Evening Star Newspaper, April 14, 1929, Page 73

In the Motor World BY G. ADAM thoughts in the automotive world, which besides the manufacturers inciudes the motoring public. Among these thoughts are new car purchases, overhauling, and last but not least, comments over existing traffic cond ‘ions. The first two ideas are generally pretty well taken care of. A study of one’s pockethook lcoks after the former, and a little time and patience will do for the latter. Thoughts Are Varied. But coming to the subject of ex- isting traffic conditions, thoughts along this line are about as varied 2s the number of regulations themselves. Each city has its own particular worries, and is ready to believe that all other cities have ncne. v Few followers of motordom an its intricacies agree except along certain lines. Unfortunately these . lines are often non-constructive. Groups of this persuasion will zenerally agree that “all is wrong,” but cannot offer any desirable substitute. Traffic directors in all cities daily listen to such comments, taking much of their time for naught. One resident will com- plain about one thing, and an- other will commend the same thing. The trouble generally is that the complainant is thinking more of his own personal wishes, and the traffic director is trying to reasen for the mutual good of | all concerned. | It would not be true, however, | to say all suggestions made are valueless. Often a resident will know more about conditions of traffic on his block than the di- rector can learn by locking at t..e square on a blue print. Often a motorist accustomed to going]| home daily by a regular route will| discover conditions that others| who less frequently use this route | may perceive. But the value of the suggestion depends largel;| upen the unselfishness of the in- | dividual. SPRING is productive of many An Illustration. An example, not too much ex- aggerated among the many re- ceived because of its foolishness, illustrates in some way the minds of some of the residents of the National Capital. Recently Mr. Harland, director of traffic, speeded up the timing on some of the signal lights cn upper Six- teenth street. To many minds this plan was wise. But—one resident writes in as follows: “Herctofore, I was able to get a few minutes of quiet at my home before the green light | sped the thundering traffic by my | house. Now with the quicker changing of the signals, the noise in front of my residence is almost centinuous. Won't you have the lights returned to the old timing?” | Comment over Dupont Circle| has not ccased, although its in- tensity is somewhat diminishing. If motorists drove around the circle as they are expected to do,! and if pedestrians cbeyed the in-| structions of the Police Depart- | ment, discussion micht end al-| together. Anent “Comment Circle.” However, an automobile dealer, whose place of business is near the “Circle of Comment,” here- tofore known as Dupont, wishes the lights done away with alto- fether. He claims that with the ights, traffic banks up and then explodes at the same time in every directicn. His chief annoyance is due to the fact that many of his “prospects,” often new to handling a car, have difficulty in threading their way in and out of the lights. Sirange the di-| rector of traffic did not consider| him more before installing the:l lights. | ‘Washington almost gct a good! taxi driver. Almost—but Hack Inspector Sergt. Joe Harrington | did not let him quite get by. The aspirant called at the Traffic Bu- reau the other day. He was from Frostburg, Md. He wanted to drive a taxi. - No, he did not know much about the various points of S HOWARD. interest around the city. He had only been here two weeks. That | sort of barred him. “What did ou do before coming to Washing- on,” he was asked. He was a| farmer. He was then interrogated as to why he had left the farm at this time of year. “I got fired,” he responded. “I ploughed a field on the wrong farm.” 1t seems fortunate that his taxi career ended at that point. New York Tribulations. Jimmie Walker has settled the subway fare for New York, but Whalen has not yet settled the taxi and motor vehicle problems. Wishing to return uptcwn from a theater at night the traveler is often compelled to drift down Broadway six or seven blocks out of his way, before he can make a| turn right or left to proceed; northward. ~What would resi- dents of this city say if such a runnf were enforced here. A mass| meeting on the White House | lawns might result. Not belng{ able t@ make left turns on some’ of the city’s business streets seems | horrible enough to many. The surface cars in New York| are doing all within their power to take the joy out of life for the Gothamite. Each week or so new messages appear in the forms of posters that Frove anything but pleasing to the motorist. The latest is “Motorists are Using the Curbs for Hitching Posts.” It would be strange, indeed, if parking outlasted the existence of the surface cars. Appeals to Santa.’ Christmas is a long way off, but it looks like in Spring the resi- dents of the District of Columbia should begin writing their letters| to Santa Claus asking for the res- toraticn of the old left-hand| turns. It is probably the only way the motorists will get it, at least this year. And at that it does not seem too early to write for such things, inasmuch as it is known that Mr. Harland has started al- ready on the 1931 budget. Maybe an appendage to the letter - questing pedestrian control and the establishment of a liability insurance law as proposed by the | American Autcmobile Association would be advisable. Attention has been called to the existing dangerous condition at the intersection of Thirty-fourth street and Garfield street. North and South Thirty-fourth street is a main artery from Massachusetts avenue to the rather populous English Village. Consequently, machines whiz by there both day and night. A stop sign on Gar- field street apparently would end all dangers. The American Auto. Altomobile production and sale gains continue. The industry can hardly fail to establish another record year. Export sales are heavy. Australia is just heard| from. The American automobile has outdistanced all rivals in Aus- tralia, a trade bulletin just issued by the Commerce Department’s| automotive division reveals. Of! the 418,000 passenger cdrs regis-! tered in the Ccmmonwealth on| January 1, 1929, more than 75 per cent were of American manufac- ture. American makes account for about the same proportion of the 96,000 trucks and 2,000 busses registered at the same time. The Cleveland Automobile Club has sponsored a motor school for women. The Cleveland Safety Council, the Cleveland Automobile Manufacturers and Dealers’ Asso- ciation and the traffic division of the 'Police Department are co-op- | erating. The first class held re-l cently was attended by more than 1,000 women. It is questionable| if such a school could be started | here with such an attendance. A} school for men and youngsters | might be equally desirable. The American Road Builders’ Association will hold a reception | Thursday afternoon, from 3 to 6| o'clock, in its_offices in the Na- tional. Press Building. A dinner will be held at 7 o’clock the fol- {ovgng evening at the New Wil- ard. Side Roads Offer Scenic Beauties " And Motorists Answer Summer Call| ‘With the arrival of warmer weather| an increasing number of motorists will be making use of the roads. Especially during week ends the main highways will be crowded more than usual, but this is no reason why all of the pleas- ures of an automobile ride cannot be enjoyed when there are so many ex- cellent side roads that, after all, Teally’| traverse the most charming scenic| routes. Besides regaling in the beauty of the byways, the bustle of main-road traffic is avoided, thus the first maxim should‘hbe “Dl;:'n't always stick to the main thoroughfares.” The next maxim is “Don't be guilty of bad road manners” Refrain from becoming irritated when the traffic is annoyingly slow. The driver who is in an irritable frame of mind is more likely to have an accident than one who is cool and tolerant. ! «“Cutting Out and In.” Of all the mistakes on crowded roads the most culpable and the ome most frequently seen is careless “cutting out and in.” A driver should never attempt pass another unless he is certain of ample room, and the maneuver should not be attempted if there is a |- blind curve, a cross-road, a driveway | on the left, a hiil or anything else that would obstruct: the view of an ap- roaching car. pmtm “courtesy” pointer is that when the driver of a speedier car is you, don't be perverse and s just to mlkzuit dmlf'r“l‘:‘ for ‘haps nothing is more ting than o driver who after crawling up § . | time the meeting this Summer is to be that causes of the most common trouble | in Spring and Summer are tires and| ignition systems, both of which have probably suffered by neglect in the Winter. Therefore, it is wise to inspect the tires for cuts or other weak places. Each spark plug should be inspected and cleaned, or replaced if having been in use more than 10,000 miles, and the | entire ignition system gone over. Of course oil should be changed and the ofl filter serviced. Then, a most important and essential matter is ex- amination of the brakes. It is really appalling to consider the great num- ber of cars found during brake tests with poor brake adjustment. Emergency situations would be seri- ous in such cases, and tfoo much emphasis cannot be laid upon the fourth maxim, which should be, “Keep your as well as the general me- chanical condition of your car in proper shape. ENGINEERS WILL MEET IN ADIRONDACKS IN 1929 Technical Sessions to Be Supple- mented by Recreation Pro- gram in June. Plans for the 1929 Summer meeting of the Society of Automotive Engineers are rapidly taking shape. For the first | was first put ;on the ground that it would hurt their [er sense of the fitness of things, for Canada-to-Panama Highway Ready by 1931, Is Prediction! By the Assoclated Press. IPSWICH, S. Dak.