Evening Star Newspaper, January 31, 1932, Page 111

AUTOMATIC METER FOR TAXIS MADE Seating of Passenger Starts Machinery on New Invention. Yor years the taxicab industry has needed a taximeter that is automatic and removes the variations that always oocur where a device is manually op- erated, according to Morris Markin Checker Cab president, The original taximeters, which have been but little improved in the last 20 years, were a great improvement over the old method of zone rates, hour rates, etc. But since the uninformed public saw that the meter was controlled by the driver, they have always felt that there was opportunity of manipulation to the passenger's loss Many Duties of Driver. The driver s in the operation of his cab » frequently to operate the ta er, and so bout variation of nat this new in- satisfaction by passen- make more more good fares for vention is h the oper ger aliki uniform fares d create will in the industry The invention is a of the Checker Cab and the Pittsburgh Ta result of years of c contr tit passengers as t the rear or auxiliary meter is not put the passengers a seats, Invention Now Perfected. was completed over & rovements in subse- been made until the BUSINESS REVIVAL TO IMPROVE TRUCK INDUSTRY'S ACTIVITIES 495.000 Motor Vehicles Were Manufac-| tured Last Ycar—Export Market Consumed 128,000 Units. BY A. J. BROSSEAU, Vice President of the National Automoblle Chamber of Commerce Division and President of Mack Tricks. ment will be very insistent with the revival of business activity in general. The return of normal business condi- banner years immediately preceding 1929, when the peak was reached A 'total of 425,000 trucks were pro- duced in 1931 by American manufac- turers. were of two tons or lese capacity. In the heavier vehicle fleld there was & marked increase in the output of six- wheel units equipped with pneumatic tires. number of trucks manufactured were fitted with solid tries. 29 Per Cent Below. The 1931 production figure is 29 per under that of 1930, and is the since 1923. This Indicates, in part, a diminished use of new vehicles, but is also a reflection of conservative hasing practices prompted by 24 months of inertia in all industries. In proportion, truck use did not decline as | sharply as did utilization of other dis- tribution facilities. Buylng in small lots creates a more universal demand for highway vehicles, primarily because the flexible service they render enables | shippers to keep inventores at a mini- mum Approximately 128,000 American- made trucks were sold in foreign coun- tries in 1931. This is a 31 per cent de- ne compared with the previous year, t is not as sharp a decrease as that in exports of other American products, including passenger cars which fell off 47 per cent Ralil Truck Use. railroads utilized more vear in rendering a store- service. Eighty-five of the American rucks last door deliver: leading carriers were operating about | 10,000 truck units, as compared with 7,000 in 1930. This does not include the more than 9,000 trucks of the Railway press Agency. Among the outstand- developments _toward _rail-motor ion in 1930 were the filing of y Southwestern roads to insti- tute “door-to-door” service, and the plan recently adopted by four Eastern carriers to move detachable truck bod- fes on flat cars Several railroads are operating trucks the highways in competition with for short h rload traffic, which, exper proved, can move more eco- and expeditiously by motor s Railroads also increased their bus in adapting them as feeders bstituting them for rail service on-paying lines. Eighty roads were g or were financially he operations of 5,000 busses last year —an increase of 1,000 units over 1930 Taxes Held Sufficient. growth of commercial vehicle tion and its effect on rail- a much-discussed question ing the past vear and led to several tigations by State com sions, organizations, investment s that of the Interstate “ommerce Commission on rail-motor Co-ordinatnon. which lasted over a pe- riod of several months, with hearings in 17 leading cities. The findings of this inquiry will be made public after oral arguments are heard by the com- mission at Washington Blaming highway transportation for their present plight, railroad witnesses recommended increased taxes and Fed- was | the flexible operation of the highway Commercial Car | | commercial vehicles are not paying ade- Demands of motor truck users for |Guately for highway use were disproven new units to replace worn-out equip- at the final tions will result in output equal to the [ on . n | busses and trucks, by the higher tax Of these vehicles, 95.5 per cent | construction, due to the increased road Only 33 per cent of the total | | per cent of the vehicles on the high- | latures convened last year. THE SUNDAY S AR, WASHINGTON, 1 ). 