Page:EB1922 - Volume 31.djvu/1056

1002 let the customer arrange for the body with a coach-builder and select the equipment himself. After the war they showed an inclination to follow the American practice, especially with low-priced cars.

Many of the cars produced in the United States were made on what is known as the assembling plan; that is, the various major components, such as engine, clutch, gearset, axles, frame, springs and steering gear, were all manufactured in different factories by concerns specializing in these products, and were assembled into a

14.—Central longitudinal section of typical American four-cylinder passenger car of 1920 (Allen). (1)—Engine cylinder head; (2)—Radiator; (3)—Headlight; (4)—Mud-guard; (5)—Filler plate; (6)—Splash plate; (7)—Engine starting shaft; (8)—Fan; (9)—Fan belt; (10)—Camshaft gear; (11)—Crankshaft main bearings; (12)—Oil pan; (13)—Engine water jacket; (14)—Camshaft; (15)—Hood; (16)—Radiator stay-rod; (17)—Vacuum tank; (18)—Dashboard; (19)—Cowl; (20)—Instrument board; (21)—Speedometer drive; (22)—Oil circulating pump; (23)—Friction clutch; (24)—Change-speed gear; (25)—Dash lamp; (26)—Speedometer; (27)—Steering post; (28)—Spark and throttle levers; (29)—Steering wheel; (30)—Wind-screen; (31)—Steering-post bracket; (32)—Brake pedal (on left of steering post), Clutch pedal (on right of steering post); (33)—Accelerator pedal; (34)—Emergency brake lever; (35)—Gear lever; (36)—Toe-board; (37)—Foot-board; (38)—Knee-board; (39)—Universal joints; (40)—Exhaust pipe; (41)—Silencer; (42)—Storage battery; (43)—Propeller shaft; (44)—Spiral bevel crown gear; (45)—Frame; (46)—Fuel tank; (47)—Fuel tank gauge; (48)—Fuel tank filler; (49)—Spare rim; (50)—Body; (51)—Rear window; (52)—Hood bows; (53)—Foot-rail; (54)—Radiator thermometer; (55)—Brake; (56)—Brake equalizer shafts.

complete car in the assembling plant. The advantages of this plan are obvious and include the possibility of intensive development of design and the economy of quantity production. The extent to which assembling was practised may be judged from the following figures: Of the American passenger-car models for 1920 92% were fitted with stock carburetters, 75% with stock steering gears, 66·7% with stock clutches, 65·1% with stock rear axles, 58·7% with stock transmissions and 42% with stock engines, all these stock parts being made by specialists. In the field of commercial vehicles the practice of assembling was even more prevalent.

Closed cars are favoured in countries with severe climate, and in the United States 161,000 such cars were manufactured in 1919. The most popular type among American motorists was the sedan, which seated four or more persons all in one compartment. It was therefore an owner-driver's car. The smallest type of closed car was the coup6, which has seating accommodation for two or three inside, including the driver, though sometimes a fourth seat facing backward was added. Closed cars for operation by a professional driver (chauffeur) were generally either of the town-car or limousine types; both of these seat from three to five persons inside, the difference being that the limousine has the driver's seat enclosed while on the town car it is open. Typical 1920 American designs of closed cars are shown in figs. 15—18.

An intermediate type between the motor-cycle and the full-sized car, referred to as a cycle car, had considerable vogue in Europe. It had a smaller wheel tread than the standard 56 in.; the engine in most cases was a two-cylinder of less than 100 cub. in. displacement; and the two passengers often sat tandem fashion. These cars were of the simplest design and were low in price and upkeep cost.

Motor-trucks must be equipped with engines able to take them fully loaded up the steepest grades which occur on regularly travelled highways. When operated in comparatively level districts they always have a surplus of power, and it was found advantageous under such conditions to use one or two trailers with the truck (fig. 19, Pl.). The advantage is greatest where the merchandise to be transported is very bulky. This plan results in considerable economy, as from two to three times as much load can be carried on one trip as with the truck alone, with little extra expense. In continental Europe there was usually a helper on each trailer to look after the load and apply the brakes, but the use of helpers greatly reduces the gain in economy, especially where wages are high, and in the United States it was not usual to employ an extra man. It was realized that in order to make it possible to stop in an emergency the trailers as well as the truck must be braked; but the problem of braking the trailers from the truck had not been definitely solved at the close of 1920, although at least one system of air brakes and one system of automatic mechanical brakes applied through the drawbar had been worked out. Another combination for heavy merchandise transportation consisted of a road tractor, which was merely a foreshortened truck chassis, and a semi-trailer (fig. 20, Pl.). This semi-trailer was a two-wheeled construction, the forward end of which was supported on the tractor frame by means of a swivelling fifth wheel. This end of the semi-trailer could be supported by means of jacks while loading and unloading, and the tractor did not need to stand idle while these operations were going on. A particular form of semi-trailer was the pole trailer (fig. 21, Pl.),—the length of which could be varied, used mainly for transporting lumber, pipes, steel sections, etc.

Commercial Development.—Throughout the first decade of the century motor-car manufacturers in the United States either paid royalties under an alleged basic patent or else were compelled to defend themselves against charges of infringement. This patent (U.S. Patent No. 549,160 of Nov. 5 1895, issued to George B. Selden of Rochester, N.Y.; b. 1845; d. there Jan. 17, 1922) was sustained in the court of original jurisdiction in Sept. 1909, in an action against the Ford Motor Co., which had been pending since Oct. 1903. Many manufacturers had been induced to recognize the patent previous to the decision, and these constituted the membership of the Association of Licensed Automobile Manufacturers (A. L. A. M.),