Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-01-25
MOTOR SHOW OPENING
GREETED AT AUDITORIUM
Gala Array of 1881 Offerings Gives
Promise to Better Times for
Every One.

pointed TO as leaQlng mlleSCCneS
ON the path of progress.
Speaking generally, body lines
are longer and lower, with wheel
bases longer, treads wider, with
finer coach work and better paint
jobs. Bodies are wider and ROOM
Ter by reason of the heightened
wheelbaSe and the expanded
treadS. Higher-powered engines,
equipped with finer exhaust and
oiling systems, are smoother and
quieter-the old story of the finest
machine operating with the least
fuss and noise. Central oiling SyS-
TENS have increased. in number.
and free wheeling, first introduced
by Studebaker last year, apparent
ly has come to stay. No fewer
than five cars have Incorporated
this engine and gaS-Saving trans!
mission device this year. Front
wheel drive is not gaining in pop
ularity. Where there were three
front-wheel drive cars last year,
this year Cord alone remains as
the front-wheel drive pioneer.
Transmission Change.
Synchro mesh ira n m is o n,
brought out by, Cadillac several
years ago, has spread to Buick
and others, and before long the
sound of claShing gears may be
utterly lost. Steering has been
improved, and Shimmy of balloon
tires has been effectually taken
care of by modulatorS. Going
further into engine design, down
draft carburetion, which caused
such a fuss last year, now Is &C
cepted as standard by most man
ufacturerS. The car not now
equipped with carburetion down
to the manifold instead of up now
is outnumbered by its more mod
ern brethren. But they go even
further than that-theSe research
men of the automobile world.
That carburetor hiss has been
traced to its lair and this year
some cars are equipped with Sin-
take silencers. Practically every
car has an air cleaner, all have oil
purifiers and many have made inn
provementS in ShackleS, shock abb
Sorbers, rear springing. No longer
win the rafting Shackle be a NUS
ance to the car driver as he speeds
along a rough road at pace that
would have jolted his 1920 car to
pieces. Rubber now separates the
steel and irons out the noise, and
these ShackleS also have an auto
matte take-up feature.
Protection Added.
On the side of driving safety
and comfort, there are more steel
bodies, more Shatter-proof wind
shields, finer steering gear, mar
rover body pillars, better brakes,
faster getaway and lower car bal
ance.
On the side of car appearance
there are new color combinations
in pyroxylin lacquerS and greater
use of nOn-corroSive materials in
metal exterior parts.
And as to gears, more manufac-
turerS have gone to four forward
speeds this year than ever before
Where cars slid along with the en-
CINE turning over three or four
times faster than the wheel in
years gone by, they now move over
the road with the wheels turning
at nearly engine speed. The re-
Sulting economy in gasoline and
oil consumption and engine wear
is obvious. First speed now is
used in most of these cars only in
a pull from mud or snow. Third
speed gives a better getaway in
traffic and fourth speed a better
road speed with less engine use.
The engineers, not satisfied with
merely telling the amount of oil
in the crankcaSe, now even go into
it's viscosity, which means its body
and engine saving quality. Sew
eral cars are equipped with Wis
costly gauges.
Startling Trend.
Perhaps most startling of the
modern trend is the movement
toward multi-cylindered power
plants. Cadillac was the sensation
of last years show with its 16-
cylinder engine, a step far beyond
the old 12-cylinder Packard OF
overheated memory. But this year
Marmon has joined the 16-cylin-
der class, Cadillac has put out q
12-cylinder job, Buick has left the
six and definitely alinged Itself
with the manufacturers of Fights
and WHY'S has gone to the eight
Rumor has it that two more makes
are to come out shortly with 16-
cylinder engines. On the whole
it may be said that the day of the
multi-cylindered engine has come
to stay, with resulting smoother
getaway and higher speeds. Ever
in the moderate-price field many
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