Evening star., 1932-08-21
CAR CARE NEEDED
AFTER VACATIONS
Adjustment and Service
Comp:nsateS Summer
Tour Grind.

After the big tour of the Summer is
over is your car going to be f1t for Fall
touring or will it go into the finest
season of the year handicapped by the
scars of Summer neglect?
This question is an important one for
every motorist to consider This year
there are three new reasons why the
car should be given very extensive post
vacation attention.
Short Sighted Policy.
First, the likelihood that because of
short-signted policy of economy the
car did not receive its full share of
pre-vacation consideration. Second, the
fact that it is older and less fit Third,
the attitude on the part Of many owners
that it is not necessary to service the
car to any great extent because of the
hope of being able to trade 1t in rs
soon as the family feels in position
to purchase new one. These facts
presage many disappointments during
the Fall touring. and many roadside
breakdowns which could be prevented.
These conditions are the straw that
may break the cars back, so to speak
They are imposed in addition to the
usual neglect, based ON the theory that
Summer tour there is no further need
for coddling it. The truth of the mat
ter is that many cars need much more
, service after the Summer touring than
before.
Care of Springs.
Springs are case in point. Think
of all the hard roads the car has been
over, the fields through which it has
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to which it has been exposed on that
grand and glorious vacation. Spring
leaves often are broken by such ab
normal usage of the car and if nothing
worse, will at least be in serious need
of a cleansing and fabrication.
1t has been the custom to have the
valves ground before starting on the
Summer vacation. Those who have
not done this before their Summer
/ trip are sufficiently regretful and
should not add the additional grief of
going ahead through the Fall without
giving the motor the benefit of this
attention. If tappet clearances, for
| instance, have been too close through
the hot weather. there is a good chance
that some of the exhaust valves will
be found burned and warped. If they
are not serviced now the motor will
be very inefficient throughout the Fall.
The car should be given thorough
tightening after it comes back from
the big trip. Unless this is done, there
is a good chance of shimmy trouble
Loose shackcles will cause steering diff
| ficultieS of various sorts. Even a loose
| wheel may bring on steering risks
While checking up around the car
special attention should be given to the
tail pipe bracket the license plate
holders, the motor supports and the
body bolts 1t is well, also, to check
over the headlights. since vibration
from high speed often loosens the
out Of focus.
Servicing of Brakes.
! After a hard drive for couple of
weeks it is reasonable to suppose that
the brakes can stand considerable
| servicing, but comparatively few mo-
torists take this into account. This
explains why. during the post-vacation
period, so many cars store up serious
! troubles which turn out to be far more
expensive than little preventative
! service. One Of the most important
things to do is to take off the wheels
to inspect the brake drums.
; If there is lubricant on the brake
shoes, for instance, this should be
burned off with a torch and steps
taken a prevent lubricant from reach
| ing them again. Check the felt wash
ers and see that the grease in the
front wheel bearings is not too soft or
excessive. The lubricant level in the
rear axle should be checked to see that
it is not too high.
If the brakes are grabbing, and this
condition does not seem to be due to the
lining, the drums should be tested for
roundness. A careful adjustment Of
the clearances between the drums and
the shoes should be made. and all me-
chanical connecting linkage should be
freed up. and fabricated Many brakes
will need refining after the Summer
| touring, and If not attended to will
be certain to cause trouble during the
Fall.
Fan Belt Tightening.
The fan belt will need tightening,
and after the higher speeds of the
trip. always check over the timing
chain as there is a good possibility that
it has stretched The generator COM
mutator should be cleaned and the
bearings fabricated. Breaker points
should be cleaned, spaced and syn
chronized All the spark plugs will be
found in need of cleaning and re-
gaping.
The vacation trip is a hard one for
most cars, and especially strenuous
where not sufficient service has been
given at the start. Unless evidences OF
idly multiply its weaknesses until there
are many repairs to be faced. Don't
let Autumn be the fall Of your car.
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