Evening star., 1935-11-03
INTELLIGENT AID
NEEDED BY AUTO
Serves as Shield Against
Elements, but Must Have
Cooperation.

II the automobile Is to rise to its
full stature as an aid to safety its
driver must have q better under
standing of how to handle it skillfully
under the stress of emergencies.
This appears to be the lesson
learned from the Summers wind and
rain storms. 1t is also suggested by
the frequency with which travellers
fail to meet the abnormal problems
of driving. Inherently safe as it Is
serving as a shield against the fury
of the elements, the automobile needs
the wholehearted and intelligent CO.
operation of its operator.
The automobile itself is in the pc
culiar position of being most easily
and adversely affected by the person
who needs its protection the most.
Weight Often Needed.
Thousands Of cars are mired be-
cause drivers ask passengers to get
out when added weight would be a
help rather than hindrance. A
trailer will be more easily pulled
through mud or sand If weight Is
well distributed over all six wheels
Of the car. To prevent rear wheels
from spinning means to maintain
traction SO greatly needed in handling
q car In mud or water. This calls
for checking the wheels with the
brakes while engaging the clutch. II
the engine tends to impart too much
power to the rear. Second gear should
then be used for starting, rather than
the too powerful low gear.
While 1t Is important to go cau-
tiously when forced to drive the car
through water, 1t Is equally essential
to 60 steadily. Stopping may mean
failing to have sufficient traction to
start up again. The years floods
have served to emphasize the old
maxim that he who hesitates Is lost.
1t Is, OF course, unreasonable to
attempt to drive through. water with
out having some idea Of the depth.
Trees furnish one clue to depth. Since
such floods usually occur in warm
weather, it Is feasible to wade through
the flooded portion Of the road before
attempting to drive the car through
An engine will not operate after the
water Is much above the exhaust
pipe and never after the water level
is up to the carburetor intake. Know
ing this. some drivers try to rush
the flooded area on the theory that
with sufficient momentum the car
may get through before water can
flow through to the engine compart-
ment. This usually proves 10 be
false theory because the extra speed
causes, water to splash all over the
ignition.
Guard Against Splashing.
To guard against splashing close
the hood ventilators and put robe
over the radiator grille. One mo-
torist got through a deep section
without motor failure by attaching
his hot-air type windshield defroster
tube to the end Of the tail pipe, thus
carrying the exhaust up to point
several feet above the road. The
carburetor was higher than on most
cars and thus kept above the water
level.
Fortunately, the trend has been
toward downdraft carburetors, which
are necessarily higher than the usual
updraft type. On many cars the dis
tributor also is on top Of the motor
and half way back. SO that it, too. is
above the water line Going slowly
but very steadily through the flooded
area seems to be the best policy, but
it is not bad practice to race the
engine by declutching momentarily
when the water level IS higher than
the exhaust pipe. This will serve to
offset the tendency Of the water to
create enough backpressure on the
outgoing gas to stall the engine.
Should the engine fail 1t Is well