Evening star., 1930-06-15
MILADY'S MOTORING
BY FREDERICK C. RUSSELL

The measure of success in handling
car is skill in shifting from low to high
with your driving habits rather than
with the gears.
Motordom is just beginning to dis
cover that the rear seat driver was
more useful than she was given credit
for being You see this demonstrated
by the increasing number Of contriv-
anceS now being offered for adjusting
the rear window shade to cut out rear
view glare in night driving.
Before woman moved forward to take
the wheel the driver had but to rely on
verbal orders to obtain very efficient
curtain service. Now she must reach
up to operate a control cord or touch
button TO have the shade operated
by engine vacuum.
In the old days the master Of cere-
monies used to step out to oversee, in
person, the process of purchasing gas
He wanted to be sure that he got good
measure although he may have covered
up his investigation by passing the time
OF day with the attendant at the filling
station. Today woman is at the wheel
in an increasing number of cases and
she is justified in not bothering to get
out when fueling the car. She can check
the whole process by watching the
gauge on the instrument board.
After the car has been washed, watch
your brakes. II the machine Is Of the
older type with exposed brakes the
wetting of the Innings is likely to make
the brakes temporarily inefficient. With
the newer type inclosed brakes the
washing may have the same effect as
damp day and cause them to grab.
q, -
iSheS were useful in reviving the finish
of the automobile but lacquer changed
the picture. Such oily polish simply
becomes dust catcher on the modern
car and will not remove what is known
as traffic film. Also it is bad for chro-
MUM plated parts.
Caring for automobiles is becoming
easier, in my opinion, but more spe-
cialized. One of the new rules is to
household polish with the idea that 1t
is good enough for the car.
A woman who suffered the unpleas-
ant experience of upSetting her car ex-
planned that she had reduced tire pres
sure in order to combat the risk of
slippery streets. She explained that
she had read somewhere that partly de-
f1ated tires would give better traction.
The trouble, OF course, was her mis-
take in reducing presSures in the front
tires. This brought on Shimmy, fol-
lowed by loss OF control Of the car. The
rear tires, with a rear drive car, are the
chief factors in traction.
There is some difference of opinion as
to whether partial deflation helps to
prevent Skidding. I personally find
that a well-inflated tire does not give
maximum traction. I mention the mat
ter here, however, to stress the impor-
tance of avoiding OVERRIDING any rule, no
matter what it may be.
New York taxi drivers fear the slight
ly wet street more than any other type
of driving condition. A light rain or
drizZle makes slime of the street dirt
and greatly increases the possibility of
Skidding. Keep this in mind the next
time 1t is just raining enough to Sug-
gest that driving won't be so bad.
woman writes: Il have heard some
experienced drivers speak of excessive
choking as flooding the carburetor
Others say flooding the engine Which
is correct?"
To certain extent, both. But If one
wants to learn more about the automo-
bile 1t is more sensible TO view excessive
choking as flooding the cylinders of the
engine. Naturally when there is too
much raw fuel sucked up into the in
take during the cranking process this
runs back into the carburetOr and over
flows. But that isn't so important. The
thing that prevents the engine from
starting under such circumstances is
the fact that the excessive amount of
raw gasoline in the cylinders makes the
mixture too rich for firing.
The situation is changing by reason
of the use Of downdraft carburetion on
number of cars. In this system gas
vapor is drawn down from the carblre-