The Washington herald., 1914-02-22
CYCLE CAR FINALLY
BECOMES A REALITY
H. B. Leay. Jr.. Auto Dealer Soon
to Receive Shipment of Machines
of limp" Make.
MANY WANT FIRST VEHICLE

Long heralded as q conner In the auto
mobile world. the Imp cycle car has at
last become a reality. II. B. Leary. tr,
who has been appointed the local repre-
sentative Of the Imp, yesterday received
word from the factory that two cycle
cars had been shipped him last week.
They are expected here tomorrow or
Tuesday.
Judging from the number Of appiica-
tons received by Mr.. Leary for the first
cycle car in Washington and from the
hundreds of inquiries as to when the
Imp will arrive, il is a foregone conclu-
sion that the cycle car is going to be
popular in the National Capital
The Imp is not an experiment 1t is
made by the w. H Mcintyre Company
of Auburn, Ind
The car carries two passengers seated
tandem, the drive is through very long
belts end, as is usual, the wheels are OF
wire. Under the hood, which. incidental
Iy, is almost as much cowl as hood, Is a
two-cylinder motor, air-cooled, with the
cylinders set at IS degrees, rated at 1o-12-
horsepower at 1900 revolutions per min
ute. The motor is set close to the open
front of the hood with its shaft fore-and-
aft and a dehector turns part of the air
current on the back of the engine to IA
cilitate cooling.
Also under the hood is friction change
speed gear, which is OF small size because
Of the small size and high speed Of the
engine. The control lever Is pivoted to
the cowl and is close to the steering
wheel The countershaft of the friction
gear carries the two small pulleys for the
V-belts, which are exceedingly long and
which constitute one of the features for
which claims are made. Long belts are
said to form an exceedingly smooth drive,
to eliminate danger of overlooking the
friction disks and TO wear well-in fact,
the makers state that a single set of belts
should give a service Of about 10 900 miles.
The rear wheel pulleys are twenty inches
in diameter and are utilized also as brake
drums. V-shaped blocks of hard wood
forming the friction shoes.
An usual form of construction is en-
bodied in the spring suspension The ma
chine has no axles, properly speaking, but
the stubs upon which the wheels turn are
carried on the ends Of two pairs of trans
verse springs. The two springs of each
pair are placed one above the other and
the forgings carrying the stub axles are
bolted to the ends This construction has
several arguments in its favor. It is light
and simple, and gives extremely easy rid
ing. There is no inspiring weight except
that of the wheels. The frame of the car
is undersIung from the springs, and
though the center of gravity is so low
that it is said to be possible to tip the car
to an angle of Is degrees, with passengers
on board, without upsetting il, there is a
road clearance of eight inches.
The steering gear is the acme of SIM
pIicity. The wheel, fourteen inches in
diameter, tops a shaft which extends I'M
broken. TO the forward spring: on its end
it carries a pulley on which is wound a
steel cable, the ends of which are at
tached to the steering knuckles, which
are connected across by the usual drag
link. A spring device prevents slackness
in the cable The arrangement is said to
be nearly irreversible and to work very
well indeed.
The wire wheels, which are made with
tangent spokes, are twenty-eight inches
in diameter and are fitted with tive and
one-half-inch standard clincher tires,
front and rear wheels and tires being the
same size The wheels run on ball bear
ings.
The wheel base of the car is 100 inches
and the tread is thirty-siX inches. The
maximum speed is given as fifty miles an
hour, and it is claimed that the machine
is capable of covering from fifty to sew
enty miles on a gallon of gasoline. The
tandem seats are deep and well uphol-
stored and the edges are also cushioned
In the rear of the body there is a tool
box that is Of ample size for the purpose
and also a space in which a little luggage
may be stored. The machine weighs $50
pounds and the price is $50 complete with
lamps and horn.