Evening Star Newspaper, July 31, 1927, Page 66

ek V- '8 STUDY OF TRAFFIC CODE IS ESSENTIAL !(]onlrols Prevent prings of Auto From Going 'Wil(l'; | The reason many spring control \ Clark Points Out Statutes + Are Changing and Periodic Review Is Needed. | Periodic review of the local traffic) regulations under which he drives | ehould be the duty of every moto; car owner, but indications are that | it 1s one that too frequently-is not | carried out, says Charles P. Clark. | manager of the District of Columbia “division of the American Automobile | Association. Motorists cannot afford 1o assume that they know the regula- tions at all times, particularly in the | present period which is marked by | %o many progressive steps in traffic control, Mr. Clark points out. | “During the 1927 session of 44 Ktate legislatures, 2,600 bills relatin to the automobile were introduces he says. “So large a proportion were | passed that the volume of automotive le ion is 10 per cent greater than the last year in which many of the State hodies met. How many | motorists can say they are acquainted with all of the major changes made in their State's traflic code? Every one should be. hut it seriously is to be questioned that even a majority has kept up with every detail of the revision, “The trafic code, municipal or State, is the basis of street and high- ¢ safety. It exists to provide the motorist and pedestrian with a course of action in every situation in which he may find himself. If this course ction is to be followed safely, it followed by every one. One person who fails to observe it can confuse all others involved. The one guilty of this offense more likely than not is the d: pace with the progress of the traffic regulations. “In traffic sirveys, the American | Automobile Association has found this 15 be the case in virtually every city Ignorance of the regulations obvious bt with grave danger to | oneself and others. The way to overcome this ignor- ence is to review the traffic code at regular intervals. This invelves no hardship and the results more thin Justify the trouble one takes to do | -80. s, THOROUGH TESTS ASKED. | Buyers Now Want Complete Dem- onstrations of Cars. tor-wise individuals are making their car buying more successful than ever by asking for thorough demon- strations. Virtually every dealer is ratisfied with this trend and is willing to facilitate it. So, in buying the new car, ask for a demonstration of the car's every feature. One point that often is missed in considering the pur- chase of a car is comfort. Instead of confining the demonstration alto- rether to such features as power, speed, flexibility, acceleration and de- celeration, it pays to see how it per- forms over a rough street. Obviate Cnt_ Troubles. In order to insure himself of a pleasurable vacation. the motor camper must first of all be certain that the car is in as ship-shape con- dition at the start of the tour as is humanly possible. The motorist’s mind should be occupied only with pleasure while en route, and not with worries as to the car’s mechanical condition. gé & & SRODDBD: OGO O . & & 5. SSOBD | &reatly to avoid congestion on State | of the State Roads Commission. ver who has not kept |y | 1y oppenents of the higher legal speed | | that | mum speed would be necessary | moving vehicles in the heavier traffic | cause more ¢ For the 30x3! OUR PRICES ON ALL SIZES OF BALLOONS AND HIGH-PRE devices do not deliver 100 per cent efficiency is beeause the springs on which they are used are not in good condition. Manufacturers of such spring control equipment | paying more and more attention | to the springs themselves. The | springs are the real shock absorb. | ers of the car, all other devices being utilized mainly for the pur t pose of controlling the recoil action of the springs and preventing in <ome, what is known as “hottoming” of the springs. 1In | her words, the spring control devices are designed to prevent the springs from going wild and are not intended as substitutes for springs, cases, a MARYLAND'S TRAFFIC | HELD AIDED BY SPEED i"jie it urie. | drivers cut the corner too short, and | by so doing traveled for a short dis- 40-Mile Limit Has Helped to Avoid Congestion, Says John N. Mackall. | | street heen free for oncoming traffic. About 30 per cent showed this shortcoming. Maryland's mew maximum speed mit of 40 miles an hour has helped | of reads, and traffic conditions | shown a big improvement since the law went into effect on June 1, ac cording to John N. Mackall. chairman | have a w t “I have heen traveling over the |W roads considerably since the new law hecame effective and have found the even on the days of heaviest t the congestion has not heen as under the old law,” he said. * mum high speed is a gre rd solving the traffic qu tion on our highways Mr. Mackall also said that, so far as he had been able to estimate, fewer accidents were reported during June |t than the month before, although the | tu traffic, if