Evening Star Newspaper, February 9, 1930, Page 61

In the Motor World BY G. ADAMS HOWARD. E estimate that there are 30,000 automobiles of an- cient vintage or otherwise, too old to be recognized by expert appraisers as having any resale value, operating on the streets of Washington, according to recent tabulation of the dis- tribution of the 1930 motor ve- hicle tags, is startling, to say the least. It has been known that there were a great number of cars in this class, but that this number will exceed one-fifth of the year’s total registration is somewhat alarming. It means that many of these cars will just go, and that is all. That many of them, be- cause of serious defects, are a menace to public safety. No Safety Exists. Any day a_ brake may fail to work and any day a steering wheel may fail to function, per- haps at a critical time. Unfor- tunately, a car may still run with almost any mechanical trouble and, running in that condition, there is no such thing as safety to any one. Certainly many of these cars should be ordered off the streets, but a blanket ruling to this effect would be well-nigh impossible. A more stringent inspection require- ment would aid the situation con- siderably. Compulsory insurance would alieviate the situation to a greater extent. True, it would work hardships on many who would be unable to afford better machines, or even afford to repair them, but this cannot be considered when hu- man lives are at stake. There is no room on the thoroughfares of the city for cars that cannot at all times be kept under proper control. A motorist who drives such a car out of his garage or, in greater probability, from the front of his home, should be pun- ished, and punished severely. For the time being, it would be a far greater benefit to transfer all policemen engaged in check- ing up overtime parkers and other minor infractions to a worthier duty of inspecting delapidated cars. Overtime parkers can be taken care of at any time, and an inspection of dangerous vehicles undoubtedly will prevent many an accident and render great aid in cutting down the fatality lists. Against Reckless Youths. William H. Harland, director of traffic, continues on the warpath against reckless drivers, and es- pecially those around the ages of maturity. He declares that the majority of arrests for the more cerious offenses show that about 60 per cent are committed by youths around 20 years of age. He warns those in this class that the revoking of permits will fol- low any continuance. Last Tuesday saw the turning on of the traffic signal lights at the K and Eighteenth streets in- tersection and Conneecticut ave- nue. Although readf for use for some time, Mr. Harland awaited the coming of good weather be- fore having them turned on. It was a rainy day, but the snow and ice had departed from the streets. He was pleased with the results obtained and is of the opinion that these new lights will benefit the situation south of Du- pont Circle to a great extent. As far as could be ascertained, the lights did not cause any undue delays and seem to be function- ing well at a difficult place. Off to a Good Start. Washington got off to a good start for traffic fatalities for the month of January. Only three were reported, against seven for January a year ago. The figures cannot be regarded as satisfac- tory until none are reported at all. But as that, in all probability, is another desire connected with the millennium, a reduction of any kind s to be hailed. The Na- tional Capital is maintaining its lead in the low-fatality list of the cities of the country in proportion to its pupulation. Officials of the Traffic Bureau are awaiting their removal into the new quarters in the old Equity Building, just south of the Munici- pal Court on John Marshall place. The building is being repaired and reconstructed to suit the new tenants and should be ready for occupancy by the middle of March. Although the building provides another floor for its workers, about the same number of square feet will be available. Asks for Indictment. Sergt. Joe Harrington, hack in- spector for the city, had an un- usual letter the other day from a would-be taxi driver. It was ad- dressed to “District Building, 14 and Penn. Ave. Comm. of Taxie Cabs.” It read as follows: “Dear I would like to get a I denti- fication card to drive a Taxie Cab. They told me I would have to write, a letter to you, to be in- | dited before the board, hoping to | hear rr9m you as soon as possible, | spite huge drifts of snow at the curbstones. An idea for Winter days comes from F. A. Birgfeld, chief clerk of the Treasury Department. A communication of his states: “Many motorists have been confronted with a definite handi- cap when driving in sleeting and freezing weather. Many accidents have been caused by ice