—The proposed Canada-to-Texas hig! will, by the end of next year, connect Can- ada and Mexico with a concrete road, J. W. Parmley of Ipswich, president of the highway association, predicts,. By the end of 1930 the road will run from Brandon, Mani- toba, to Mexico, opposite Laredo, Tex. Eventually the association hopes to extend the highway to the Panama Canal, touching nine coun- tries. From Brandon it is to run through North and South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma and ‘Texas, cross Mexico, Guatemala, Salvador, Honduras, Costa Rica and Panama. R MERCHANTS FAVOR | BAN ON CAR PARKING Extension of Restricted Area Is) Urged in Baltimore Shopping District. Special Dispatch to The St BALTIMORE, April 13.—The no park- ing law in effect on two downtown shopping streets, which prohibits park- ing from 7:30 a.m. until §:30 p.m., has oven so0 satisfactory in speeding up raffic that city officials are conslder-l ing extending it to include the entire | have appeared in the local street cars,| | stating that “because of the noble beau-, | disfi downtown shopping district. Merchants and tradespeaple who at | first opposed the no parking edict have | become so enthusiastic that they are' launching a movement to prohibit street | cars as well as autos from some nar- row streets. Many who orposed the move when i nto effect on March 15, | business, now find that instead of hurt- ing it has actually increased buslnen!‘ and with but few exceptions are hearti- | ly in favor of extending the ban to the | entire shopping district. | “It is a great advantage,” declared one storekeeper. “People have read- justed themselves and don't mind walking a few blocks to favorite shops. At first it looked as if it would be a handicap—but it proved a help.” Business of another shop has been greatly speeded up, according to the manager, who is so enthusiastic about the plan he wants street cars taken off the thoroughfare and rerouted. Motor Nomads Found Ev;ryv'vheu. Americans visiting Europe will find that motor touring abroad is just as popular a pastime as in the United States and the motor nomads 'are everywhere, according to the foreign travel” dmno;uol the' American Auto- lon. held in the Adirondacks, at Saranac , suddenly accelerates obstruct one who quickly. Some- looked upon as a chal- d rous situa on S Another out for runs that has Winter without a me- Lake. As usual, the meeting will extend over four days, the dates set being June 25 to 28, Commi handle all clude golf, Diamond - Tires—for our tire makers of America. We carry a fim line of House & Herrmann’s Tire Dept. 12 Months’ Unconditional Guarantee—with Diamond Tires —the “tire that never tires” You can ride in perfect security equipped with conceivable road hazard for an entire year.. ", We can give this guarantee for a Tire made as Diamonds are made—by one of the oldest and best BEAUTY OF CAPITAL MARRED WELL, IM A SON-OF~ A-GUN W THE SALESMAN WHO SOLD ME THIS CAR SAID | COULD PASS ANN— E ROAD AND, Ferris Wheel Idea BY PARKING AND CAR REPAIRING| Applied to Parking Sections Because “Open Air Garage.” ‘ BY LEWIS L. YOUNG. The illustrated announcements which | ty of Washington,” much of the trac- | tion companies’ overhead is under- ground, should awaken the people of | Washington and the Nation to the in- sidious attempts that are being made to | deprive the National Capital of its rep- | utation for being the city beautiful.| These pithy adveriisements of the street | railway companies declare that the cost | of the conduit track system by which the street cars are operated is $125,000 | a mile, or two-thirds more than the cost of the trolley system of poles and o ad wires with which other cities are gured. 