Evening star., 1920-03-28
AUTO AND TRUCK
EXHIBIT IS VOTED
GREAT SUCCESS
Washington's "Buy-aMotor.
Car Week" Brought to
Close Last Night.

At midnight last night the most
successful automobile and truck ex-
hibition ever attempted in Washing
ton came to a close. when bub-a-mo-
tor-car week-a method local auto
motive men have of displaying their
latest models-ended.
The annual automobile show has
become an established institution in
practically every center of popula-
tion in the country. and the question
fit is to be derived by the average mo-
torist from attending such exhibi-
tions?"
| The answer to the question must be
given along the lines of that given by
a prominent man to the student who
asked him what educational value'
there was in a trip around the world
IT all depends upon yourself" he
SAID You get just what you are look
ing for You can make pleasure trip
out OF 1t, or you can make a study
trip out of it. embracing some of the
deepest problems concerning human
! existence"
Prime Purpose Of Auto Show.
The prime purpose of automobile
shows. whether they be under one
roof or individual exhibitions such as
| Washington dealers are forced to re-
sort to. is educational. Here the Wis
itor sees the latest improvements on
practically all of the cars and trucks
on the market. including the mechan-
ism. body, types and features, con-
veniences, etc. Like the globe trot-
ter he also is confronted by much
scenery. represented by gay1y painted
cars. novelties. decorations and de-
curiosity.
So the trip to the automobile show
is lust what the visitor Il
can spend an hour, or several hours,
| wandering among the different
booths. or display rooms. as here in
washington, and taking in the gem
eral appearance of the new cars. or
ne can spend the same amount of time
in making comparisons of the cars as
a. whole. learning quickly and COM
pletely as much as he cares to know
about the makes in which he is in
| terested
Most visitors follow the latter
course. and the leading companies
make an extra effort to have their ex-
1 h1bfts so conveniently arranged as to
make it possible for the visitors to
! IN their product in a short time.
Important Thing to Know.
Certainly the important thing to
| know about motor car is its me-
chanical efficiency, and for this reason
the cut-out chassis generally holds
! the greatest interest for the great
majority of the visitors. This was
evidenced here last week by the
crowds that swarmed to those dealers
who had such exhibits on their floors.
Such chassis shows almost at a
glance the design Of each and every
working part and the relation of one
| part to another. And these points are
very vital in the life and efficient
service Of a motor car.
The contention has always been that
a motor car. because it is a machine,
should be bought as a piece Of me-
siderations are secondary to this one
! main fact. The central point Of the
! mechanism is the motor, because the
| rest Of the car is built around the
| source of power.
The cut-out chassis is an ideal place
| to study the motor design. because it
clearly shows the gas passages, COM
bustfon chambers, water-jacketed
space and other points that have
bearing on efficient operation. Then
by comparing one motor with another
and questioning the men in charge of
| the various chassis a good insight
| into the question of motor design may
be obtained.
firms having only the complete job
to display. except that it takes more
time to go into details.
Unusual Number Of Visitors.
There Is no way of estimating the
size of the crowds that visited the
different automotive establishments
during the past week. but the con-
sensus of opinion OF those in charge
of the exhibition was that the great
est outpouring of motor enthusiasts
ever seen in Washington availed
themselves of the opportunity of in
specting the different cars and trucks.
The officers of the Washington Auto
motive Trade Association, under whose
auspices buy-a-motor- week was
held, said last night that the affair
reached proportions far above their
expectations. and the chances were
that local dealers would adhere to
this method of exhibition hereafter.
| in preference to the old style Of hold
| ing a show under one roof.