anything, had heen heavier. In discounting the theory offered a in more accidents would occur the crest of hills and at_dangerous curves, Mr. Mackall declared that the white lines placed by the State Roads Commission at these points had completely relieved this situation and had removed the dange To make even greater improve- ments in the traffic on the highways Mr. Mackall said that a law requir ing the maintaining of a hizh mini- Slow- at | fr th th 1 t fo ngestion than any other factor, he said. DISCUSS PARIS GARAGES. Suggestions for the construction of garages underneath the public parks of Paris and London are being cor sidered by the governments concerned. suggestions, calling also for the on of cab stands and public parking spaces, were advanced by the British Automobile Association, which has been urging the govern: ment to take up its plan for the con- struction of underground parking places. As outlined, the plan would pro- vide for a cellar garage with two en- trances and two exits under each park. Government officials, however, have held back, believing the cost would prove too high. There are more than 330 public squares in Lon- don, and if this plan were carried out there would be room for thousands of | OArS. | m n h: 95 %2 Clincher For t (LEVELANDDRIVERS ‘Check-up Discloses 90 rPer‘ the mote Iy, was disclosed hy a recent survey | conducted hy the Cleveland Automobile jc | thoroughfares of the city, less than 110 per | while others amounted 1o failure to |Teft-hand turns were made the v of hlocked proaching. | of the street on the correct side. drivers making mist in fact—made their mistakes by pull- ist tending his left hand hori the left side of the car should be given rom intersecting streets would meet moto into the street into which he de: to turn. Experts Find Use on in general use, from wheel to wheel in order to get the utmost wear out of them. the as been s old s cate its_resumption. tion it is well to remember that the rear tires get the greatest wear and in making a change it is best to move them back wheel to the other. 1926 approxin in 19 THE SUNDAY STAR. WASHINGTON. D. €. JULY 31.° 1927—PART 3. John Smith and His Car BY FREDERICK C. RUSSELL. TURN INCORRECTLY Cent Break Rules When Going Left. That approximately 90 per cent of ists making left-hand turns t an intersection where thers are no affic light signals do so improper- Tub. This survey showed that of 100 ars checked on each of the main cent made the turn as pre- ribed hy the traffic regulations. ome of the mistakes were glaring, traflic to the rear of the in- The great majority of the erring nee the have over into the lanes wrong side of that should In many cases where these short sion driver making the turn was by buildings on the corners the streets so that he was unable if another vehicle was ap- the At least 20 per cent of the erring| rivers were forced to jerk their | heels to the right after making the i to avoid hitting automobiles hich were just reaching the corner Io The remaining 20 per cent of those kes in left-hand neglected to signal cars in the of their intentions of making turn to the left, the survey showed. A very few—less than 1 per cent, the intersection there until the starting their g to the right of nd then waiting aflic lulled before 1rns. Before m: should s ng the furn, the motor- gnal his intention by ex- ontally out s his signal t least 100 feet av the intersection before making he turn Then the motorist should estimate he center of the intersection where nes drawn from the centers of the The should drive to the right of spot and after waiting 1o should continue es st his center v traffic pass CHANGING TIRES URGED. - i Alternate ‘Wheels Is Beneficial. Wheii high-pressure cord tir the motor cz nade it a_practice to change them Since balloon tire came into promi- ence, it is found that this practice more or less discontinued. however, have found the ili to be helpful and advo- In this connec- ire expert stem forward instead of from one Canadian was automobile production in ued at $135,000,000, or $25,000,000 more than SEEDBERS SUMMIT TIRES Sold With the Standard Warranty $Q.95 he 29x4.40 Balloon SURE CORDS ARE THE LOWEST FOR QUALITY TIRES ANY. WHERE. | results., John Smith is a character whom every motorist should welcome. He is not selfish: rather he is & motoring martyr, a chap willing and lad to have exploited, in an interesting way, hls experiences for the mefit of other members of the motor clan. Alr Your Troubles. Fear of being considered “fussy” has kept many a car owner in the dark about matters which could and should be solved, As a matter of fact, progressive car manufacturers and dealers recognize that their best cus- tomer is the man who is intelligently critical. Only through such criticism can the manufacturers improve their prod- ucts. Engineers may test cars for months, even years, but they scarcely can hope to see things exactly as the car owner sees them. There always are the unexpected