Evening Star Newspaper, February 28, 1926, Page 72

PRESENT SEASON BEST FOR YEARLY CAR REPAIR End of Winter Offers Opportunity to Avoid Annual Spring Rush—Advan- tage to Owners Outlined. BY WILLIAM ULLMAN. Now is the time to order the annual major repair work on the car. Progressive motorists say the fag end of Winter is the ideal time for such work and that waiting for Springtime is a foolish custom gen- erally heing abandoned. Chief among the advantages of pre- Springtime repairing is the receptive «ttitude of most repair shops at this ason. Repair work, as everything clse, bows to the law of supply and de- mand, it is pointed out. When shops are not busy, the car owner Is as- sured mere consideration. It also is the most logical time for him to give up his car ince the cus- tomary Lad weather at this time of year renders motoring less of a pleas- than it A trip to the nearest r ssurance of many unspoiled journey next Summer Many Needs Overlooked. rgtime is one of feverish activ- pring fever, and car own- e forced to overlook cer- adjustments and re- puirs just because there i3 neither opporturity to give up the car nor accommodations to service it. Such postponed repairs must be taken care )f some time, and experience demon- strates this occurs usually when one is getting ready for an automotive week ena When the rush is least, opportun- ity is greatest to check over matters and find cut just what will be required o assare complete success of the re- pair work. When everybody is busy ordering repairs, mechanics have little time -0 look for any special parts. old g that should be discarded are replaced. Parts that cannot be found auickly are given up, repairmen resorting to makeshifts of one sort or another. Tests und careful adjust- ments are out of the question in many instances. »d repair job cannot be rushed, rdless of how large or small a proposition it may be. This is well illustrated in the case of valve grind- ing and carbon removal. A rush job may mean trying to get along with the old gasket, followed by a gasket leak and the expense of doing the job over again. Because jobs are rushed when Spring is in the air,” mechanics are forced to adjust tappets for normal clearance directly after the job Is finished. This makes a valve grind- ing job about 50 per cent effective, for the reason that as soon as the valves pound down Into their seats, clearances are not sufficient and the valves do not close properly. Loss of power is the result, sometimes accom- panted by the burning of the exhaust valves, which expand more and st partly open when they should be tight- 1y closed cat Valves Carefully. Always after valves are ground the car should be run for a day or two h fairly liberal tappet clearances. Then, when the valves have seated themselves, the car should be brought hack to the shop and tuned up. Ob- viously this s not done when shops are busy and owners want their c: of n Spri ity de ers often tain important car repairs is left until the last min- ute. If the work is planned before Spring arrives, however, there is more of a desire to do it now, with the result that the owner starts talking things over with his repairman. g There is the typical case of the car that is torn down before the owner realizes Low much cheaper it would have been to have sold it and bought a new car That is the annual Spring- time plight of many an owner. He rushes into a_job before fully apprec ating the cost involved, and the fir thing he knows he is forfeiting an excellent opportunity to make a good trade fer a new car All the Sprir es In automobil are out months in advance nowadays. so a motorist has no excuse for wait ing until Winter ends before deciding whether tc repair the old car or buy a new one. One fallacy is quite common. The motorist keeps telling himself that when Spring arrives the weather will be ideal for meddling with the car himself. He will crawl under and examine the universals. He will drain off the trapsmission case and the differential as well. He will tighten up all the nuts t hold the pan to the frame 'le will tighten up the shackla bolts, spread the spring leaves and grease them. But when Spring comes he finds the weather not as good as anticipated. Business is booming, pleasure is calling and time is limited. | Car Suffers as Result. the car suffers. The owner starts to do things backward, with results in accordance. New tires are added to the car before he i had an opportunity to see if the front wheels are in proper alignment. He may even go sc far as to have the car re- painted before the transmission has been repaired and the new timing gears installed. When vital parts of the car are ad- justed, even by competent repairmen, it always is advisable to watch mat- ters carefully for a few days. This, however, is not possible in § So Spring- time, for thoughts of touring are in one’s mind, and the car is often pressed into the sort of service for which it Is not quite ready. After working on the distributor, or taking