1t is difficult to understand why the sireet railway companies are required to maintain such an expensive system of operation in the interest of the esthetic, when unsightly trucks and other co: mercial vehicles are permitted to park all night and over the week ends on thoroughfares over which the street cars operate and any other highways truckmen may select for the storage of their vehicles, thereby offsetting the efforts to eliminate the ugly features of commercialism. The use of the streels as an open- air garage for commercial vehicles is creasing to an extent that gives resi- cential sections a slum-like appearance which would make New York’s Ghetto and London’s- Limehouse district look highbrow” by comparison. In those communities there appears to be a prop- trucks and wagons are kept off the streets after business hours, but in ‘Washington divers kinds of commercial vehicles, ranging from dilapidated de- livery wagons to two-story moving vans, line the curbs of the better as well as the poorer residential neighborhoods, when not in use. Hod-carrying trucks, piled high with waste building material, such as excel- sior, paper and shavings, which easily can be ignited or blown about, are left in the streets for indefinite periods. ‘When not in use express vans stand all day in front of houses in which the truckmen both make their homes and have their offices, much to the annoy- ance of other residents, who are accus- tomed to conducting their business else- where. Superannuated flivvers, minus sheir wheels and jacked upon soap boxes, have stood in the streets for days and weeks at a time. Not only are the streets of the city used for storage and repa:rs of personal property, but chauffeurs of automobiles _guarantee covers every \Slum-like Appearance Given Residential Of Prevalence Of kept at public garages clean and polish cars in front of nearby residences, sweeping or beating the floor coverings upon the sidewalks or trees, although it may be a Sunday afternoon when the cccupants are taking the air, and, inci- (Continued on Sixth Page.) New Type Frame Designed. Several cars will appear at Indianap- olis this year with a new type frame de- signed with greater rigidity. The en- gineering principles involved have not vet been disclosed, but its designers say it will make the “watch charm” speed | creations less “flighty” at high speeds. Problem in Texas By the Associated Press. CORPUS CHRISTI, Tex.—A for- mer seaman has devised a “Ferris whee!” garage as a possible solution to the metropolitan landlubber’s parking problem. Hans Sorenson’s contrivance, pat- terned after the amusement device, with compartments for cars in lieu of seats, would accommodate 60 uutomcbiles in 10 per cent of the ground space ordinarily used for parking. ‘The idea struck Sorenson during an iliness in which his feverish brain projected itself into traffic tangles of New York. Garages built like Ferris wheels, he imagined, would ond the motorists’ search for park- ing space. Upon his recovery he ma.de b)l‘u';pflnu and now seeks pat- en’_ rights. VIKING MODEL MARKS NEW STEP | BY E. Y. WATSON. Special Dispateh to The Star. \ DETROIT, Mich, April 13.—With the Nation-wide introduction of the Oldsmobile companion car, the Viking. General Motors completes one more of the forward steps which are transform- ing the motor car end of the corpora- tion's manufacturing. The Viking brings the V-type eight- cylinder engine principle into the me- dium-priced field, place beside the Pontiac Six and the La Salle, also a V-type eight, as the third new model design to be developed since the Du Pont manufacturing methods have been in use. Soon there will be a %’&?{‘ companion car, sponsored by Sloan Lists Achievements. All of this links in with disclosures in the recently issued General Motors report, in which Alfred P. Sloan, jr., set down major achievements of the corporation during the last four years, the period during which the greatest progress has been made and the largest profits shown. Mr. Sloan’s figures show that retail sales increased from 827,056 in 1925 to 1,842,443 in 1928. During 1924 G. M. C. manufactured approximately one car in every six produced in the United States and Canada. In 1925 this was in- creased to one car in every five. In 1926, the year the Pontiac came out, a gain was made to approximately one car in every four, and in 1927 the cor- poration produced 44 cars out of every 100 manufactured in the United States and Canada. In 1928 the corporation produced approximately 40 cars out of every 100. The slight drop in 1928 is thus explained by Mr. Sloan: Ford’s Influence Pictured. “During 1927, production of the automobile industry was subnormal, due to the absence from the market for the large part of the year of a quantity producer, The re-entry of that pro- ducer (Ford) into the market in 1928 necessarily had an influence on the statistical position of the industry and the relative position of the other manu- facturers. This fact, together with the general economic conditions prevailing, | resulted in an important increase in total units produced. “The fact that the corporation was able so nearly to maintain its record proportion of the total. volume attained | in 1927 is, it is believed, a tribute to the quality of its products and the