AUTOS: Mooney for Willys

When white-haired, handsome Charles E. Sorensen was squeezed out of his job as Ford’s production chief in 1944, he flopped down on a Florida beach to forget his troubles. Last week he was back on a Florida beach again and he had more troubles. This time he had been squeezed out of his job as president of Willys-Overland Motors, Inc., which he had held for nearly two years. He was still production boss, but no longer president:

Sorensen had wrangled with Ward Murphey Canaday, board chairman of Willys and owner of 52% of its stock, over policy and production. On top of this; their personalities had clashed. That was natural. Canaday is primarily a salesman. He started his business life selling stoves, joined Willys in 1916 as advertising director. With old Automan John North Willys, he helped start the first company to sell cars on the installment plan. On the side he found time to run his own ad agency (U.S. Advertising Corp.). When Willys was reorganized in 1936, Canaday came out on top.

By contrast, Production Man Sorensen, who bossed Ford’s car-making for years, thinks most anyone can sell a car if it is made right. He wanted to spend millions to modernize Willys’ production lines. Canaday balked, insisted the job could be done with present equipment, and shrewd selling.

Unable to move Sorensen—or break his airtight contract—Canaday moved himself from the board chairmanship to a newly created office of “chairman of the finance committee.” Then he moved Sorensen to a back seat as vice chairman of the board. Thus the stage was set for a new president and board chairman, who proved to be none other than handsome, globe-girdling James David Mooney, 61, for 19 years head of General Motors’ overseas business. Mooney will be both president and board chairman, thus hold the jobs formerly held by Canaday and Sorensen.

In Jim Mooney, Willys now has one of the auto industry’s top salesmen. He took G.M.’s overseas sales from 21,000 cars in 1922 to 282,000 in 1928. When war virtually wiped out his job, he did a notable job for the Navy building and tooling production plants. On V-J day he quit.

As a peacemaker, Jim Mooney has already gotten results; and Sorensen bids fair to win his argument. Within a few months Willys expects to borrow enough from a New York bank to modernize its plant in Toledo. By that time, Willys expects to be able to announce details of its new car.