features in con- nection with car use that cannot be provided for in advance. But they can be tackled successfully if the car owner will divulge his experiences and co-operate, Smith's case was' a very good illus- tration of thi He had bought a good car and naturally expected fine He had not =aid that he was not quite satisfled with every little phase of the car's performance, but one could tell by his failure to praise the car that there was something on his mind. I decided to find out what it was. Discovering New Sound. “This certainly is a powerful en- an. “I have vet to find a tion, and so far as hills are concerned you don't seem to have ny need of second at all.” ‘That's all very true,” he admitted. “But I'm not always accelerating or climbing hills. Most of the time I'n driving on the level and I can't that 1'm entirely satisfied with engine under these condition He explained that at two very defi- nite speeds the engine made a noise that was objectionable to him. F had not mentioned it to me for the re: son that he thought possibly he was too critical. Two other owners of the same n e of car had hold him that they had no such fault to find. Testing out the car at the speeds he mentioned revealed noises that were unpleasant, indeed. One de- veloped at a speed of miles an hour, while the other was observed as the car passed through the speed of approximately 34 miles an hour. “I try not to let it hother me," Smith said. I getr through these par- ticular speeds whenever possible, but sometimes traffic conditions force me to drive at . It's don’t notice the asked Brown drive the me chassis model,” 1 explained. our friend down the street wouldn't be ex to notice anything like this a y. Despite the fact that 1 agreed with him that the noise was objectionable, it's because | fortunate when a {estly thinks his product is Smith did not want to mentfon it to the dealer. Just think I'm fussy,” W ol “They declared. “But maybs you'll be doing them a favor,” I suggested. “Evidently you've found something that escaped the engineers. Or perhaps the engi- neers knew about the noise, but felt that if the publio did not notice it thers would be no point in revamping the engine. There has to he some ob- jectlon to anything and if the public is matisfled there does not seem to be any. You know there are many in- genious hits of design that would be welcomed by engineers and persons who are expert in driving. But these things would surely irritate the pub- e Naturally we headed for the dealer’ service station and there explained the situation to the foreman. “That’s a power noise,” nosed the trouble. “I'm glad you r ported it. The factory is gathering information on the subject and vou | can rest assured that there will be a remedy forthcoming within a short time.” Smith had taken the step that | would enable the manufacturer to im- prove his product. If Smith, and a few other intelligent critics like him, not reported the situation the | er might have suffered a | sizeable loss in trade. It Is un- | manufacturer hon- | ht while | public whispers advice | he dia very | runtled [to keep away from the car. Factory Orders Change. Shortly after Smith had complained the dealer received instructions to substitute a slightly thicker cylinder head gasket when the new models were brought in for service. The factory engineers had discovered that this slight alteration would do away the power noise without in any affecting the operation or the features of the engine. frequently hapi that the factory discovers a way to improve existing models, but the dealer over- looks the matter of notifying his cus tomers. An instance is recalled where it was only by complaining and se- verely criticizing the engine in the présence of the service station man- ager that the car owner came to learn of a minor change that corrected the trouhle. There had been an opening at the fiont end of the valve tappet com- partment through which hot air en- tered and dried oft the valve stems, causing them to stick. A shield placed over this opening did away with a very troublesome situation. Air the “car's troubles. Be intelli- gently critical. Those who do not care do not help toward perfection. (Conyright, 1927.) The Old Mechanic Say You'd be surprised at the number ot trick ideas on car repairs that I pick up from customers who apparently know very little about their cars and think even less of them provided they're runnin’ right. There's one hap that comes around here, who wouldn't even change a tire for him- self if he could avoid it, who gave me two valuable ideas about the part lar make and model of car he drives The spark and gas controls are lo- cated on the dash in the car I'm speakin’ of, and at certain speeds they set up one of the shrillest whistles vou ever heard. We tried tightenin® them at the haste and that failed. Then we tried lubricatin’ the channels through which they run in the instru- ment board. Usin' the thinnest oil we could find, we