effec- tiveness of its engineering, manufactur- ing and selling organizations.” Continuing, Mr. Sloan discloses why Chevrolet was changed from a four to a six cylinder car. Crevrolet Six Held Better. “As the number of units produced increases,” he says, “the possibilities of | activity FORWARD BY GENERAL MOTORS Oldsmobile Companion C;r Brings \2 Type Eight-Cylinder Engine Into Medium-Priced Field. ) means to secure in a_four-cylinder” engine the smoothness of peflomy % and flexibility possible in the six.” How the “companion car” develop-rs m?nt of Gelr;elnl Motors has incre sales scope is indicated in figures show-. ing that up to the end of {Igcuu the cor-” g%r:‘t'tlan h‘ad malrks,;d to dealers 431,161 c sixes ee years Oakland division. i iy Apparently, it fs the corporation’s, plan with the Viking to fatten the Olds-. - mobile factory volume in a proportionate - way. And while both the Pontiac and the La Salle represent lower-priced of-" ferings than the Oakland or Cadllac, tor whlch!t.hey h:{oe linked, Viking represents a venture a high-price range from the Oldsmobile field. ST Incidentally, Oldsmobile in 1928, the first year for the six-cylinder car of the- present model, found a mark of 90,202 units, as compared with only 58,016 of the preceding model sold the year | previous, a gain of 60 per cent. Engine Types Tested. In developing the Viking, 1. J. Reuter, ' Oldsmobile president, said, the engineers built three types of eight-cylinder en- * gines. One was a V type. The second was a straight eight with a five-bearing crankshaft, and the ‘third a straight eight with a nine-bearing crankshaft., All were tested not only in the labora- tory, but in actual running, and the V type was decided on as the best adapted for the kind of car the Viking should be. It is the plan of Mr. Reuter and his associates not to plunge into heavy vol- * ume on the car at once. The statement by the National Auto-" mobile Chamber of Commerce that the production of American automobile: companies for March totaled 595,000 cars and trucks, 20 per cent above the_ previous high month, has brought with it the reiterated prediction of Alvan Macauley, president of the N. A. C. C., and head of the Packard Motor Co.. that the production total of 5,000,000 cars for 1929, forecast earlier in thc year. will be attained and perhap: passed by a considerable margin. Peak Activity Reported. Other current reports testify to peak in the automobile "industry. Nash Motors has issued a report show ing shipments of 15384 cars during* | March, the third increase in as many months, the percentages ranging from 75 per cent increase in January to 33, per cent in February and 44 per cent in March. over the corresponding , months last year. v According to records kept by ther Marmon company of Indianapolis, half 2 million persons viewed the new models of the Roosevelt straight eight in the first two days of its showing. Further production increases are contemplated. Production now is at the rate of 250 adding value at the same price like- | wise increase. Recognizing two or| three years ago the potential possibili- ties of the Chevrolet division, a study was inaugurated to determine whether it would be possible to give the world a six-cylinder ca ithin the price jrange of the Chevrolet four-cylinder car. “The advantages of a six-cylinder over | |2 four-cylinder car engine are too well |known to warrant detailed discussion. It might be stated, moreover, that | though much study has been given to the subject, automotive engineers have | ! not as yet been able to devise ways and ' cars daily, with thousands of orders unfilled. Hupp Plans Expansion. Hupmobile's price reductions, ranging from $55 to $260 on six and eight cylinder models, are made possible, it is said, by an expansion program byi* which it is planned to double produc- tion facilities by the end of 1929. ‘This program is to include $2,000,000 improvements at the former Chandler plant in Cleveland, which Hupp ob- tained, and also the acquisition of sev- cral subsidiary companies. . (Copyright, 1920. by North American News- paper Alliance.) YWNER LOYALTY SIX-SIXTY upwards all prices at factory LANSING MICHIGAN 109 IN, WHEELBASE D Other Sizes, $9.10 to $20.75 sizes and models. & ~ STEGERS MOTORS 645 Maryland Ave. N.E. Durant owners remain steadfast, year in and year out, in their preference for Durant built cars. The Durant Six-Sixty is daily winning new hosts of friends to the ranks of Durant users— re-emphasizing Durant owner- loyallty. AND~—FOR *595—THE DURABLE DURANT FOUR- FORTY—A CAR WITH AN IMPRESSIVE RECORD RAN G O O D C AR Factory Branch DURANT MOTOR CO. OF VIRGINIA, Inc. 1731 Fourteenth St. N.W. 1345 Riggs St. IRVING T. DONOHOE N COMPANY CHRISWELL MOTOR CO. . 1623 L St. N.W. - NW.