Evening star., 1935-05-05
HELPFUL ADVICE
GIVEN FOR WOMEN
Have Service Man Check
Fan Bearing to Pre-
vent Cramping.
BY FREDERICK C. RUSSELL.

BY FREDERICK C. RUSSELL.
Any drivers safety outlook for the
touring season depends mainly on
her lookout.
In spite Of all the improvements,
major and minor, In motor cars the
annoyance Of . squeeky fan belt still
persists. Oiling the belt is not good
practice and soaking it, while useful
as q temporary remedy, is not likely
to prove a real cure. Some improve
ment Is possible through using q
grease stick or pencil such as me-
in doors.
Belt noise invariably Is due to
slippage which, in turn, is due to belt
wear, too loose an adjustment or to
the fan offering resistance. Before
having q new belt installed. or be-
fore having an adjustment made.
always have your service man check
the fan bearing to make sure it Is
well oiled and not cramped.
II you see o mammoth van moving
along the road one Of these Spring
days don't be too surprised to be in
formed that it is conveying one COM
plete house, heating, air-conditioning
fixtures, roof and all. Two drivers, a
master mechanic and building su-
pervisor ride and live In the new con-
veyance while the residence Is being
delivered and assembled. Merely two
weeks expire between the time the
house is ordered and Is ready for
occupancy.
This weeks safety pointer Is to
try to stop your car rs If the ma
chine ahead were stopped back about
10 feet. When you have brought
your car to halt you can then imrne-
diately allow it to roll up close to
the other car. allowing 10 extra feet
Of space behind as safety margin
for some car that may not have such
trustworthy brakes.
The idea persists that II the oil
filter is clogged and needs replacing
there is no harm In running along
without filtration, since cars went
along many years without this refine
ment. Such reasoning Is dangerous
for 1t ignores the fact that when
engines were not protected with filters
they did not run at such high speed
nor did owners expect 50 much per-
formance from their cars.
The unfiltered engine today Is at
disadvantage. 1t suffers in . way
that would not have bothered earlier
motors. In many engines there are
today more places depending upon
efficient fabrication and more square
inches of surface that can be dam
aged by dirty oil.
Fresh from the experience Of trying
to make an expert Of . new driver, IN
instructor tells me that he believes
it is better to let q newcomer get the
feel Of the car than to force her to
plunge into trafic. This, Of course,
reverses the plan Of teaching backing,
starting and shifting gears before
trying for road experience. Most
drivers will, however, admit that the
knack of handling the car came to
them as o result of familiarity with
the car and was not something i'm
mediately CLEANED from concentrated
instruction. Personally think o good
plan Is to allow the newcomer to
drive the car out in the country for
several trips before putting her
through the stress of detailed instruc-
tion in shifting, braking and handling
the motor.
Second gear, to answer a reader, Is
mainly serviceable as an emergency
gear. It is the gear to use when pro-
ceeding cautiously or when in pinch.
Faced with the necessity Of getting
out Of the way Of oncoming danger.
always shift to second, speeding up
the motor as you do 50. The engine
Is less likely to stall or to hesitate
when the gears are in second. Some
skillful drivers keep in second for .
large portion of their trafic driving.
This saves lot Of gear shifting and
provides more opportunity for en-
centrating on watching the road
ahead, steering and applying the
brakes. In second gear the car &C
CELEBRATES better and slows down more
readily.
Because changing the pedal posi-
ton is so simple on most cars and the
effect often so pronounced, it is always
well to ascertain If this change is
made when the car Is in the service
station for brake work. Too often
drivers conclude that major changes
have been made in the braking sys-
tenn, sometimes to their dislike, when
all that has been done Is to effect q
change in pedal position. Changes in
clearance at the drums or changes In
the hook-up will, Of course, AFFECT
pedal position. It is important to be
sure that you like the changed pedal
position before starting away from
the service station.