had no succss. He didn’t want us to take the time to take them out to get at them with oil because, he said, he didn't think it was necessary. Well, he came in the next day, glow- in' with success. He'd killed the whistle in a few minutes. He mixed a very thin oil with some oline to make it even more penetr and got immediate results, n' that rem- | traffic light signals. on all cars of that make now and, You Can Buy Tires at The Hub Just as You Buy Your Furniture $94.00 DOWN Delivers Any Tire The reputation built upon 25 years of satisfying customers in the Furniture business is behind these Tires . . . a reputation which has built a great chain of stores throughout the country. and if we weren't POSITIVE these W liams Tires are wonderful values . that they would “stand up” we certainly wouldn't risk our repu- tation on them. YOU SATISFACTION. WILLIAMS TIRES MUST GIVE and they will, for they are built by one of the three best and biggest tire manufacturers in Akron, Ohio . . . WILLIAMS TIRES GUARANTEED for 12 MONTHS And remember—not only are these tires better valued than any you can buy anywhere, but you needn’t pay cash. PAY AS YOU RIDE The same Easy Credit Plan upon which we sell our Furniture . . . a small payment now and a little each week. Come in and make the terms to suit your own convenience. Vi . “. N.w. WIDE TRAFFIC PLAN OUTLINED BY GROUP Elevated Motorway and Re-| form in Issuance of Driv- ers’ Licenses Included. Reform In the issuance of drivers', licenses, construction o a West Side elevated motorway and the establish- ment of one-way streets are among | the suggestions made by the New York Automobile Club recently in an effort to arrive at a solution of the ever-increasing traffic congestion in | New York City. Following is the program adopted and recommended by the organization: Extension of Riverside drive. Flimination of Jjunior operators' licenses. Limiting the number of taxicab: licensed. Establishment of one-way streets. Construction of a West Side ele- vated motorway. Extension and improvement of Retention of car license by original registrant. Tmmediate elimination of all obso- lete surface car lines. More thorough examination of all | applicants for drivers’ licenses. New 100-foot highways leading into Greater New York. Adoption of uniform hand signals for all vehicular operators. Additional approaches to and provements of East River bridges. Entire reorganization of Traffic urt. procedure and system of fines. Substitution of overhead signals for traffic towers and base signals. Substitution of amber-colored glcbes | for red fire light globes now in use. Construction of vehicular bridge or | tunnel connecting Staten Island and Long Island. More drastic enforcement of all laws and traflic regulations governing com- mercial vehicle operation. More rigid enforcement of all laws governing headlights, brakes and other operating equipment of motor vehicles. im- C OIL HARD ON TIRES. Dissolves Rubber and Should Be | Removed Immediately. Road-oiling operations now on In| various parts of the country are fine for the highway, but hard on tires unless the motorist takes the trouble to clean them after a trip over such a surface. Oil dissolves rubber and should be removed immediately. A little gasoline on a rag will make an excellent cleanser. Gasoline., of course, has a solvent action on rubber, hut the amount used in such a case as this will - evaporate before doing any damage. B — believe me, every owner wants it when T suggest it. The same car is quite noisy in cer- tain spots when it hits the vibration point. One of the noisiest places is the rod on which the lamps rest. We tried tightenin’ things up, but still the noise persisted. Without sayin’ anything about it, the owner decided he could devise a remedy. He took the car home and cut an old inner tube to make a cushion between the rod and the fend- ers. Well, he didn’t kill the vibration, of course, but he did kill a lot of the noise it used to cause. I've got several like t g : s chap bringin’ their cars around he: They give me a lot of good ideas for trick repairs like those just mentioned. SAY GOOD-BYE Here's wvhy "1 1 A month ago the head of o Campanies came into our "head-quarters in Baltimore STEERING TYPES DIFFER. Irreversible Contributes Great Deal to Fatigueless Driving. Push-Button Lock Is New Wrinkle ] For Auto Drivers| Reversible and irreversible are two erms applied to steering gear that wem difficult for many motorists to | understand. A good way to straighten | out the tangle is to test the steering. | It the steering wheel responds when the front wheels are twisted by a bump or depression in the road, the steering is reversible. Otherwise, it is not. Most makes of cars, of course, have the irreversible type, which con tributes a great deal to fatigueless driving. Motor car makers for several vears have devoted a deal of time and ingenuity to making it easier - the motorist to lock his car. om the ignition key, they have