a swing to big cars. People '"'have taken their fling at compacts and are "éxpectéd to feturh fo the pur- chase of the larger cars 'this year." experience in steel research and technology ever assembled in one company. . Steel is, of course, by far the most important product used in automobiles. A typical car contains upwards of a ton of steel which makes up two-thirds of its weight. An important part of the scientists' work at Monroeville is to develop steels to meet the current and future engineering requirements of the automobile industry. With the auto maker's ever growing emphasis on greater re~ liability and durability, the un- rivaled ability of steel to do so many things so well and at such low cost becomes increas- ingly important. U. S. Steel, through its continuing and inten- sive search for new and better steals at the lowest Possible e prices, is contributing impor- tantly to this effort. complete details. 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