Key developments that led to the annual model change
n• Rising affluence in the Roaring Twenties
• Flexible manufacturing techniques that allowed quick changeover at assembly plants
• A new advertising approach that made the car a status symbol, not just a means of transportation
• Elevated stature for stylists — notably the arrival of Harley Earl at GM in 1927 as head of the Art & Colour Section
• An evolutionary strategy that allowed major changes of a model to be spread over several years while still providing a new model each year -- mechanicals one year, major restyling the next, cosmetic tinkering after that
• Special events and suspense-building hype at dealerships that made new model introduction day an annual fall event
Henry Ford revolutionized the auto industry with a simple idea: Make the Model T reliable and cheap and keep churning out the same product year after year. By the 1920s, though, that wasn't enough.
