The Dream of the $250 Car
A 1909 prediction of the automobile's future imagines a world where the middle class owns the road.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
The history of the automobile industry is in many respects not unlike that of a human being. The infant industry has passed through the period of colic, mumps, chicken pox and measles and has safely come to a sturdy, stalwart young manhood. There was a time, not so long ago, when the driver of a motor car needed to be a combination of machinist, mechanic, sprinter and gymnast. He spent about as much time under his car as on it. Now, happily, it is rarely one must get under his car for any purpose. Another encouraging fact is that good cars can be purchased today at one-half the price of a brief five years ago. I stand by my prophecy that ultimately the day will come in America when a touring car may be had for $500, and a serviceable runabout for $250. Think of the clerks, school teachers, farmers and countless thousands of others of modest means who will then own their own cars.
“The automobile is coming more and more to be regarded not as a luxury, but as a necessity.”
This piece perfectly captures the 1909 transition of the car from a temperamental rich-man's toy to an essential, affordable tool. It mirrors today's debates about the accessibility of electric vehicles and the changing nature of personal transit.
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