Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1917-02-10


piled the most valuable lessons posi-
bic in the development Of the aero
plane TO a higher efficiency VIII this
engineering experience be reflected ir
| improvements in the automobile after
the war? OF what benefit win new
metal knowledge be, the combination
OF ligntness with strength, as in the
framework Of the Zeppelin?
II. Massac BUST. the English motor
expert, answers these questions by
yes IN an article entitled Motor.
ing After the War What Wfll Cars
Be Like?' published in the London
al After asserting that we are but
touching the fringes Of motor-car de
velopment. he continues: i.
There is no need to indulge In ir.
responsible prophecy. Instead we have
merely to observe certain factors
which obtain today and which in COM
bination will predetermine the nature
OF passenger-car development The
mater may be stated thus:
"taJ The purchasing power of the
community, which, class for class, will
be much less than it was when war
broke out.
"tbl The progress OF metalIurgy in
association with the world increase OF
steel output, and the resultant widen
ing Of the scope Of the designer.
"tc) The labor situation and the
general growth of education concern.
ing the profitableness of concentration
of effort.
There win be two ways only of
causing the private individual to buy
a motor carriage after the war. Either
you will produce il at such a price
that II will be an economy for him to
acquire 1t, or will you embody il in
such a combination Of improvements,
alike in design and materials, as will
make him disgusted with the finest
motor carriages SO far available in any
class; therefore you will tempt him
successfully to part with his money.
1t may be recalled that before the
war manufacturers were wont to en-
ploy special steel for making cars
solely for competition purposes. There
were. however, a hundred and one
reasons why they could not standard
lie engines of high output then, among
them icing the fact that the very
special grade steels of which they
must be fashioned were not commerce.
ally available. Again, the rank and
file of each factory staff was not edu-
Gated to such highly specialized work.
3ut the demands of war have COM
PEELED one motor maker after another
to produce engines of more or less
high output for aviation work. The
original British DESIGNS that have
proved practical are, few in number,
q remark which applies equally to the
cases Of France or of Germany, for
instance; but manufacturers are never.
tbe'ess gaining enormous experience
because many who ara sinahle, 10 make
high-powefed aircraft engines of their
own designing are reproducing them
from designs evolved elsewhere.
The difference between war and
peace work for engines of high out
put is this. That in peace time the
individual manufacturer produces
few examples for competition work
under what may be styled more or
less nursery conditions In that the
cream OF his staff of mechanics is in
constant attendance on them; where
as in war times engines Of high out.
put have to be standardized precisely
as do those OF touring cars and issued
to the services. whereupon they are
placed in charge of those who, for the
most part. had meyer anything to do
with this class of engineering con-
struction before the war. Hence, ex-
perience is being gained on an i'm
mense scale.
There remains the question of
price. The war has put an amazing
premium on increase OF steel produc-
ton. The point that Smatters in this
particular connection is that, alike in
the case OF this country and of any
or the big engineering nations. post
war steel production capacity. will be
enormously in excess of normal re-
quirements, as distinct from those Of
the brief reconstruction rush period.
Steel makers will find themselves
in very keen competition one with
another Those who will succeed in
filling their order books will be the
firms which will commemorative higher
and yet higher grades Of steel. or
course the way to make better motor
carriages is not merely to employ finer
materials than hitherto-the possihli-
ties Of these materials must be re-
allied to the full by utilizing them
with worthy designs.
Probably, by concentration on one
model to the factory. and so forth, as
far as the lowered-price cars of ordin-
airy design are concerned. no radical
change will be Witnessed for a spell.
They viii be more completely equin-
ped for less money. But as regards
higher-grade production, including the
matter OF power for weight, we shall
see startlingly fresh things in car de-