Did many people have cars in the olden times?

It depends on which time you exactly mean:

Early 1900's: A car was a rarity and only for the rich

1920's: Stock Market Collapse meant cars were even more unaffordable

1930's: More and more people get cars ( but still only for wealthy )

1940's: WW2 meant prices of metals went up; cars were unaffordable

1950's: The Golden Era in America. People were living the Dream and had cars, TV's and other luxuries.