CHARLESTON CAR DEALERS IN THE 20'S ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA.... businesses lived and died by their products. It was no different for the 100 plus manufacturers of automobiles. In my lifetime alone, I saw Rambler, Studebaker , Packard and Kaiser-Frazer bite
the dust. These were the days when the very idea of
government stepping-in to save a failing company was absurd.
People spoke with their wallets, not their taxes. People
either liked your car, or they didnt.
Here
then is an ad from the 1925 Charleston Car Show, featuring many
automobiles that would eventually fail and go out of business.
Notice too the locations of the dealers. At one time or
another in Charleston, there was an auto dealer on almost every corner
you can think of, including Capitol Street and Broad & Quarrier
just to name a couple. Today, if the building is still standing,
and it was large enough to house a few cars, there's a good chance it
was a car dealer at one time. |
The ad below is for the new Lewis Motor Sales on Virginia St E.
The building became many things including a couple of Bars. It now houses Charleston Blueprint
REMEMBER ALL THESE CAR ISSUES?
REMEMBER REGULAR LUBE JOBS?
REMEMBER TAKING YOUR BRAND NEW CAR BACK TO THE DEALER AFTER 30 DAYS TO FIX ALL THE PROBLEMS THAT THE FACTORY MISSED?
REMEMBER MUFFLERS AND EXHAUST PIPES THAT LASTED 3 YEARS?
THERE WAS A MUFFLER SHOP ON EVERY CORNER.
REMEMBER WHEEL BEARINGS AND BALL JOINTS THAT HAD TO BE REGULARLY REPLACED?
NEW SHOCKS EVERY 25000 MILES?
REMEMBER
CHANGING THE STARTER EVERY SO OFTEN? REMEMBER JUMPING THE STARTER
SOLENOID ON FORD CARS WITH A PAIR OF PLIERS? ADJUSTING POINTS
ALL THE TIME?
REMEMBER CARRYING A SPARE WHITE PORCELAIN RESISTER ON DODGE
& PLYMOUTHS?
REMEMBER CONVERTING AUTOMATIC CHOKES TO MANUAL BECAUSE THEY ALWAYS BROKE? SAME WITH EMERGENCY BRAKE CABLES.
REMEMBER TRADING CARS AT 35,000 MILES BECAUSE THEY WERE CONSIDERED UNRELIABLE?
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