forming on the windshield and obscuring the vision. A simple method to obviate this trouble is to raise the left-hand side of the hood and place a piece of wood or other obstruction under the edge of the hood cover nearest the car, then fasten down the hood cover by the front catch only. This will leave an aperture through which the heat from the engine will play on the windshield and pre- vent freezing, even in extreme cold weather.” Aided by the efficient co-opera- tion of the United States Bureau of Standards, American tire man- ufacturers have succeeded in standardizing their product on a high level of quality and durabil- ity. In laboratory tests, tires of a given size and grade often vary less than 10 per cent in their re- sistance to wear, but put these same tires on cars of different makes, add the further compli- cating factor of drivers who vary from zero to 100 per cent in the care which they give their rub- ber, their brakes and their wheel alignment, and all possibility of standardization vanishes. Tire Care Important. Chief of these variables is the all-important matter of proper inflation. It is established that if American motorists took an oath to test their tires personally at least once a week, and lived up to it, they could add many millions of miles to their tire mileage and save on the average at least $30 apiece every year. If there is not sufficient air in the tire to carry the load, the weight is transmitted to the fab- ric carcass, causing bending of the side wall of the tire. This condition results in a break which inches the tube, causing a slow leak or blowout. Keeping a tire at too low a pressure is also the reason for the separation of the tread rubber from the carcass or between layers of fabric or cord. Spotty tread wear also is due to underinflation. Keeping a tire at the pressure specified by the manufacturer is not difficult, provided valve cores are renewed at regular intervals and missing caps are promptly replaced. The cap serves as a sec- imdlry seal, and most of the “slow eal tion and blowouts are usually traced to neglect of these small, inexpensive, but important, ac~ cessories. SANE REGULATIONS HELD TRAFFIC AIDS 'Specially Constructed High-Speed Ronds Are Regarded as Neces- sary in America. ‘World-wide interest has been aroused in America’s progress toward a solution | iy of the traffic problem—a vroblem that has been attacked jointly by local, State and_national officials according to J. ‘W. Frazer, general sales manager in the automotive industry. It is encouraging to note that recent moves toward traffic regulation are becoming more sys- tematic, reasonable and uniform, with provision for sensible enforcement. It is an error to blame congestion entirely on the automobile, for the term “traffic” applies to pedestrians and horse-drawn vehicles as well as motor ve;‘l"ldtel; field of individual of vidual transporta- tion the motor car has played the lead- ing role in breaking down the barriers of time and distance. Sensible regulations and enforcement will help make motor roads safer for higher speeds, but to achieve the ulti- mate America must built a network of specially constructed high-speed road- ways. For several years those projects have been considered, and now the pro- posed $2,000,000,000 transcontinental Federal superhighway is an evidence of the development along these lines. State and local officials are carrying out widening projects and adding pave- ment on protected highways where speed, can be maintained safely and congestion is practically unknown. Chicago, by developing the lake front and the river property, has established a system of drives that connect the north, south and west sides without entering the loop. New York, with Riverside Drive and g:ofloled thoroughfares around Man- ttan Island is attempting to elimi- nate some of the congestion on other main arteries of travel. Practically every large city in the country is alert to the situation with plans for high- ways that will provide for the ever mounting total of motor cars. ‘The financing of these programs is not to be regarded so much as an ex- pense, but as an investment or an in- surance against the more costly traffic delays that annually take hundreds of g:‘lz,lll‘om of dollars from the American BALTIMORE OLD AUTO TAX M. O. Eldridge, assistant direc—:j H'GHERi THAN EAPITAL,S tor of traffic, not to be outdone by the appeal to Harrington, de- | clared that he had gotten a letter recently asking that a permit be| “not provoked.” | The 1930 automobile show is a; thing of the past for the District of Columbia. With the added two days, the show easily surpassed the previous total in regard to at- tendance figures. Last year there were 80,000 visitors, and this year the total number nearly reached 90,000. Viewed from all angles, the