progressed to transmission locks, door locks, wheel locks. coinciden- tal and other locks. All of these, however, involved the use of one or several keys, and the motorist, in some casas at least, did not want to go to the trouble. A new wrinkle now is heing of- fered in the form of a lock that works on various units and is brought into use merely by push- ing a button. The Key is used only to unlock the car. PERMITS CARRIED IN NUTMEG STATE Tabulation Made in Accident Case: Shows High Percentage, Officials Declare. French automobile 1axes on car. ting on producer gas have been half. That only 268 automobile operators out of 40,147 who reported accidents in Connecticut last year were unable to produce drivers’ licenses was dis- closed by a recent tabulation of sta- tistics by the motor vehicle depart- ment of that State. Nine of this num- ber had neither operator’s licenses nor registration certificates for the cars they were driving, while the other 250 were able to produce regis- tration papers. Officials of the motor vehicle depart- ment of Connecticut assert that the proporiion of persons who were able to produce their driver's licenses— 39,485, or 98 per cent of the total—is exceptionally high. Twenty-six operators had their operator’s licenses but no registration certificates. Insufficient data for a classification was furnished the de- partment in the cases of 368 opera- tors. The importance of carrying both certificates is emphasized by the | motoring hodies. In some municlpali- ties the police make it a point ta find out, every now and then, whether every operator has a license by stop- ping every car that passas a given point. After an accident, any one has the right to demund to see the license of an operator who has been involved. Inability of an operator to show a registration certificate irequentl leads to prompt arrest under suspicion | of having stolen the car. The State | law requires that the registration ces tificate he carried in the car which it describes, when operated on the highway cept in the case of cars of dealers, manufacturers and repair- ers. It is one of the laws designed to make it more difficult for people who are in possession of stolen cars to operate them and has led to the apprehension of many automobile thieves in the State. Come and Sees Diana “8” and, The highest automobile road in the ey Moon *6”’~ 5 It’s our 21st year ;\'tm;:tri‘. alnca(ed in the Bolivian Andes; feul: S 9SS building fime cars, STARTER TROUBLE? DISTRICT MOTOR WE REPAIR ALL MAKES COMPANY CREEL BROS. (e 181117 14th St. N.W. Potomae 473 930-932 14th St. N.W. Representing 48 Leading Mfrs. of Main 620 Auto Electrical Equipment and Motor Parts R 70 ALL YOUR TIRE TROUBLES NOW! ) s of the big Tire offic and said to our General Manager gy . . Teverything today is bought on Creditl Homes,Furniture, Radios, Clothing, Autos ¢.®. and so it's about time one of the leaders in the Tire business made it possible for the public to buy GOOD TIRES on the EASY PAYMENT PLAN." "But -h}‘come tous?" our Manager asked. “We DHOE ) are in the Furnityre business.® *1 know that”, the Tire man answered. ve've studied this CREDIT IDEA for months we know that *But 4 you've been in business for _ years, have a fine reputation, a great chain~ of stores . HAVE A GREAT *WE THOUGHT IT OVER TI ASKED OUR STORE MANAGERS THEY EoDY So, nbw read our guarantee below . . better tires . . 12 Months Williams Williams Tires are zuaranteed to he of quality comparable with the very helng manufacturgl In’ AKron, Heatt of the Tire@ndusirs, ™ O"'° Their construction. materials and workmanship per- turer amd ourselves to months (one year's wervice from date of purchase under conditions herein set forth account to be made as mit_the manuf; sunrantee of 12 1. The payments on_thi agreed on date of purchase. TRIS GUARAN' msl;xn",'mf‘ i ERIAL NO. OF TIRE. .......J ACCY. NO......... Beldi & 2 5 You Get . . and most important of all, YOU FOLLOWING OF SATISFIED CUSTOMERS most of them Car Owners. TESTED THE PRICES. . AND EVERY-' COMPARED ASKED OUR CUSTOMERS WAS ENTHUSIASTIC . ; . buy these . ride in comfort . . . pay conveniently. The Hub Tire Guarantee Certificate / 12 Months of a standard | 2. When used u normal conditions, failing to < now | render its full s service as a result of defect « the | in material or workmanship. the tire will be re- Dinced by us,with » mew one' and eredit allowed to offset the time remaining In the twelve-mon period in which thé tire proved unserviceable. 3. When used on Trucks or Taxicabs ar Commereial seuetes, Wiltame Tires Sre T B tadjnsted n ac- cordanee w e guarantee Rubber ‘Assoclation of Ameriea. " o 0 (e THE HUB FURNITURE C0., .. ith and D Streets Northwest, Washington, D. OF CLAIM_ THIS CER- MUST BE PRESENTED. @ place a his 12-Month Unlimited Mileage Guarantee With Every Williams Tire No Red. Tape—Drive up to our store in your car—Tell us the size you use. Pay a little down and the balance in small weekly payments—as you ride.