0, JANUARY 3 1932—PART EIGIHT. eral legislation which would hamper vehicles. Statements to the effect that hearing in Washington by Thomas H. MacDonald, chief of the United States Bureau of Public Roads, | who declared that several vears of study the subject has convinced him that which they are paying, and particularly | through the collection of gasoline taxes, | are meeting fully all excess costs of thickness made necessary by the heay- ier loads. Commercial vehicles are contributing 27 per cent of all special motor vehicle taxes, though they reperesent but 13 ways. Many Bills Presented. TITLES REQUIRED NOW IN 24 STATES District of Columbia Also Has Protection Against Thieves. Says A. A. A, Twenty-four States and the District of Columbia now require motorists to have a certificate of title for their motor vehicles and the universal ac- ceptance of these laws will do more than anything else to end the stolen car racket, according to the District of Columbia Division of the American Automobile Assoclation. Estimating that 300,000 motor ve- hicles fall into the hands of thieves annually, it was declared that, while approximately 92 per cent are even- tually recovered, the remaining 25,000 cars, representing an annual loss to motorists of some $20,000,000, are never returned to their owners. “Automobiles now attract thieves in A vigorous rallroad campaign against bighway transportation was waged in several of the 44 States where Legis- More than many_localitics,” the statement con- tinued, ‘“because in many localities they may be disposed of easily and with little risk. In some States they may be transferred and the vehicles 1500 bills were introduced which ap- | be registered under the new owner's, or piled to commercial vehicle operations, | unit capacities, registration fees and | gas taxes. | Despite the severity of many of the bills presented, only & few of the strin- | gent measures became laws. Texas passed the most severe bill on truck ca- pacity. The law provides for a 7,000- | pound load limit where trucks pass a | railroad depot in the haul between | citles. Its constitutionality is being | questioned by shippers and independent truckers in Texas courts | The following summarization gives an | insight into laws adopted, Which affect | truck carrying capacity; nine States de- | creased the length of single vehicles; | 17 shortened the length of combina- | tions; weight increases were authorized | in 8 States; decreases in weight | became effective in 4; height re- strictions were adopted in 9 States, 8 of these which formerly had no restrictions, provided for limitations ranging from 12 feet to 14 feet 6 inches, | | and 2 others effected reductions from | | 14 feet 6 inches to 12 feet and 12 feet 6 inches, respectively. | Several of the States enacted laws for increases in registration fees on the private operated and “for hire” trucks The gasoline tax was increased in 12 States. Florida's tax of 7 cents per gal- lon is the highest in the country Engineering progress in the truck and bus equipment field continued its trend tcward a maximum specd with assur- ance of maximum safety. Extreme care with which the vehicles are operated on highways has also increased the afety potentiality of the vehicles. Hun- dreds of fleet operators have instituted driver training courses as the result of | ariver educational campaigns which | have encouraged a feeling of good will | terested In | ang ot Th between commercial vehicle operators | er highway users | flect of perfected mechanical equipmi rigidly-trained drivers on th n'in a 1931 report of the National Safety Council which showed that truck, bus and taxicab fatalities declined more than 19 per cent while deaths caused by private vehicles increased more than 37 per cent over a period of three years All of these factors have served to increase truck adaptation for distribu- ton in every industry. The greatest number of trucks are In use on farms. A recent report of the United States Bureau of Census, Department of Com- merce, shows that 900,385 trucks were used by 8: farms in 1930, as com- pared with the use of 139,169 trucks on 131,551 farms in 1920 The phenomenal growth of motor bus | and truck transportation in the past supposed owner's, name, with prac- tically no check on the actual owner- ship.” Naturally, these States have be- | come the dumping ground for stolen automobiles.” ‘The States which now require cer- [ tificate of title are listed as follows: Arizona, California, Colorado, Dela. ware, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Mary land, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, Wis- consin and the District of Columbia. “Seven of the above States,” the statement continued, “namely, Arizona, Delaware, Idaho, New Mexico, North Dakota, Pennsylvania and Virginia, have enacted the uniform certificate of title law drafted by the National Con- | ference on Street and Highway Safety, while the Oregon law closely conforms to recommendations of the conference.” DRIVE WITH ONE FOOT DETROIT, Mich—The era of one- foot driving has arrived. So simplified are the newer schemes of driving