up slack in the front end timing chain, a_mechanic may set the spark a little faster than the driver is accustomed to having it. The en gine may knock quite a bit, loosening any piston pins that may be on the danger line. The spark may also be too late, in which case the engine will overheat and cause a variety of troublas. ; One of the greatest economies servicing cars is in being sure to all the work done to vital parts when the repahiers have gone to a lot of trouble to uncover some ailment. If the crankcase is down, for instance, it is economy to install new piston pins. At least the old ones should be examined. When leaving every- thing until the last-minute rush, hov ever, parts are put back without care ful examination that might well be given while the car is apart. In other words, much of the work is only halt repair work should be given forethought. _ Winter no longer are long and dreary, \ways seems to be a long s0 the job of thinking about John Smith BY FREDERIC John Smith is a character whom is not selfish: rather he is a motorin| have exploited, in an interesting wa done. Do your Springtime repairing early. Do it now while Winter still offers its exclusive advantages for such work. (Copyright. 1926.) and His Car K C. RUSSELL every motorist should welcome. He g martyr, a chap willing and glad to y. his experiences for the benefit of the other 20,000,000 or more members of the motor clan. No. 139—Making Service Serve. Overhearing Smith complaining to ge proprietor about the poor y of the last set of spark plugs installed, 1 decided to hang a while and verify some ob- cervations 1 had been making con- cerning his method of servicing the car. “These plugs are no good,” he in- ststed. “Why, I cleaned them care- fully about a week ago.” “Maybe you cleaned them at the wrong time,” 1 suggested “I don't see what the time has to do with it.” he argued “You don't? Well, what would you think of your wife if she dusted the furniture and then instructed the fur- ce man to get the ashes ready for collection? The time and the plac has much to do with car service, if you want to make it serve. You knew we were due for a cold spell, and that you were going to make short runs around town with much choking. Cleaning the spark plugs at that time would have been a precaution against difficult starting during the past week, but it couldn’t by any stretch of the imagination be regarded as anything to make your engine run more effi- clently now. There are times to clean the spark plugs, just as there are times to drain off the engine oil. Smith was immediately interested in the matter of changing oil. Analyzing Engine O ‘Here's a little story that will help you, T exp )ne day after using a new brand of oil T was par- ticularly interested to see how it stood up under a thousand miles of running. T went out to the garage, had a little trouble getting started, but finally ached the public garage. There, ter having switched off the engine, the mechanic figured he could do the b more conveniently if T would move the car to a far corner of the garage. 1l this is preliminary to telling vou that we found the ofl from the | engine pretty well diluted. One even could smell the gasoline in it. So I was ‘off’ that particular brand and was, automatically, ‘off’ a good bet without realizing it. The fact was there was nothing wrong with the oll. T had drained it off after excessive choking and cranking of the cold en- gine. The same percentage of dilution Wwould have been found in the crank- case with any oil. “1 have heard some owners claim wonderful results from ofl just be- cause it was in good shape when they drained it off. But the final investiga- tion fsn't the whole story. How is the ofl when it is in the engine? Do vou know that when you drive your tar up a few steep hills you can burn off a large percentage of the diluent, and that if the crankcase {s drained Qdirectly after this natural rectifica- tion process, the ofl will be in surpris- ingly good condition?” This was all news to Smith, and sood MWS, too. He was just on the point of having the vdlves ground | the engine. and the carbon cleaned, but this new view of service called for a change in plans. Drivers who expect to enjoy exceptional results from their engines during the Spring and Summer ne should have the engine efficiency joh attended to toward the fag end of Winter. A few cold days may offset all the advantages. Way to Buy Service. This does not mean that valves should not be attended to in cold weather or that carbon should not be cleaned out when necessary. It de- pends upon conditions. Service has to be bought intelligently if it is to serve its purposes. If, for instance, a driver has difficulty starting the car on cold days, it is good pol to keep the valves in the best possible condition all the time. “I've seen you gri bolts on days when ing out of the city limits and off the smooth pavements. Then again I have seen you overlook this job when planning to make a long, hard jour- ey