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MOTORing through time

Touring by motorcar is becoming increasingly popular. Even New York City Mayor George B. McClellan motors to his office daily. He also uses his automobile to visit various parts of the city for inspections, meetings and social engagements, earning the nickname, "The Motoring Mayor of the Metropolis."

One feature this month follows the route of patriot Paul Revere during his famous ride on the night of April 18,1775 to warn the populace of the approaching British army. The story, with photographs, describes the historical details and includes a reprint of Revere's own account of that historic ride.

50 Years Ago: June 1953

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The arrival of production line versions of the Chevrolet Corvette sports car lifts glass fiber and plastic body construction out of the experimental era. "Here Come the Glass Bodies" covers the use, cost and repair of the new material and ponders its further use in automobile manufacture. Made from woven glass fiber mats and held in shape by polyester resins, the resulting material is one-fifth the weight of steel, has excellent shock-absorbing qualities and doesn't rust. The article points out that Kaiser-Frazier is also using a glass-reinforced plastic body on its new KF-161 sports car, which is expected to be a strong competitor to the Corvette.

90 Years Ago: June 1914

The rising cost of gasoline and its future availability is addressed in a feature titled "Is There a Gasoline Problem?" The pro-auction of petroleum is about 17 trillion gallons annually, and the average extraction of gasoline from the various types of petroleum is roughly 10%, or 1.7 billion gallons of gasoline. With about 2 million motor cars in the world, the allotment would be 850 gallons per vehicle per year.

The average thermal efficiency of auto engines of the day is about 8%. If the thermal efficiency could be doubled-to 16%-the fuel supply would be sufficient. "The fuel supply's adequacy depends upon the motor engineer," the article states.

40 Years Ago: June 1962

More than 63 million passenger cars are now on U.S. roads. A year earlier, domestic automakers announced 12-month/ 12,000-mile service warranties. MOTOR Editor Edward Ford points out "The service business is actually going to get bigger and better. The factories emphasize the fact that periodic inspection is indispensable if cars are to perform to their full capability." He adds, "The car population is going to increase by 2,000,000 or so units a year and the longer life of cars is now around 100,000 miles....There is a tremendous lot of service to be billed between 12,000 miles on a warranty and the 100,000 miles the average car is to be driven before it is scrapped."

80 Years Ago: June 1926

The concept of "flat rate" has emerged, whereby a mechanic gets paid by the job rather than by the hour or with a salary. Flat rate rewards mechanics who excel in quickly completing repair jobs, while weeding out those who do not produce adequately.

The pros and cons of the flat rate concept are debated in a series of articles. Noble D. Gilkerson, service manager of the Hudson-Brace Motor Co. dealership in Kansas City, writes "We Smoked Out the Payroll Riders." The results of a test show a 20% average increase in wages for the most time-efficient mechanics under the flat rate system, compared to the previous period under an hourly system.

30 Years Ago: June 1972

As the number of female car owners rises, the repair industry is faced with finding better ways of communicating with women customers. "Come to Edna's Car Clinic" tells the story of Edna Freifeld of Central Auto and Electric Service in Cedarhurst, New York, and her efforts to educate women about the service needs of their vehi-cles. Freifeld has worked as a technician for over 30 years and hosts weekly Clinics for women to learn all about the basics of car maintenance, changing tires, brakes, batteries, alignment, tune-ups and auto safety. After attending the course, each woman receives a Certificate of Merit.

70 Years Ago: June 1932

Service shops are desperately searching for ways to increase revenue. MoToR includes an article detailing a campaign by Chevrolet to create business for its dealers, called "Help America by Helping Ourselves," based on ten "Weekly Specials" promoting essential maintenance operations. A sales kit includes posters, newspaper ad blanks, post cards, write-up orders and instruction booklets. The weekly specials range from chassis lubrication and brake adjustment to accessory items such as window wings and smoker's kits. Over the first five weeks of the program, it is reported, Chevrolet dealers performed over $1,463,000 worth of "Weekly Special" service.

20 Years Ago: June 1980

MOTOR visits the annual "Big I" Industry Show in Chicago and selects the ten best new tools for auto repair. The "10 Best Tools" had been initiated by Bob Cerullo two years earlier.

The top products for 1980 are long-nose locking pliers, renewable-tip snapring pliers, a camber adjustment assist tool, a portable ignition system tester, a refrigerant sniffer, a distributor rotor remover, a valve guide removal system, a temporary fastener system for body panels, a compact vehicle lift and a portable power washer.

Automotive Industry

MOTORing through time

Motor, Jun 2003

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