New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-01-03
Less than Half a Cent {
Mile Expended by Its
Owners for Re-
pairs.

The Chalmers Motor Company has
Just finished canvass Of the entire
country, with the object Of proving the
sturdiress Of the modern motor car.
without having made any special prep
aratior 20 that owners Of Chalmers
cars would use undue precaution m
driving their machines without hay.nZ
notified dealers, the big Detro. COM
pany compiled statistics through its
representatives. on the amounts paid oy
Chalmers owners for repairs and ad-
justments of all kinds.
The Investigation shows that each
owner Of a Chalmers Light SIX" pays
approximately four-tenths Of a cent a
mile for repairs and adjustments. In
other words, a Chalmers owner can
drive his car in one season an average
distance. say, Of 5000 miles with re
pair and adjustment expense Of only
52i a year.
George W. Durham, consulting engi-
rcor and designer OF the Chalmers
"sixes," has long maintained that au-
tomObile design. weight, style and con-
struction should always follow the
lines Of giving the greatest possible
service 20 the owner. For several
wears 70 has been the rule Of the Chai-
mers engineers % solicit suggestions
from owners and from dealers and 10
consider these suggestions when a new
model was being designed. The object
has been 10 get the public's criticism
and find out exactly how the cars per-
form under all conditions, and so make
any Improvement which can be made
IN the product.
The results furnish a striking com
rarison with conditions which existed
five years ago. Nearly every one re-
rner-bers the DAYS when 10 was quite
the usual thing 70 see the owner or p
car living underneath while he t,nkered
with some little understood mecnanisu.
somewhere in the interior. A re-"
wears ago a man who travelled thou
sand miles without having some seri-
Gus accident TO his car was thought 20
have phenomenal luck.
This condition Of things has passed
ms the roport shows. The modern auto
mobile is built 20 stand up IN an hlhas
of service. Very few automobiles get
tho care which a fine piece Of ma
cbinarv should have. Most Of them are
treated pretty AOAHAlJs AANf O. ~ =
lected i'm the matter of fabrication and
inspection. Many an owner who com
pIains that his car is noisy would have
a quiet, nice running car II ne wotid
tighten a few bolts which have been
iolted loose by his driving owes rough
roads.
Many a man whose motor misses
could correct the trouble If he would
clean his spark plugs. Many a motor
which seems TO suffer from loss OF
power would be al. right If the owner
would simply flush the motor with kerr
osene and put in a new supply OF OIL;
But in spite Of this neglect the good
cars of to-day stand up remarkably
we'll II is a rare thing TO near OF
serious breakage Of parts.
The reports of the present case cover
several hundred cars which nave been
driven millions Of miles. The lnvestl-
cation was confined TO the Chalmers
"Iicht Six" so that the company might
have the reports as nearly standard as
possible. In other words, should there
be any defect in this one model II
would be quite likely to show IN pracc,,
tically all of the reports. And II an
reports were made on the same car II
would be a fair indication OF the car 5
real ability to render service.
These figures -four-tenths OF a cent
a mile-will be interesting 10 those
who have always thought that an auto.
mobile was very expensive piece OF
machinery 10 own.
In almost every car repairs are con-
sidered the big item OF expense Gas
olene consumption depends upon no"