over rough roads. This reveals lack of consideration for the oppor- tunity to make service serve. The time to grease tHe spring bolts is be- fore taking the car over roads that will start the springs into maximum action and enable the lubricant to work In. “The idea applies to caring for the body of the car as well. You spend a lot of time cleaning the car and polish- ing It after it has been through bad weather, but did you ever stop to con- sider that it pays to clean and polish the car before taking it out into the rain? Water runs off a highly polished automobile hood very much as it runs off a duck’s back. “You can apply the idea of making service serve in a number of ways. There is a logical time for each job on the car, and very often a logical place to have the job done as well. “If 1 were you, I'd clean up those plugs again and put them back into There's nothing wrong It was just a case of ser- vice gone wrong. You had to do the same job twice to get results, but maybe it's been a good investment.” xt Week, No. 140: Valve Gear Varlety. se the spring u were not go- with them. (Copyright. 1926.) SUFFER SUN DAMAGE. Autos Stored Near Windows Should Be Behind Shades. Every year a large number of new automobiles are damaged by reason of sun pouring in through uncovered windows in private garages. Some- times a morning or afternoon sun will completely dull the rear deck of a new car where its rays come down on an angle through the glass of the garage doors. A few months of this and a |car begins to look as though they had forgotten to paint one section of it. Shades are the answer, THE SUNDAY STAR, WASHINGTON, D. O, FEBRUARY 28 - 1926—PART 3. DOWN THE ROAD—Innocence Abroad. HOW WAS WILLIE LADY WOULD STOP TO KNOW THE WHEN HE BLEW THE POLICE’ WHISTLE HIS MOTHER GAVE HM FOR CHRISTMAS— T Y N Emergency Brake Now 1s Becoming Parking Devic A new word is creeping into the vocabulary of the motorist and is regarded by many as much more rate than the one it supplants. ‘emergency” brake, in many salesrooms, has become the “‘park- study has shown that smergency” in most cases was lacking in precision and that “last resort” would have been a more accurate expression. The impulse of a)l motor car operators in an emergency is to step hard on the service brake. Traffic requirements which call for a service or foot brake that will stop the car more quickly than the cmergency or hand brake are cited by those who maintain the latter type serves real purpose when it keens the parked automo- bile from rolling away. AUTO DEALER:S' SOCIETY WILL MEET TOMORROW Trade Association Session at City Club to Be First Under Newly Chosen Officers. e T st reguls officers at the The V de Associatic meeting functioning City Club. President Stanley H. Horner, who was_installed at the annual banquet of the association to succeed Paul B. Lum, will be in the chair. President Horner has announced that there will 1 considerable amount of important iness to be transacted, including a report by Chairman Rudolph Jose of the automobile show committee. s report will outline the this year's motor exposi- tion, attendance at which surpassed the records of previous automobile shows, SPARK TESTS ADVISED. When Adjustment Is Off Trouble to Driver Results. hington Automot will hold its fi ith newly elected tomorrow might ymetimes ‘the spark adjustment is a little off and the driver does not know it. He may be blaming some other units of the car for what is happening. A brief but effective test of the spark is then advisable. To do this disconnect the high- tension cable from the coil. Then with a serewdriver touch the nearest metal part and hold it so that the up- per metal part of the screwdriver is about one-eighth inch from the high- tension terminal of the coil. Turn on the ignition switch and fully advance the spark control lever on the steering post. When the petcocks are opened (to relieve compression) and the en- gine cranked over by hand slowly a spark will jump from the coil handle to the screwdriver. At the moment of the spark the flywheel should be in a position for advanced spark. This | is usually marked on the flywheel and will be seen just preceding the marks for upper dead center. If the arrival of the spark does not match with the mark on the flywheel the spark is either too late or too early, as the case may be. Sy CLEAN BREAKER POINTS. If They Blacken Quickly, Need Replacing. Do the breaker points seem to blacken quickly? If they do, it i a sign that the condenser needs re- placing or repairing. Breaker points, of course, must be cleaned ever so often, depending upon the amount and kind of use the car gets and the condition of the points themselves. But if they will not stay clean more than a few days of ordinary running, the con-. denser is the bad actor. Climb Hills Fast. Among the “idea” equipment to be taken along for the tour, one of the most effective is to remember to make time going uphill when the roads are wet. You've got to take it easy on the level, and