The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1907-09-26
To OPERATE AUTOMOBILES.
One of the Important Questions Is the
Cost

one OF the most important questions
that arises in the mind of an owner of
an automobile is the cost Of rnainten-
ance OF his car 1t is very difficult for
the upkeep Of his car to determine the
four points which enter into its main
tenance-
How long win an automobile last?
What does it cost to operate it?
gallon of gasolire2
How long viii tie tires wear2
Are probably the four important fac
tors in the life of an automobile. In
some cases an automobile in the hands
or competent driver will give a great
deal more satisfaction. at rnfufrn11rn
cost. as compared 10 the same car in
the hands Of less experienced man.
To determine the average cost OF
maintaining and operating an autorno-
bile. an enterpriS1ng manufacturer has
just compiled statistics showing that
with judtcfous handling and the ordinary
care that should be accorded an auto
mobile. the amount to support a ma
chine is not nearly as great as most
people believe An eastern company de-
termined recently to discover the cost
1t sent invita- tons through the newspa-
pers throughout the country and 10
owners of single cylinder cars asking
them for sworn statements as to the
total expense incurred in the mainten-
ance of their car
OF those who responded hundreds
were willing to make statements of the
approximate cost of running their cars.
yet none of these was used Only the
actual cost. sworn before a notary pub
lie and witnesses, were accepted one
hundred and sixty-four statements were
received. coming from 80 different
states, which show records OF cars that
have been used on all kinds of roads
and under all sorts OF conditions From
the data received the following Stats
tics were compiled: The mileage gotten
out of the cars varied considera bIv
ranging from $50 to 81. 600. Mary of tie
afidavits showed a mileage of over 20
600 and nearly 80 per cent had gotten
over 10000 miles out of their car, The
total combined made over !. 500 900 miles
or. to be exact, 1855. 427. the average OF
this being 1851 miles per car.
The gasoline consumption afforded
great interest One car running Sc low
as g 2-3 miles per gallon. while another
ran as high as 32 miles per gallon For
" Der cent of the number have. claimed
to get over 20 miles Per gallon while
the average OF all Is a trif1e over Is Is
miles per gallon
TIE cost Of repair-This an,o,,n+
ranges from practically nothing in some
cases to several hundreds of dolTarS II,
others The total amount OF renaf-a
not including tires Tor the ISL cars. was
IS. sS1-2e. or an average for each car of
$42.74-
For the average length of time the
cars have been used Zone wear save-, /
months and twenty days. II means a.,
average Of 2-1T per month or les
than 81 cents per week Another Uav
to compute the cost would be to total
the distance Travelled. taking ISL cars
totaHng 1,555.427 miles. and with the
total cost for repairs, S6sS129 If
means that the most of the upkeep
averages -004939 per miles. or in other
words only AZ cents Der ion r1fIaz
that IS travelled That Certainly is I
cheaper than walking In considering |
these points do not overlook the num- |
Der OF passengers carried. Some were
-unabouts carrying one or two and
sometimes three Passengers. while
others were four passenger cars. car
wing five or six passengers. The ay-
rage as shown by afIdavfts was near |
y ga persons. so it would make this
expense less than Is cents per 100 /
niles for each passenger
The next item of expense is that of Il
sasolire- The sworn statements STOW
hat the miles obtained per gallon run 1
rom as few as "a up as high as 90 l
niles per gallon Take the average of |
he lot. it shows 1874 OF a trifTe over
Is Ia miles per gallon The cost OF /
gasoline varies in different parts of |
he country. but may proba Div be av-
eraged at Is cents a gallon; il would /
hen make the average 1 cent uer mile
per car for fuel, or less than one-tFfrd Il
IL cent per mile per passenger
To obtain the amount of exnendf-