The Bismarck Tribune Newspaper, February 14, 1929, Page 11

AUTOMOBILE NEWS [marae | THE BISMARCK TRIBUNE .What 1929 Auto Leaders Think' 4 Of Car Production, Mergers, Airplanes, Motorists, and Traffic | ** * sae AUTOS SEE VAST CHANGES IN LAST FIVE YEARS I look for the automobile manufac- turer to enter the field.” mise Lamers || What a Differance Just a Few Years Make Albert Russel: Erskine Bureau Five years is rather a short time in the life history of a great industry, but the last five years stand out like 50 in the advancement they have brought to the automobile, This comparatively short time has seen the automobilé Fy difficulty facingso- : Beet, ‘ transformed from a mere medium of transportation to a veri ea tatily grab : ; — table parlor on wheels. It has seen the small eight come into lem? i | 3 a use, the six become more popular and the four wane in appeal | “The most seri- : eh a earn, 2 1 ail, ot Neen D ous difticulty "in to the public, It has seen the European type car come and go some of the leading automobile mak- bi ° 1 : ' —tried and found wanting by a comfort-loving public, Se aie FIRB eee getting public of- . : . my so In this short period, some 60 makes of automobiles dropped RS “ee : : by the wayside, while only 15 new ones came into being. Of : the 60 “orphans” some were replaced by more improved models under the same names, but the great majority of them will be heard of no longer. 1 The expansion of the industry, of the nation-wide adoption of the automobile, of the advent of the two-car and finally the three-car family, and of the widespread beneficial effect upon other in- dustries and prosperity in general—these are so obvious that they need not be dwelt upon here, Perhaps more interesting would be # comparison. of the automobile of five years ago with that of today, in order to show how far the motor car has advanced mechanically in this time, Many Changes in Short Time t Let us review some of the high points in this comparative analysis, In the last five years we note the general adoption of— Four-wheel brakes, and leaders in activities relating to automotive progress were approached with specific questions on the sub- ject. The answers to these questions have been compiled especially for The Pi Tribune though the courtesey of { NEA Service, Inc. As short as most of them are, they reveal what the big minds of the industry think of the present future of the automobile. i Here are the questions put to each ; and the answers returned: Still Going Up! ALFRED P. SLOAN, Jr., president of General Motors Corporation: Have we reached the peak in automotive production? “So far as 1929 is concerned, I believe contentious. Chauffeurs ; Balloon tires. and truck drivers are next. : % OH men and agents are a close third.” 2 gé. 8, ri Pyroxylin finish. ; ‘The high compression head. ‘The air cleaner, fuel cleaner and oil filter. y z 1 industry indi- cates that sales; during er | of BB og ge Ee vice Qe These pictures tell the story of a few years’ change in the auto- priced field, which means that we ; 7 * Si cme a Gane Sie motive industry. At lower left is the new 1929 Buick and at lower of busiriesa’ into” 1 right’ the 1929 Studebaker President Eight. Compare these course Wb 36 addition to the normal) (ag i }latest models with their predecessors, the 1921 Studebaker at “The normal trend will call for in- | ae : upper right and the 1922 Buick just below it. Then, to realize d : how fast we’ve grown, take a look at the 1929 Oakland at upper i FEES Increased visibility, due to narrower front pillars, Double drop frame construction for a lower body. Cross radiation. and many more improvements hardly secondary to those enumerated Everything, big enough by itself, was only a meager part of the over-all development of the automobile, " Had to Buy All “Extras” As a result we have today a motor car sleek, swift and safe, much easie? to drive than it used to be and far more comfortable for the passengers, In the beginning of 1924, automobiles were sold at the factory price without the accouterments that go with them today—rear-view mirror, windshield cleaner, bumpers, shock absorbers, sun visor and so on. Such additional features as oil filter, air cleaner and fuel cleaner were unknown then, while today they are integral parts of the car, ‘The motorist of 1924 had to buy an extra motor heat indicator which he gets today on the dashboard in front of him. He had to worry about the sudden overheating of the engine because of the lack of thermostat The campaign against advertising signs that blot the land- scape and incur dangers along state highways has advanced to such an extent that already some parts of the country are planning further means to keep the highways beautiful. automobiles has subsided. Today it is style, comfort and per- wget . : which is part of nearly every automobile sold today. He had to climb out In California, for example, there’s a state-wide movement formance in terms of Power, rather than speed, that are ad-| behind to see how much gas he had in the fuel tank—enother inconvenience to interest land owners and motorists in the removal of un-| vanced by manufacturers in their efforts to appeal to the pros-| eliminated by modern ingenuity, sightly and unhealthy material along roadsides. Untenanted ponies meeeeiat: aa Moter Makes Big Advance and dilapidated shacks, old signs, dead trees and other dis- peed, it is gradually being disclosed, has its limit so far as : ticleney: would iza-| the, automobile is concerned. When it stretches beyond that| Five years ago, the automotive engine was far from the ad Pee eee figurements are being removed by the various civie organiza- limit, it reaches beyond the bounds of motordom also. Product it is today—although today’s still has to go some for the est toes France Registers Cars. )‘°* ° ‘he state. its next field is aviation, The airplane resumes where the | can be obtained from it. Yet, in these ahort five years, the motor Block: has ‘alice ivegis' ars The state has gone further in the effort to provide not only | automobile quits. That's the significant factor that is gradu-| been cast in a stronger alloy, the pistons have been made of more power- good highways but beautiful scenery along the way. B., B.|#lly being realized by our automotive leaders. It is also being |‘! material rather than mere cast iron, the valves have been strengthened so bli ce Sse ond that ‘trees’ on | Sta8Ped as an opportunity to foster the automotive program | 84 errangd so that greater power, smoother performance and additional Meek, director of public works, lered that no trees’ or |of the future, when large fast busses will travel over wide con- |fuel economy may be gained from the motor's operation, ‘ shrubs be cut unnecessarily from roadsides. Only when prun-| crete highways and will hook up with even faster airplanes to ing is insufficient to give the visibility desired for safe motor- arable, passengers to cross the continent in as short a time as to be removed. . . Sandip iyi i a Even today this arrangement is being planned by one of We may expect therefore, at least in California, the de-| the largest passenger bus operators in the country. His bus velopment of a road system that will be not only safe but | and airplane hook-up would bring Los Angeles and New York pleasant to travel over. closer by at least two days. Its success will start other such binations in itable bus-ai - Other states are doing si feiieke ecibtat the nest een = jons in a veritable bus-airplane network over the coun. eration may enjoy a much more beautiful road system than we * ‘Thus the desire for speed and more speed is being satisfied have today. : not by forcing it out of the motor car but by transferring it to the airplane at the point where the danger to human life be- comes too gt for land travel and where automotive efficiency #4 begins to ine rapidly. : hat’s T ‘he Diff? It is well known to automotive engineers. that the faster a i | d ° axiom among highway engineers that th. her the speed see : ee : sae pnt planned pee for ms seen ene 2 ne more celly does that Be x . e in proportion It How Many Points of Difference Can You Detect Between This || trattic’ The read move ke wider, the ‘pavement most’ be Car and the Latest Automobile of Today? LIMITS OF SPEED Almost as quickly as it originated, the topic of speed in e 8 e Bei i i ges motor travels the less efficiency it becomes, And it is also an amoother and faultless, and the curves must be banked higher The saving grace, therefore, in this urge for speed is the not the high-powered, automobile. aie