show was a success. Rudolph Jose, director of the show, reports that there were more orders taken | for new cars than ever before. Due to the show being held over. to Monday night, the regular meeting of the Washington Auto- motive Trade Association was postponed until tomorrow night at the Racquet Club. Anent Winter Driving. Washington has had its share of bad Winter driving. But praise goes to the city for getting the snow removed, although lacking in funds. Praise also goes to the drivers for careful driving during the recent periods. These words, however, are lacking for some po- g licemen, who got even more par- " ticular in regard to parking de- Lowest Graded Car Given Flat As- } sessment of $100, Compared With $60 in the District. Special Dispatch to The Star. BALTIMORE, February 8.—Automo- biles of an ancient vintage, but still in an:r;m:fi;re nu'fdnuu'f“ble property ic] er altimore Washington. e Here a machine, after reaching a point of age the lowest rating in the graded schedule, is given a flat assess- ment of $100 for the remainder of its active life, compared with a flat assess- ment of $60 for Washington. The tax levied on such a vehicle there is about " which lead to underinfla- | those $1. Here it would be $2.35 this year. It was explained at the Appeal Tax Court, that the assessment schedule for automobiles in Baltimore was adopted after conferences with the Automobile Trade Association and the Automobile Club, representing the owners of cars. ‘When the plan to grade the assessment according to the age of the car was first adopted the so-called “blue books” is- sued by the trade were used to fix the | revision based on depreciation. Try It Out on ln“itl. It is sad but true that proper tire inflation means about as much to most car owners as Sunday does to_a rabbit. It is estimated that underinfl tion is responsible for 85 per cent of al premature tire failures. The answer, of course, is to get a tire gauge and use 1t regular] 1y, 'Y THE SUNDAY STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C, FEBRUARY 9. DOWN THE ROAD—Recollections. 1930—PART Fowi, FORDING THE FIRST STREAM - AS ) YOoU F2 REMEMBER i PZIER ok, Reg U it - AND AS IT WAS., >, sy g/ %izr@?‘i;& ATOS TO LD T0 UPHARDTERD Manufacturers Restricted to Some Extent, but Will Maintain Schedules. Conservative production has charac- terized the automobile industry during the first month of 1930 and there is nothing to indicate that any deviation from this policy will occur in February, according to B. H. Cram, president of Cram’s Automotive Reports, Inc. ‘The levels have been generally below of the same month of 1929, and there is little likelthood of them ex- ceeding this point in the coming month, as compared with February, 1929. Thus far the trend has followed prediction closely, with manufacturers taking every opportunity to lay a sound economic foundation for the industry’s opera- tions this year. Demand Is High. Demand for new cars has shown ac- tivity exceeding expectations, but no producers have revealed a tendency to operate at levels greatly beyond this mukelfl ’!;lhe‘mln&x‘(‘u(tl;lr;r:! evidently recognize the fact t one year every precaution must be exercised in order not to thrust any undue burden upon dealers, who experienced an ex- ¢ ceeding! ly difficult time of it in 1929. A considerable gain in total output assured for February, but this - crease will in no way be sensatioral. Manufacturers will continue to waich sales closely and will regulate their schedule increases accordingly. The greatest increase undoubtedly will oc- cur in the low-priced field, since this class enjoyed the most marked increases in sales during January. Gains in the medium and high priced classes will be very moderate in comparison. During the past month sales in these flelds have climbed slightly, with the medium- priced class enjoying a somewhat great- er demand than had been anticipated Price Cuts Announced. A few price cuts have been an- nounced recently, but this is contra to the general trend of the industry, and automobile prices are expected to continue their upward direction. A generally higher price level is conceded to be necessary if dealers are to be al- forded satisfactory profit margins, and the latter are indisputably essential this year. ‘Truck production also is following an upward trend, but this is considerably less sharp than that shown by passen- ger car manufacturing. Producers have reported their inten- tion to step up schedules in February, but hasten to add that the increases will be only moderate. A current decline in sales was noted this week, while output was steady with the level of the previous period. U.S. PROSPEF.HTY LINKED WITH MOTOR INDUSTRY Approximately 5,000,000 Employ- ed, Directly or Irdirectly, Last Year in Auto Business. ‘The prosperity