particularly when de- scending hills. Your brakes are twice as effective on the upgrade, and traction is at its peak. Make time while the road climbs. May OF NATION LIES S. Firestone Four-Year Bring; “The glo of a countr John Te. Kauai, Te lout i s well as the strength lies in its highw: Kauai High School of Hawali, points S84 n forthim the |H. Firestone four- university scholarship in the national good roads contest. Texel s essay was chosen as the best of approximately 200,000 papers submitted by high school stu- dents in all rts of the United States and its possessions. “One of the first step ing up of a country i and building of good r accommodation of trav riage of commoditie: ment of in the open- the location \ds for the lers, the car- nd the develop- ces. Since the World War, realized the economic value which good roads con- tribute to her great task of national reconstruction. The neglected farms in the United es and the preval- ence of illiteracy in isolated regions, besides the overwhelming traffic in: creases in our cities due to our in- dustrial outputs, have brought the country to a thoughtful c “In his Inaugural addres esident Coolidge stood firm for national econo- my. ‘I believe in economy not be- wse T want to save money but be- cause I want to save people. We must emphasize economy not alone in the production of goods, velopment of men and women. here that we strike the importance—improved 5 the better development of society. Good highwa leading to every home, opening up the country, en- courage social Intercourses and spread the roots of education. “The consolidated rural school is the result of highway improvement. The economy and efficiency thus pro- moted are marked features. Good roads have enabled the children by easy means to attend the consolidated school where better advantages can be offered. Environment affording varied opportunity is a strong factor in hu- man development. “Improved highways have meant the facilitation of social intercourse. In rural districts the people are scat- tered and social activities are ham- pered. The iweather and the con- dition of the highways determine the ease and comfort with which social highw: It's all very well to insist upon a car so equipped that it will auto- matically boil out the gasoline that gets into the crankcase ofl. 1 favor such devices. But they are no excuse for careless use of the choker. A great many drivers seem to be instead of learnin’ how to stop usin’ it so much. One offmy customers was in this Loat until T told him a few about this troublesome control. Carburetors that have two ranges, idlin’ and a moderate speed, are ideal foc sparin’ the choker. Usually the idlin’ adjustment is set for a richer mixture to prevent stallin’, and be- cause of this much chokin’ can be avolded by allowin’ the engine to idle a while after startin’ instead of racin’ it in the higher speed, and leaner, ad- justment range. When I see some people use a choker I am reminded of the way they take a ccld water plunge. They've got to get into the water some time, but they choose to prolong the agony. It's th» same with usin’ a choke. The way they've designed modern en- gines, a man can’t start 'em until he THE NEW —Seven-Passenger Sedan, with 130-inch wheelbase, provides real. comfort for seven passengers. $2,555 Delivered 1605 14th St. N.W. | highwa. Hawaii High School Youth in Article That Won H. University Scholarship gatherings may be attended. A cer- tain amount of social contact is neces- sary to all men. Reasonable oppor- tunities should be presented for social meetings. “More important than all, however, the strictly economic aspect of hools and soclal inter- course make for the happiness of the individual, but there can be no happi ness without a certain material foun- dation. Improved highways make possible the marketing of produce at the most favorable time. With perish able produce, this means the right season as well as the right price. Good roads decrease the cost of trans- portation and bring the farmer nearer to his market. Economy of time and economy of overhead expenses both contribute to increase the farmer's hard-won earnings. He becomes a happier, more useful member of so- ciety. This fits in with our President’s idea ‘to save people.’ “The farmer is the basic member of society. He feeds the world. Upon his prosperity depends the prosperity of the country. The bakery makes the bread, but the farmer furnishes the wheat; the cereal manufacturers turn out many kinds of breakfast foods, but the grain comes from the soil; our factories manufacture tin cans, but it requires the farmers to fill,| them. “Hence the good roads lead from the farm to the railway station, from sta- tion to factory, and from the factory back to the station and to the homes everywhere. Highways make possible the interchange of products. They are the links In the great commercial chain. Without them we are isolated communities; with them, we form a nation. “Improved roads have made possible the rural mail delivery which helps to keep the farmer abreast of the times. He can have his dally paper and keep in touch with the markets and with the weather reports. ““Good roads have resulted In the educational, social, and financial well- being of our country. They have en- abled each ‘rood of ground’ ‘to main- tain its man.’ And the glory as well as the strength of a country lies in a contented and a happy husbandry.” is THE OLD MECHANIC SAYS: uses the choke and cuts off the air supply. He thinks he is puttin’ some- thing over on the choker by goin’ at it so gingerly. This results in a serfes of stalls. Drivers who choke the least are the ones who give the engine a good choke to start with and who save crankcase dilution by making one good shot of raw gas vapor do for a half dozen smaller and unsuccessful shots. . Maryland’s highway signs are re- garded by tourists as among the best in the country. Their clarity and sim- plicity are in marked contrast to those of some States, which resemble medieval maps. Ebonite is not a “Grease.” Greases are in discard for automobile gears, They pack against® the case walls and gears run bright, which means excessive wear. oa Heeivee eiatlons From s Checkerboard pump only. . '~ EBONI (7S SHREDDED OIL PRIZE ESSAY WRITER SAYS GLORY |Have Car on Level IN ITS HIGHWAYS ' sting Gas Considerable trouble is occu sioned for car owners because of their habit of not having the car the level when seeing how much_gas or ofl they h: Un less the car Is on the level the ofl indicator will not register the truth about the crankcase contents, nor will the gas tank have the of fuel it registers. Ove as serlous as ol stars too much gasoline s sometimes as undesirable as too little, especiall where a_car is to be stored fo while. One motorist bought five gallons of gas, thinking he handn’t enough to drive him to the garage. Because he didn’t have the car on the level, the tank was supplied with five gallons of gas t orated during the Winter's storage. is PUTTING IT VOFF. Habit Makes More Business for Re- pair Man. Putting it off until tomorrow is the popular way of taking care of the automobile, but {t is also the basis of the popularity of the automobile repair business. It is just do the job tomorrow-—in fact, T But most car owners seem to forget that when tomorrow comes they only have today’'s job to do but to. morrow's as well. ~Each day makes certain demands upon the car, and unless the car receives the attention necessary to emable It to meet these requirements isfactorily the car must go to the shop frequently in order to get caught up. The sensible thing to do is to endeavor to do to morrow’s job today. In that way you're more likely to get today's job done when it should be done. not | COURTESY HE FOR MANY LD SOLUTION TRAFFIC ILLS’ Is Necessary to Prevent Further Legis- Courtesy as a solution for many of the traffic ills that beset large centers of population is winning ever-increas- ing support among those who are qualified to speak on this problem of vital concern to motorists. Automobilists must gird themselves | in an armor of courtesy to avoid the possibility of further legislation to force them to respect the rights of others, in the opinion of officials of the American Automobile Association, which is advocating an attitude of fair play on the highways. As an accident preventive, the gold- en rule is without a parallel, says E. Austin Baughman, Maryland motor vehiéle commissioner. Thomas P. Henry, president of the A. A. A., commenting on the need for mutual consideration of the comfort and safety of one’s fellow motorists, declares that all drivers of motor cars must play fair with one another if the street and highway safety program is to be successful. It makes possible, ays, the remedy of trafilc hazards realizing one’s moral obligations of resorting to wider police on Hate to Be Passed. The A. A. A. head, who made sev eral long distance motor trips in 1924 to secure first-hand information, hao plenty of opportunity to note in- stances of the lack of cameraderie on One of the most annoy- ing these of locs gh traffic to pass drivers to allow throt | them. | “The motorist who does not give way 1nd move over to his own si’ of the | road when a driver in the rear sounds | his horn is not merely a violator | motor vehicle legislation in most States, but a _menace to others who must drive with him,” savs Mr. Henry “We observed many instances of this fault on our trips. 