Evening star., 1924-08-17

general average was 24.5 feet, as
compared with asa feet for the
brakes of all cars.
The driver OF the average car prob
ably depends to a considerable extent
on his emergency brakes. He knows
tnat they are there, and in a tight
place he would instinctively reach for
them and jam them on, and he would
expect them to respond According
to the Bureau of Standards tests,
however, he would be a singularly
lucky or singularly careful driver
II his emergency brake responded ef-
fectively in an emergency. Mr.. Allen
says that the term emergency brake
! is a misnomer, and as far as the
gency brake is a de1usion. This is
not because of any inherent defect
in the brakes that are put on auto
mobiles, but because of the treatment
the brakes receive.
Seventy-one per cent Of the emer-
gency or hand brakes tested were
found to be poor. Eleven per cent
were fair, 13 per cent good and only
5 per cent were excellent The best
stops of more than 100 feet and three
stops of 200 feet. The general aver
age for all the cars was Is feet, or
poor. On wet pavement all the
emergency brakes were poor.
A large number of the drivers who
had their cars tested said that they
had never tried out or used their
emergency brakes in the entire time
that they had been driving. Mr.. Allen
suggests that it is a good idea to test
these brakes once in a while. They
should be somewhere near as good as
the service brakes.
Drivers Are Careless.
The lamentable showing Of so many
cars is attributed to neglect on the
part of the drivers. Few drivers fol-
low the advice once given by a safety
council: "Give your service brakes a.
road test every day when you leave
the garage. Make a thorough test of
brakes every 1000 miles, or at least
once a month"
Brakes should be kept in good ad-
justment, neither too loose nor too
tight, and SO that they grip the rear
wheel on each side of the car with
equal force. Poorly adjusted brakes
cause a car to skid. Some of the
hand brakes tested by the Govern
ment were in such poor adjustment
that they would not hold 4 car stand
ing still on a bill.
Other suggestions given by safety
organizations are: Have brake lin
ings washed with kerosene every two
months. Clean and oil brake mechan-
ism at least once month. Rosin
applied to Innings to increase friction
causes brakes to jam suddenly, which
Is hard on the tires and the passen-
gers in the car. Never oil brake Innings
One woman who brought her auto
mobile to be tested told the Govern
ment expert that she knew the brakes
slipped. Mr.. Allen Investigated and
found that the brake Innings had been
oiled so that they could not very we'll
do anything but slip. The car owner
recalled that the brakes had been
squeaking, and that a garage man
had oiled them to stop the annoying
sound. She was surprised to learn
that this would prevent the brakes
from holding the car. In another car
slipping brakes were found to be
floating in oil from a leaxy axle.
So far as use of brakes is concern
ed. drivers are advised not to use the
service brake oftener than necessary.
When coming to an ordinary stop,
the recommended technique Is to shut
or the gas and leave the clutch en-
gagged until just before making the