The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1927-06-08

OF chance-taking. 1t simply was a
case OF falling to appreciate the
| limitations Of the engine. The
take because he would know the
as the driver expected.
Speed Important Factor
How does the engineer know
this?
For one thing he has learned by
experience that acceleration varies
with car and engine speed. For
the particular car it will be assumed
that going from twenty-five to
thirty miles an hour Is an easier
matter than going from twenty to
twenty-five. The motorist who is
playing the engineer glanceh at his
/ speedometer and sees that he is
travelling in the range of poorer
acceleration with the result that he
decides not to risk trying to pass
the machine ahead.
He has many other ways of de-
Gliding against errors in driving and
of improving himself as a driver.
Perhaps it is just q matter Of OBJ
serving the heat Indicator. He
knows. as an engineer, that the
motor cannot be relied upon to per-
form at its best If it is too cold or
too hot.
With regard to stopping, it has
been demonstrated that failure to
know how to operate car as a
piece of mechanism is a serious
handicap to the best of drivers. Elk
| perience reveals that the most effec-
tive stop is the result Of gradual
application of the brakes as opposed
to more vigorous use, but without
his engineers role to fall back upon
in a pinch, the average driver is on
the high road to trouble.
| The engineer knows how the
brakes are behaving, even to follow.
ing the variation in the efficiency OF
the brake lining. This tells him
when 1t is necessary to step on the
brakes and violate the usual rule
about efficient and safe stopping.
and 1t tells him when that rule
should be exaggerated for safety's
sake.
Braking systems on most cars are
variable, especially if these systems
are exposed to the weather. The
question Is, how does the motorist
know where he stands with his
brakes when he is in ;, e role of
engineer?
Tests Are Then Made
This is simple enough. He uses
an engineers tactics. He makes
tests. Even If there is no need for
hating, he makes a trial stop to
see how the brakes are working. A
drag at any point tells him plainly
that one brake band is gripping
better than the others. He bears
this in mind, particularly If the
streets are slippery and there is
possibility of a skid. Regardless of
his skill as a driver, it is obvious
that If he does not know how the
brakes are functioning he Is in line
for bad skid.
Perhaps he is skiliful enough to
know how to make the best of a
skid once he has got into one. But
the motorist who plays the dual
role is far better off. He may not
be so clever when caught in a skid,
but his knowledge of the brakes
helps him to avoid any need for
such skill.
1t is a fact that many drivers
who manage to conduct themselves
in a highly commendable way do
not know that they can drop into
low gear while the scar is in mo-
ton. They know it is possible to
go into second at rather high car
speeds, provided the trick has been
carefully practiced. But low, to
them, is out of the question, except
for a start. 1t is not so difficult
to see where such misunder-
standing might be the source of
serious trouble in case a driver