1 belicy t | experience of longz « « everswhere » man seem fo have the impre man who attempts to wants to demonstra of his car. here is no law te to go into second ge not maintain a re; | speed on the uvgrade | terests of his own | venience of other ion that the i rely » the superiority compel a driver * on a hill if he onable rate of but in the in ety and the con who use the roads he is morally obligated to maintain a fair rate of speed. If a car i crawling along in hich se behind tempted to when the approach of : makes this hazardous. It is not fair to other users of the road for any | driver to struggle along i gear when he has u second gear at his dis- | posal. Such a_ motorist menace as the man who mist: the highway for a speedway risk pa other car: Burden on Thinkers. “In order to contribute to the 4 shways, the pro iriver must go compensate for another’s al miscalcula " Mr. Henry says. “It frequent- “happens that a motor will begin to fail a driver just he is trying to pass another car. Under ordinary conditions it might be simple enough for him to drop back, but should an- other car be following close behind and a second car approaching, the sit- uation at once betomes dangerous. Th: is the time the driver of the car being overtaken must slow down in order that the passing driver can get ahead as he had first planned “Many experienced drivers tell me that they find so many motorists who are unwilling to let them pass that they have been obliged to form the habit of not sounding their horns until they are almost past he driver who does not want to give then has less opportunity to step on the gas. This doubtless may work out well enough as a ma of technique in driving, but from the safety stand point it must be considered as a real hazard. There would be serious trouble if the unwarned driver sud- left turn. sh emphasizing the need n progress be made in h It is impossible to develop a law enforcement policy So to as No Matter G Mo , the man | lation and to Preserve Safety, A. A. A. Officials Say. perfect as to apply to every ome of the thousands of miles of heavily traveled highways. The improvement must come from the motorists them- “ilhves They must play fair with each other. Urges Golden Rule. “If the golden rule always was ap- plied on the streets and highways, accidents would be considerably fewer,” says Mr. Baughman. “There “would be fewer dented, fenders, physical injuries and deaths, and the hit-and-run policy which is be- coming such an absolute scandal in its reflection upon the decency and fair play of motorists would be a thing of the past instead of a very vital and serious problem of the present. “There are, of course, many laws that are or should be practically uni- versal. These may be called ‘common courtesies.’ Kvery driver, of course, knows that he should pass to the right when meeting another vehicle going In the opposite direction. “Always sound the horn and pass to the left when overtaking other ve- * hicles going in the same direction When at street Intersections, on curves, or when going up or down a hill, never try to pass a vehicle going in the same direction. “At street intersections, give the right of way to the car at vour right. Do not presume too much when you have the right of way; the other fel- low may not know you have it. Always signal when preparing to stop, start or turn “Application of | mental courtesies | would bring a marke from the bureaus which collect traffic accident statistics. Finally, it seems such a simple thing to do. {RULE FOR LOCKED BRAKES Drop Speedometer to Zero When Wheels Slide. When the brakes are locked so a to slide the wheels the speedometer should drop back to zero, if the car is not so old a model as to have the peedometer drive taken from the ht front wheel. Some drivers do not seem to realize when they have applied the brakes so vigorously as to locl wheels. The speedometer n sometimes be used o instanc if the str s are wet the sudden drop of the speedometer dial may not mean that the car is slowing down safely, but that the wheels have tocked and that the car mayv be sliding forward at a speed of perhaps 20 mil wn hour, though the specdomet be drd#ping from 4 ve moment the these simple, ele. by every driver * v different story ma o at the observation Is made. FULL TANKS “LEAK.” Often Is Merely Overfiow Running Down Side. Motorists with gas tanks that have on a protective covering are frequent. Iy puzzled by what appears to be a tank leak. They see a little gas dripping from the bottom of the tank, and, seeing no signs of gas around the top of the tank cover, imagine are duc for trouble. In a typ- i ase of this sort it was found that the tank was too full and that the gas in spilling over the neck of the filler pipe had run down between the top of the tank and the tank cover. Had there been no cover the owner would have immediately ais- covered the source of the leakage | Where the gas tank fs largely cov- | er the trunk rack’ or a flange from the body this situation is likely® to be met with and should be ignored accordingly Dust Fenders i‘int. If it is necessary to dust the car while clad in good clothes, remem. ber to dust the fenders and the spare tire first. If the car owner starts with the body or hood first, he will find that he is using his trousers or his coat to dust the fenders What the Signal— HTNING TOR FUEL Enables the Motorist to Respond Instantly to Every Necessary Change of Pace USE LIGHTNING for O] Quicker Starting—Quicker Getaway More Power—Greater Mileage PENN OIL COMPANY