of the United States and of the automotive industry are in- dissolubly linked together, according to J. T. Collins, general sales manager in the automotive industry. This condi- tion is due to the pre-eminent position of the industry in national life and the vital part it plays in the welfare of millions. “During the past year the automo- tive industry, directly and indirectly, employed approximately 5,000,000 per- sons and thus contributed to the sup- port of four times that number, or a p as large as the entire jpula- mol Spain,” Mr. Collins said. “And in addition to that, a substantial part of the business and commerce of the country was conducted through the aid of motor vehicles. Truly, this is a posi- tion which bespeaks the permanency and stability of the automobile. “Although the popular idea concen- tomotive industry in the area, such is far from bein, the truth. The industry is widesprea throughout the country, and there is hardly a city, town or crossroad junc- tion which does not receive some of the revenue derived from the automobile and its affiliated industries. “As the automotive indust: has grown with stupendous force during re- cent years, it has spread out in every direction. At the present time there are nearly 90 automobile factory and assembly plants located in 36 cities and 29 States in this country. They stretch along the Atlantic Coast from Massa- chusetts to Florida, touch the Gulf of Mexico, extend along the-Pacific from Los Angeles to Puget Sound, honey- comb the Great Lakes district and dot the inland sections of the country throught the South, Middle West and Eastern portions. These direct factory plants employ approximately a half million persons.” i, A good-way to encourage the car to skid in slippery weather is to take a corner so sharply as to cause the rear %o bump the curb. rus to remember in driving is shead may be another of 0se ~at do not turn out as they should. ‘Women who ha-e difficulty getting onto the knack of si.ifting gears should try the plan of havirz an experienced driver sRflt with them. This can be done by the instructor placing the left hand on top of the driver'v right as the latter grasps the knob of the shift lever. In this way the instructor ften can tell whether the driver is inclined to shift too quickly or too tardily. ‘When the car is chain-equipped, re- member that the less spinning there is of the wheels in starting, sliding there will be on stopping, be- cause the chains will not be so likely to break and leave the whole job to the tires. s ‘Women especlally should enjoy the advantage of a type of accelerator pedal that does not go all the way to the floor too easily. Not only is milady more inclined to “step on it,” but because she is less intimately acquainted with en- gines she is not so likely to realize that & car often gets away quicker if its power plant is fed less fuel. Over a rough toad too limber an accelerator also results in a jerky t of driving, which is as disturbing to the mechanism of t'he car as it is to those who ride t. Some of the newer cars are equij with hot-air heaters which draw air from just behind the radiator. Eenenl, this is a very healthy type of eating system for the car, but there is just one precaution to be observed. ‘This can be summed up by saying that the heater control should be in the closed position until the engine is heated up. ‘Where cars are equ:gped with a radiator shutter device, the air stream is blocked off during the first few min- utes of running. If the engine back- fires the heater will pick up the gases expelled through the carburetor and transfer them to the inside of the car. Backfiring always is greatest during warming up. So wait a few minutes before start- ing the air heater. There is no heat available at the start anyway. Safety isn’t the only reason why driv- ers should form the habit of getting out the right side of the car. This plan lessens the risk of parking the car where it shouldn't be. In a moment of haste an experienced woman driver tells of having rked the car and jumped out the left side. Returning to the machine, she discov- ered she could not open the right door to climb in because it would strike a fire hydrant. An additional reminder of her mistake came in the form of a small bui significant tag attached to the steering wheel. Women who register their own cars hear a lot about piston displacement, but unless some obliging youth is on hand to figure it out for them they are apt to remain baffled by the mystery of the term. Displacement, however, is not only a simple matter to under- stand, but one that helps to under- stand what makes the car tick. Displacement simply is the cubic di- mension of the cylinders, considering them as a whole. " If the diameter ot a cylinder is 3 inches and its piston travels 4 