Peter’s letter to the editor last week about our 1958 Studebaker article has generated a robust discussion. Thank you to everyone who has participated. Part of Geeber’s comment in that thread addresses a broader topic: why the popularity of premium-priced U.S. brands fell in the late-1950s. He makes some important points, so I have reposted a major portion of his comment below.
When looking at sales figures for 1958 and the premium-priced cars, it’s important to remember some key factors. By 1957, the low-price three offered all of the performance and luxury features once reserved for more expensive marques. Some models of the low-price three out-performed their more expensive corporate brethren, because they featured the big engines and hot performance options in lighter bodies.
Chevrolet and Pontiac ads for 1958. Click on images to enlarge (Automotive History Preservation Society)
Second, virtually every Big Three medium-price marque had experienced a quality disaster during the years 1955-57. For Buick it was in 1955 and 1956, while Dodge, DeSoto, Chrysler and Mercury hit rock-bottom in 1957 and 1958.
Also see ‘1958 Mercury Turnpike Cruiser is a monument to Ford’s failed ambitions’
The only two marques that avoided a quality disaster during this period were Oldsmobile and Pontiac. Note that Oldsmobile suffered the least in the 1958 recession, despite offering some of the most gruesome styling to come out of Detroit that year (or any year). Olds moved from fifth to fourth in the sales race.
Oldsmobile and Buick ads for 1958. Click on images to enlarge (Automotive History Preservation Society)
Customers figured out that they could order a Chevrolet, Ford or Plymouth with all of the goodies they wanted, and pay less than they would have for a medium-price model equipped in the same way. Meanwhile, the quality problems experienced by the medium-price marques during 1955-57 had seriously damaged the idea that moving up the prestige ladder meant buying a better car.
Also see ‘1957-58 Plymouth: Suddenly it could have been 1962!’
So while the public was rebelling against excessive glitz, there was also a recognition that it was possible to get the desired performance and features in a less expensive car. Customers also figured out that the medium-price Ford and Chrysler marques weren’t necessarily any more reliable or better built than the Ford and Plymouth. In the case of the Chevrolet versus the Buick, the cheaper car was more likely to be reliable.
— Geeber
RE:SOURCES
- wildaboutcarsonline.com (Automotive History Preservation Society): Buick (1958); Chevrolet (1958); Oldsmobile (1958); Pontiac (1958)
Indie Auto invites your comments (see below) or letters to the editor (go here). Letters may be lightly edited for style.
Geeber makes good points. How much of a factor it was in the sales decline of medium-priced cars is hard to know. Certainly the recession was a primary cause. That Cadillac didn’t suffer as much perhaps speaks to the reality that it sold to buyers whose wealth ranged from “can afford something a little bit more expensive than Buick” to those who could afford anything even in a recession.
Very good point about Cadillac, Paul. There was still sufficient distinction between a Caddy and a Chevy in 1958 that the upper echelons were not concerned about possible commonalities. No surprise that by the 1970s, with those distinctions significantly blurred, luxury car buyers chose Mercedes-Benz products in ever increasing numbers.
Excellent point in turn, CJ. I vividly remember a doctor on my paper route once parking his brand new mid-Seventies M-B in the drive. When I saw it I couldn’t help but be impressed. I knew something about the 450SEL but this one had a 6.9 on the decklid. It was brown, just like this car:
https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1977-mercedes-benz-450sel-6-9-9/
At that time the Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham and Lincoln Town Car were the top luxury cars in my mind, excluding rarely seen Rolls-Royces. This M-B was something different, so commanding. I could tell it was more expensive than the American cars. That the doctor chose it over the others left a lasting impression on me. Two decades earlier M-B’s position relative to American luxury cars was not nearly as strong.