con- trol that even the man with one leg need expericnce no special difficulty operating a car The simplest of the new schemes can | by any merely a experienced me- matter of at- taching a sm ar to the brake by means of a U-bolt. When the s used in the conv ch pedal s unaffected, bu clutch pedal is pushed to the floor the brake pedal goes with it A set screw in the ba pedal regulates the tion with the brake pedal o control is a more recent in one-foot operation more advanced process ontrol of the car's mov accelerator be arranged chanic. It g of interac- de- and the ment velopm a still complete through s, added to the extensive use to e vehicles have been put in h period of d-to-mouth ias carried highway transpor- beyond horizon of experi- tion and established the ve- icles as indispensable units in our distribution s Adopted more as supplements to other forms of trans- port, and rendering an independent service which cannot be duplicated by other distribution factlities, commercial vehicles will be used more extensively, and sales will increase as business re- turns to normal 10 ves tation ent MARMON ANNOUNCES NEW EIGHT WITH ALL THE IMPORTANT 1932 FEATURES—AT ONLY 1395 —f.o.b. factory 125-Horsepower Engine 125-Inch Wheelbase pearance and spectacular in performance. The 8-125 is a fine, new Marmon—brilliant in ap- It has a under the clutch | AUTOMAKERSLE ONBYCONPETTION Individual Manufacturers Have Surpassed All For- mer Efforts. BY A. J. CHANTER, Vice President and General Manager, Plerce Arrow Motor Car Company. Necessity is usually spoken of as a hard master, but the motor car shows of 1932 will demonstrate that today, at least, necessity has singled out the car buyer as a beneficiary of engineering and manufacturing thonght and action. In other words, competitive conditions have spurred on the individual manu- facturers to excel and surpass the finest things they have achleved in times past. Mightier Dollar, Any thoughtful survey of the new of- ferings as displayed at the automobile show brings the observer to the con- clusion that the motor car dollar of this year is & mightier dollar in buying power than at any previous period. It would not do for the industry to take to itself undue credit for what it has accomplished during the last few years and the climactic effect now revealed But in all seemliness it can claim credit, for laboring ceaselessly to build better quality and better value into products. All of these efforts have their begin- ning in engineering, of course. Every principle of internal combustion engin and of all the other factors which t motor car embraces, is open to all e gineers and all manufacturers. But it does not follow that one engineering group develops the same set of prin- ciples in the same way, or secures identical results from the same princi- ples. The quality of engineering brains and ingenuity is the first limiting and defining factor. Powerful Influence. The second follows hard on its heels in the form of manufacturing policy Volume production exerts a influence. The matter of building to & price does likewise, and there are other governing elements which step in before the final engineering work is approved for release to the manufacturing de- partment So far as manufacturing is cor one man or group can duplicate t fa d methods of D ed, certa ecessary funds are as difference car of a gi to t the mechal wherein the er proceed withou standpoint, such festly impossible. a ready alluded to impose the upper 1 ftude for w 1g anc buye for the lower p of any m; the motor its | powerful | 17 ‘Variety in Control Transportation may be the main goal of the millions of motorists who will purchase the 1932 cars, but pleas- ure will figure more prominently than for a number of years. Proof of this is found in the enthusiastic state- | ments of those who are trying out the | newest creations. | While a vehicle of increasing utility, the automobile continues to be a pleas- ure car. This season sensational new | features of control have served to in- i]ect a new element of interest in driv- | Ing. ‘These conveniences are not only | thrilling in their offer of escape from conventional practice but offer & means of obtaining entirely new types of per- formance. The “kick” the motoring public is getting out of the new cars is serving to upset many a pet theory that the automobile is merely a mode of trans- port. Automatic clutch controls, com binations of transmission feature manual adjustment of the shock ab- sorbers from the driving compartment and new responsiveness of the brakes and steering gear hold forth visions of | banishing the humdrum of driving. Motoring is slowly emerging from an era of standardization. When standard shift became universal on American makes of cars the pendulum had swung to an extreme. It is now on the back- swing, gaining momentum with each new model announcem Variety is the spice of motoring for 1932 Drivers who had accepted manual operation of the clutch