New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-01-31
AUTOMOBILE CLUB
OPENS new PLANT
Now Has Greatest Motor
Car Storage Capacity
in the World.

Boosting many things that are the
largest in the world" New York now
boasts undisputably the greatest motor
car storing corporation, the Automo-
bile Club OF America. With the open
ing Of its new garage on the upper
East Side the A. c. A. is in a class by
itself in this respect. Adding the new
building TO It's huge plants in West
oath aad West Both SITS, the total ca
pacity has been increased 10 q pos
sible $50 cars.
The average value OF the cars hold
ing garage space in the a. {. A. is 49,
500, this being the estimate by an Of
fetal who is familiar with the makes
generally stored and with their prices.
For long time the older plants have
been taxed to their capacities. Because
OF its advantageous location on the
upper East Side il is assumed that the
new building will shortly be placed in
"a similar position. 1t is gu te probable
therefore that in the near future the
Automobile Club Of America will at
times become the custodian overnight
Of property valued IN excess Of So
100000.
On account Of the superior facili-
ties offered By the A. c. A. the down
town plants have always been filed
with cars, despite the fact that many
Of the owners reside in streets ad-
jacent to upper Fifth az. Under the
new conditions there has been a re-
adjustment, the East Side garage be
ing q boon TO those who live uptown.
Some Of those whose cars have already
been transferred are J. Emlen Roose-
welt, Mrs. L. S. Bryce. Mrs. G. W.
Kemp, J. ". Hill, Mrs. Elliot F. Shep-
ard and W. V. Lawrence.
The new garage is situated close 20
Avenue A, in East 72d ST, and II Is
probably the most modern building for
the storage Of motor cars that has ever
been built. Beside it even the other
club buildings downtown suffer in com
parison.
A system Of ramps, so finely utii-
lied by the New York Central in
its new Grand Central Station, has
been employed by the A. c. A. in the
East I'D 81. garage. eliminating the
drawbacks that pertain to such build
ings through the use of elevators.
With the exception of the one for the
handling Of disabled cars, there IS not
cars being handled entirely under their
own power. whether their storage place
is on the first or the fourth floor.
The ramps are wide enough to ad-
nit Of cars passing with three or four
feet to spare, so that there need be no
iockeying TO avoid trouble Their grade
is only 10 per cent, which is little in
excess of the grades on several hills IN
the city. In testing out the posslbili-
ties Of the new system 70 was found
that car could travel from the street
10 the top floor Of the new building al
a speed Of twenty miles an hour easily
and in one case speed OF p miles an
hour was reached.
The value OF a system which permits
car 10 enter or leave as the chauHeurs
wishes can be appreciated by owners
who know that in the less modern build
inos with elevators long delays are
cannon in the rush hours before and
ofter theatre time, while the ramps
renresent economy 20 the controlling
organization by doing away with eie'
s,or and door attendants. IL is esu-
mated that the delay. either gong OF
coming. in the new garage Will De tWe
minutes from the time the car reaches
Tho entrance until II is IN It's perma-
nent place. or vice versa
Motor driven pumps convey gaso-
line to each of the four floors, the
storage being in six tanks buried un-
der the building, with a total capacity
NJ $50 gallons. There IS a com
pressed air system for initiating tires
and vacuum system for cleaning
the oars. both being available IN al
parts of the building. Inc entrance
doors are of the sliding type opet-
stod by compressed air, and can DC
opened in seven seconds. u-
The possibility Of Gre is pra I:hs',,S
negligible in this building, although
. GARAGE is usually considered a low
class risk. The structure is OF steer,
marble. concrete and brick, ana rs
eouipped with o sprinkler system In
the opinion of II. b. Haven, the super
intendent. any fire can be confined oy
one man TO the car in which 1t orig
Yates. The Board Of Fire Under
writers has pronounced the new gar,
age to be the most nearly hreprooi
in the city.