Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-07-20

The cynical observer says women and
automobiles differ by reason Of the fact
/ that one of them you can throttle down.
Women who have their cars delivered
to them from the garage when stopping
at hotels should be careful to see that
the choke button is pushed in before
starting off. Often the garage at
tendant has to use the choke to reach
the hotel and goes off with it half out.
Here's a little problem in driving
which might well be headed What
Would You Have Done?"
She was on a steep upgrade when
the engine stalled. The hand brake
would not hold the car. Pressing on
the foot brake pedal, she found she
could not touch the starter button at
the same time.
The problem was solved by first plac-
ing both feet on the brake pedal and
then shifting the right one to the
starter. With the engine started, the
reverse tranSference of the feet put
them back in the usual positions.
The clutch, of course, should be
slipped, but in shifting gears even the
best of drivers occasionally encourage
slippage by being a little too slow in
engaging the clutch plates. Slippage
is more apt to occur the hotter the
weather, and in addition the damage
to the plates will be proportionately
greater.
Much of the difficulty women expert
ence trying to pass cars on the highway
is failure to recognize opportunities.
Trucks, for instance, are most easily
passed upgrade or just as they are
starting, following traffic stop. A
straightaway is a good place to pass
safely, provided no other driver APP
preaching is taking the opportunity to
speed up. Many cars are very slow on
the pickup following a slowing down
or where there is a grade following
turn. These are opportunities for get
ting by.
IT did not write you for Sugges-
tions on how to back out Of our narrow
driveway" said reader of these COM
ments recently, because it was obvious
that what l needed was practice"
Doubtless we learn such phases of driv-
ing by the simple process of keeping
everlastingly at it, but there are GER
tain advantages to knowing a few OF
the tricks of the game. She did not
know, for instance, that one of the first
rules is to learn to look ahead to see
that the car is in a straight line rather
than to try to look to the rear con-
stantly.
The willingness and ability to OBJ
serve, characteristics of the average
woman are helpful to her in gaining
deeper understanding of the automo-
bile. This was clearly illustrated re-
there was only one wire to each spark
plug when every electrical device
around the home requires two
Automobiles are now universally on
a single-wire system, the metallic
frame and engine serving as the
ground" to carry the return side OF
the current. Not so many years ago
two-wire system was used for lights,
horn and other electrical accessories,
virtually passed out of the picture in
favor of the simpler arrangement.
If you will take a look at the battery
in the car, you will note that it has one
short cable running to the frame. The
more common plan now seems to be to
ground the positive post of the battery,
but there are many cases where the
negative side still is grounded. 1t does
not make any material difference
whichever the manufacturer originally
decided upon, since the frame is not
true ground. But change should not
be made after the system Is designed,
one way or the other.
Since the frame. engine and all metal
| lie parts serve as wiring" it is appar-
ent that tightness contributes to good
! igniti>n and lighting. The battery
ground is particularly likely to get
loose, and, of course, the generator wire
to the frame should be kept tight at all
times.
Some idea of how current travels all
| over the car through the ground sys-
TEN may be judged from the case OF a
car which invariably went into total