pedal as part of the ritual of operating a car now find that they can eliminate pedal work altogether. Those who had never quite learned how to shift gears prop- erly, on the level, uphill or down, now discover that they can do almost an thing within reason with the gears of the latest cars. There are new, and often startling, effects to be obtained the aid of the gears. Braking can be varied to sult each special situa- tion. Motorists try the new jobs and discover that they can, literally, make their own roads! Never before has the: re been so much 1 yment and relaxation o It is being predicted for the pleasure the of it are encouraged prospects of being able to manipulate the smart- | est of the group of ca u knowing might get out 1tomatic coast- proponents and op- id left foot e been shift mystery t yet become but it's a the new fa ith the new cars, he new lingo In motoring. re to free wheel, and when 1932 MODELS RATE AS GREATEST PLEASURE CARS OF INDUSTRY Appealing to Experienced Driver and Newcomer Alike. | Questions that come up for daily con- FREENESS OF AIR ONE HAPPY BREAK Average Car Consumes 7. | 000,000 Gallons Every Year, Besides Tires. and Design Seen as% versation everywhere. The four-speed transmission affords no end of dis- | cussion. ~ Take a ride in the cars ‘(’qlllpped with remote control of the | shock sbsorbers and every one has a | different idea of just what adjustments are needed to obtain most desirable | results. Stagnation has been ruled out 'DY the automotive picture for 1932 What can be done with the new cars is just beginning to be appreciated by |the motoring public. Wih all of the |cars that offer free wheeling, for in-|burn in your engine, 10,000 gallo | stance, it is possible to preselect, gears | air s drawh theoush the b cleaner ‘be(ore turning a corner or prior to|and into the cylinders. ;gemng into any sort of traffic enA] The 25,000,000 domestic cars in op- | tanglement. That is, the car can be |eration use 175,000,000,000,000 gallons |shifted from high to second and left [of air annually—a figure to fantas- |in that combination without any moved | tically excite the imagination of an | ment of the clutch, so as to be ready i 3 ¥ | sales “tax advocate for flash acceleration when getting | Authority for under way again | Jack C. Gray, eq Starting with a car equipped with | director, in a rece vacuum clutch control offers some | Menace of Road Dust unique features. It is possible, for in-| ““The dust the motorist gener: stance, to wait in traffic with the car s on the roa in gear. The vacuum valve is open and the clutch is disengaged, but there no risk of the car lurching forward, | float in the air ettle slowly under |since there can be no forward move- | the action of gra Air disturbances | ment until the driver is ready for such | tend to keep the dust pa - and feeds gas. This feature saves the | pen: fo e physical effort of holding the clutch |fine dusts fall at the than pedal down, and the risk of having th It’s & happy circumstance for motore ists that air costs nothing—even the | tax collector missing out on his tithe, The “average” car consumes about 7,000,000 gallons of it every year and this does not include the air used for inflating the tires. For every gallon of gasoline you this 1 speech on * rushed said. “Particles of dust one inch an hour. Even on paved roads condition exists.” We Are Distributors for the Following Automotive Products— BERRY BROS. CHAMPION SPARK Lacquers, Paints, PLUGS Varnizh RAYBESTOS CRAWFORD Brake Lining, Rivets, Seat Covers, Shop Brake Equipment, Coats, Shop Suits Belts VICTOR GASKETS BLACKHAWK Wrenches, Jacks WHIZ PRODUCTS DUCO NO. 7 ECLIPSE BENDIX PRODUCTS Starter Equipment G-E MAZDA LAMPS MOCO STORAGE WHITAKER BATTERIES CABLES Shop Equipment Walker Jacks—Black & Decker—G. E. Battery Chargers—U. S. Air Compressors—Quincy Air Compressors—Manley Mfg. Co.—Paint Spray- ing Equipment. Rudolph & West Company 1332 N. Y. Ave. Nat. 4870 Merchants Since 1885 NEW MARMON 8-125 Magic Comfort Control New Automatic Clutch Improved Free Wheeling New Ride Regulator Synchro-Shift Transmission Advanced Steering Stabilizer Brilliantly Styled Body Lines Big, Roomy Interiors Smart Appointments ALSO SPECIAL DISPLAY Marmon Sixteen 200 HORSEPOWER THE WORLD’'S GREATEST AUTOMOBILE great array of new features of driving comfort, con- venience and performance. Its wheelbase is 125 inches —its engine developes 125 horsepower. It has Magic Comfort Control combining such advancements as im- proved automatic clutch, ride control, steering stab- ilizer, free wheeling, synchro-shift transmission and The Marmon 8-125 bears many characteristics of the Marmon Sixteen, the many others of equal importance. world’s greatest automobile. And the price is amaz- ingly low for such a car. By all means see it at the show. NEUMEYER MOTOR CO., Inc. Distributors Showroom, 1517 Conn. Ave. NW. Service Dept., 2021 17th St. N.W. 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