inches from top to bottom it is a matter of simple arithmetic to figure out the total number of cubic inches of displacement for the indivi- dual cylinder or for the total number of cylinders of the engine. ‘These dimensions give the rough basis of determining the power of an engine. An engine with a displacement of 400 is more powerful than one of only 200, but when the figures are closer together they are less of a guide to the power output because a number of other points must be considered. Some engines can run faster than others, and speed with an automobile engine always increases power, In addition, the special features of design play a very important role in determining just what an engine will be able to do. This explains why many engines with relatively small piston dis- pluekmenu do a_surprising amount of work. Motoring experiences have a neat way 7, resh In DoNT TRY To'BEAT” THE YELLOW 4 LIGHT I Stop W IT _FOLLOWS A GREEN LIGHT- AND DO NOT START UNTIL THE GREEN RETURNS! —BY FRANK BECK < ST Lo MILADY’S MOTORING BY FREDERICK C. RUSSELL of demonstrating that we moderns are not quite so far removed from the traditions of our grandparents. Con- sider, for instance, the case of the bobbed-haired bridge expert, who, when asked by the motor vehicle inspector ‘what she would do in event of accident, replied ltmgl.y that she would telephone to her husband! Many thousands of drivers do not realize that when the rear wheels of | a car start to slide they may move faster than the front ones roll. When machines were equipped with two-wheel brakes the increased speed of the rear end was not checked by the front wheels, because the latter were free to roll as fast as the rear ones. Four-wheel brakes have made a difference that some times traps even the most ex- perienced operator. When the brakes are applied with the latest cars the speed of the front wheels is checked. Thus, in the rear wheels lock and slide there may be an unexpected tendency for the car to skid, since the rear wheels are try- ing to overtake the front ones. It simply illustrates the point that it is risky to assume that four-wheel brakes 5 PLANS COMPLETE FOR ANNUAL ESSAY CONTEST - ROAD SAFETY $6,500 in Cash Prizes flnd Medals Oflered to Teachers and School Children of Nation. Stressing the need on the part of school children to set a good example in safety on the Natlon's highways, ‘Thomas H. MacDonald, chairman of the highway education board and chief of the United States Bureau of Public Roads, today announced completion of the plans for the ninth annual street and highway safety campaign for ele- mentary school children and teachers throughout Ihehvnmd{ ?utefi. t’:':l"llj! cam| , cons of two contests, one g::'ghudren‘ the other for teachers, is conducted by the board in co-opera- tion with State, county and municipal educational authorities. The one contest, open to all elemen- tary school puplls of the fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth grades, 14 years of age and under, is for the best essays on the subject: “What I Am Doing to Set a Good Example in Safety on the Highways,” while the other, open to all elementary school teachers, is for the best lessons on the subject: “Teach- ing the Essentials of Street and High- way Safety.” The two contests are conducted simultaneously in the schools of the country. Both State and National prizes will be awarded, and one pupil and one teacher, first National winners in their respective contests, will be brought to ‘Washington as guests of the Highway Education Board for a week. While in Washington they also will be presented with their national prizes. $6,500 in Prizes and Medals. A total of $6,500 in cash prizes and medals is offered to winning contestants, the prizes being donated by the National Automobile Chamber of Commerce, In the contest for pupils, 442 medals and the same number of cash prizes are awarded, in addition to three national prizes. In the contest for teachers there are no State prizes, but three National prizes are given. The teacher writing the best lesson on street and highway safety receives a cash prize of $500 and a trip to Washington with all expenses paid. That teacher writin the second best lesson receives a chec! for $300, while the third best lesson is awarded a prize of $200. Gold, silver and bronze medals are awarded to first, second and third prize winners of each State in the contest for school children, in addition to checks for $15, $10 and $5, respectively. Each State has one first and one sec- ond prize winner, while the number of third prizes depends u the number of elementary school children enrolled. Thus, Nevada and several other States, where the number of elementaty school children, is comparatively small, are awarded but one third prize, while Pennsylvania is allotted 23 