The Washington times., 1929-05-08

Just such a thing is going on
at the moment in connection with
a subject of especial interest and
concern to the individual owner OF
motor cars. 1t is in the form of a
question, why all the mystery in
connection with the amounts OF
gasoline, oil, grease and water
needed for various parts Of the carp
The petroleum industry, quite a
buxom enterprise itself. is the one
that addresses the question.
What it suggests by way Of an
answer that will be Satisfactory is
a small plate attached in some
place about the car where It car
readily be seen. 1t would specify
the necessary information some
what in this form:
Gasoline tank ........gals.
Crankcase .'....".....i qtS.
fIauldLOf ..s.sssssPs.s QlS.
Transmission ......... lbs.
Differential ........... lbs.
As everyone knows, it is a day
of quick change in the motor car
industry. Furthermore, there are
many, many lines of cars. These
facts, along with others, combine to
make it exceptionally difficult for
the most intelligent filling or serv-
ice station employe to carry in his
head the sizes of five different
reservoirs on "a different lines of
ears. That Is a total of 420 reser.
Voirs whose content he would have
to know.
Aids Filling Station
prL;n e;c,,ro .Lo,,IdanvnIo;r ~ &hn
average motorist why it frequently
is necessary for the filling station
attendant to ask how much oil the
crankcase holds or how much gaso-
line can be put into the tank at
Reconciled to the present system,
the layman may wonder just what
purpose would be served by having
this information readily available to
the man replenishing the various
reservoirs about the car. AS voiced
by those who request a change, the
objective is to make 'it simpler,
more efficient job to turn out good
work at the filling station, to please
and satisfy the filling stations Gus.
toners and to make the use of mo-
tor cars a more care-free, more
pleasant and more inviting activity
The motorist may argue that there
are gauges about the car which pro.
vide this information.
In this. he. is forgetting that
gauges are not always entirely ac-
curate. Going back into his own
experience. he probably can recall
the time, when he had the gasoline
tank replenished on the basis of the
gauge only to see a gallon or more
spilled before the pump could be
shut off.
Who is to pay for this gas? The
mOtorist did not get it, so he does
not feel that he should bear it's cost
Invariably. it falls back on the
filling station. Naturally, the filling
station does not like the idea and
If 1T could be eliminated by some
simple information system, it be-
Aeves that step should be taken.
80 Per Cent Efficient,
Take the desire of the filling sta.
tion attendant to do a good job
under circumstance that prevailed
In connection with the oil gauge of
q certain car of a couple of years
ago, tens = thousands of which are
still running around buying gas and
oil and grease.
The specifications for the car set
forth that the crankcase held five
quarts of oil. Yet by the bayonet
gauge in the side of the case, four
quarts showed the crank case to be
full.
The book happened to be correct
and, as result, many of these cars
were running around with only so
per ce:.t of their necessary oil sup
ply. The fabrication system, which
has been greatly improved, was none
too powerful at its best, which made
the Ill deficiency doubly bad.
There are many in the automotive
industry who concede a measure of
justice in the request of the Pc
troleum group for specific informa-
ton on reservoir contents.
Filling these reservoirs until they
srun over" Is not practice that
they can indorse, they readily adj
init.
Take the case of the ra iator, for
instance. Where anti.freeze is put
into the cooling system properly.
the entire system is drained, then
the non-freezing solution added, and
finally water poured in until the
proper level is reached.
If the filling station attendant
does not know the precise content
of the system. and is not especially
cautious. he may permit the spilling
Of some OF the solution on the hood.
One-very widely used anti-freeze is
especially deleterious in its effect