and New York 25. mean complete freedom from skidding. (Copyright, 1930.) Following the selection of the best papers from each of the 54 States and territories, the essays and the les- sons are entered in competition for the National prizes. These papers are passed upon by a committee of three judges generally represent! the fleld of education, literature an iness. First prize winner in the National con- test for pupils in addition to bein brought to Washin; as the guest of the board, is presented with a gold watch while in the National Capital. Second and third prize winners in the essay contest receive gold watches. Tllustration Required. ‘The date on which essays and les- sons must be handed to the school prin+ cipal is May 9. [Essays must be noj more than 500 words in length and each contestant is required to submit an il« lustration, either original or clipped from a magazine or newspaper, that is pertinent to the question of safety edu~ cation. A selection from these illus- tnunn’:‘ will b; tused l:y t‘he m“:o in reparing a safety poster for the con- Em"‘m 1931. Safety lessons must be between 1,000 anc 3,000 words and may take the form which the teacher thinks best presents the subject, such as a lecture, recitation, game or drama. These_contests have been conducted by the Highway Education Board dur- ing the past nine years and each year has seen an increase in the number of participants. Last year the number taking part totaled almost 600,000 pu- pils and 100,000 teachers, and this year an even greater number is ex- pected to enter. The best papers for each State are selected by a State chairman, as a rule, named by the State superintendent of public instruction. After the selection of the prize-winning essays from each State or®territory, these wers. with the best lessons, are forwarded to Wash- ington, where those entered in the Na- tional contests are typed and numbered and submitted to the National judges without any indication as to author- ship. ONE-TO-THREE RATIO. A. A. A. Compiles Number of Sur- faced Miles. ‘The automobile industry uced 1 mile. of new cars in 1929 for every 3 miles of highway surfaced, and with 40 cars already r red to every mile, it shows how road-building agencies are being pushed to keep abzeast with the needs, according to the Afherican Auto- mobile Association. The A. A. A. statement is based on the fact that the industry produced 45 miles of cars per day in 1929, or 16,425 miles for the year, while approximately 55,000 milés of roads were surfaced. One horsepower to 37 pounds of weiqht.and the result is SUPERIOR PERFORMANCE The unusual sparkle in the New Oakland Eight's pe rformance is explained by its great power in relation to weight. lts 85- horsepower engine develops one horse- power to every 37 pounds of car weight. As a result, few cars can keep abreast of the New Oakland, pass it on a hill, or match its swift pick-up in traffic. That is why it is called “the car with superior performance.” It is also an exceptionally smooth car. The engineers who created it enjoy a sixteen- year backgrou nd of experience in eight-cylin- der design. Consequently, they were able to produce a remarkably sound power plant with a high degree of inherent smoothness. To this has been added the extra smoothness achieved by a complete down-draft fuel system—a short, rigid crankshaft— new type cylinder heads insur- ing uniform compression in each cylinder—Ilami- nated steel and rubber engine supports. The New Oakland Eight also introduces a new order of beauty. The lines of its new Fisher bodies are long and gracefully low. The new upholsteries are both attractive and durable. Arrange to drive the New Oakland Eight. Learn that for an extremely moderate price you can enjoy the satisfaction of owning an unusual der car. eight-cyli The New Oakland Eight, $104S end up, f. o. b. Pentlac, Michigan, phus delivery charges. Lovejey Hydraulic Shock Absorbers Included in list prices. Bumpers, rear fender guards and spring covers extra. General Moters Time Payment Plan evailable at minimum rate. Consider the deliversd price as well as the list (f.0.b.) price when com- paring evtemobile valves... Oakland-Pentiac delivered prices Include enlyautherized charges for froight and delivery end the charge for any additiona! OAKLAND J. L. JERMAN 3342 M St. N.W. BAILEY MOTOR CO. Mt. Rainier, Md. | Prine PRODUCTY OF GENERAL Mmorors L. P. STEUART, Inc. DISTRIBUTOR * THERE’S A RELIABLE OAKLAND-PONTIAC DEALER NEAR YOU PADGE'I“!,';JO'CI MOTOR CO. 8 E BORDEN MOTOR CO. Bethesda, Md. erick, Prince Frederick St. S.E. TEMPLE MOTOR CO. Alexandria, Va. Mansssas, Va. Pence Moter OCo. Quantieo, Va. Parls Auto Servies, Ine. H. R. KING MOTOR CO. 514 H St. NE. SERVICE MOTOR CO. Silver Spring, Md. VIRGINIA' Remington, Va. Martin Moter Co. Warrenton, Va. P. C. Richards