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HomeMy WebLinkAboutClinton News-Record, 1971-11-18, Page 19Auto Executive Points Finger New York City is called, among other things, the sto- len car capital of the world, Chicago is running second. One auto executive theorizes, "I know there are a lot of organized groups in New York and Chicago who steal cars — make a business out of this. "In my opinion, the most technologically sharp indi- viduals come out of Chicago. The car thief there is like a • frustrated engineer. He seems to know all the fine ways of doing things — a real sharp cookie, good with a hammer and a torch." He also said that "while thefts last year were very definitely a new record, I can't say that new cars are being stolen at the same rate they used to be. My own per- sonal opinion is that we are getting a lot more profes- sional than joy riding." WINTER'S NEWEST SPORT ATTRACTS ALL AGES SNOWMOBILES, LIKE CHILDREN, NEED LOTS OF ATTENTION, This young lad's father is running a quick "'pre-trip" check to Insure safe going. It's a good Idea to carry a basic tool set and extra spark plugs in the snowmobile's storage compartments lust In case, IT'S HAUGH For All YOur CAF TRACTOR 8t TRUCK TIRE NEEIDS . We Are Tire Specialists WE HAVE ALL SIZES and MAKES of SNOW TIRES and RETREADS WE HAVE A HUGE STOCK iiimmimmoininn• SPECIAL CLEARANCE PRICES ON OUR SUMMER INVENTORY HAUGH TIRE SUPPLY DOWNTOWN CLINTON — PHONE 482-9796 WHOLESALE RETAIL DEALER Be Winter Wise IF YOU'VE GOT A "HOT " "COLD" HEATER--- SEE US NOW! GET YOUR TUNE-UP NO. 2 and you'll find winter driving isn't so bad after all . . or a CLINTON BODY & RADIATOR SHOP 73 Mary St. 482-9531 Clinton igNiv Nig Avoid cooling system failures with PAETS DEPT. — 482-7141 CLINTON — 482.9321 Perc Brown Lorne arown Motors' parts manager. The man to see for the finest G.M. approved parts. /kW tiffi secsdilo Fred ShropshaIl Service Manager The man to see far all your service needs. Arnold Cricn Licenced and factory trained. Ait experienced differential and frent.end man. Don't let winter "won't starts" catch you! Keep up your car's start power with our expert engine tune-up. It's a fast, inexpensive job that pays big dividends with trouble-free starts all winter long. Bring in your car today. Doug Cartwright A mechanic great on tune-up. He also specializes in transmission and front end work. Larry McClinchey Trained and ready to do a top job on your transmission or front-end alignment work. LORNE BROWN MOTORS LTD. SERVICE CENTRE JUST ACROSS THE MEET FROM OUR NEW AND USED CAR LOT HWY. NO. 8 FEEL SECURE! Get our wheel alignment for SAFE winter driving BRAKES Lined or Adjusted EXP.Mnrif Pro's Find Ways of Getting Around Locks; New Devices Thwarting Joy Riders; Older Autos Become Targets By ROBERT W. IRVIN One of every 100 cars and trucks in the United States was stolen last year. Or, to put it another way, almost one million vehicles were stolen in a year when new car sales totaled 8,3 million. It seems like a contradiction, but these thefts which are at a record high — come at a time when all new cars are be- ing equipped with anti-theft devices to lock the steering col- umn, transmission and ignition, However, these devices have only been on cars for the last few years. There are probably still 90 million vehicles on 'the road without them, So, it will likely be some years before it can be determined how much the new devices will' cut thefts. Nationwide, car thefts are still on the increase, In 1968, some 777,800 cars were stolen; in 1969, 871,900, The FBI has not yet released most recent figures, but they are expected tp show• another increase to well over 900,000, perhaps one million annually. Cars Now Even Towed Away One Million Cars Expected to be Stolen This Year' Reduce Thefts, Lower Accidents ton. In an effert to make it eae- ler for police to identify a stolen car and to make it tougher for thieves, Vehicle Identification Numbers (VIN) are now mounted perma- nently on the instrument panel, New cars have had to have the triple lock singe January 1, 1970 under a federal safe- ty regulation adopted be- cause stolen cars are 200 times more likely to be in- volved in a traffic accident, according to statistics. Thus, if you cut down the number of car thefts, you should cut down the number of acci- dents, The anti-theft locks are not stopping the professional ear thief, according to offi- cials from industry and gov- ernment, The pro knows how to defeat the lock — in some cases by physically remov- ing it. San Francisco police re- cently reported to the Auto- mobile Manufacturers Asso- ciation (AMA) that many professional auto thieves op- erating in their city were towing the new cars away. Instead of trying to break the lock on the street, they haul the car to a garage where they can work on it in private. However, towing the new cars can be a problem for both thieves and police be- cause the devices lock both the transmission and steer- ing column. With the con- ventional rear-drive Ameri- can car, you can't pick up the front wheels' and tow it because the transmission keeps the back wheels locked. You can pick up the rear end and tow the car, provid- ing the front wheels are locked in a straight ahead position. But you can't tow it this way if the front wheels were turned when the col- umn was locked, The only re- course then, is to put dollies under the wheels to tow the ear. Obviously, no juvenile is going to go to this trouble to steal a car just,for kicks, Like an athlete getting ready for the season, a new snowmobile engine needs proper conditioning before it can perform at its best. Champion Spark Plug Company advises that 10 or 15 hours of operation at part-throttle is the key to good performance there- after, Snowmobile operators who run their brand new machines at full-throttle run the risk of damaging engines. A second cause of snowmo- bile engine problems, partic- ularly in the ignition system, is using the wrong spark plug heat range. However, special- ized kinds of operation may dictate using specially-de- signed spark plugs. For ex- ample, a snowmobile that's mostly operated at full- throttle, such as racing, needs a spark plug of a cold- er heat range to withstand higher operating tempera- tures, A snowmobile that's run at University Study ... SaysTune-Up Is Cure for Air Pollution They came to get a free tune-up. They left with the realization that a neglected engine is a major contributor to the air pollution problem, When engineering students at the university of Detroit decided to help observe En- gineering Week by Offering free tune-tips to the public, the students did not antici- pate the response, Seeking to dramatize the effects of undermaintenante. on harmftil emissions, the students found 150 cars Wait- ing in line at a camptts facil- ity, It was more than they could handle so they invited excess numbers of car Own- ers back for a tune-up the following week. Additional openings for the second week's clinics were exhatisted in 15 minutes as the Public phoned in for appointments, What was the result of the etudy? After tune-tip the average hydrocarbon emissions were teduced 52 percent. And the average carbon monoxide emissions were re- duced 58 percent, According to -clinic organ- izers Bob Ka,czortaveki and John Sinreker, "The goals that were set for the tune-up were 400 parts per million of hydrocarbons and 2.0% car- bon monoXide. The average 110 reading coming in was 644 PPM, The average CO count was 2.06 percent. "After time-up the average HO count was 312 and the average CO tount- Was 1.3 percent," - While most of the ear own- ers were mote motivated to bring their vehicles in for free service rather than con- cern for pollution, the proj- ect directors were somewhat optimistic. XaczOrowski and 8mreker commented, "After seeing what a difference a tune-up can make lit their ear's per- formance, mileage and pol- lution, we feel we have won a few conVerts." Thieves Keep Up with Times Officials also note a rising number of stolen trucks and recreational vehicles, "The thieves are moving into this field as these ve- hicles become more popular," one auto spokesman said. "It's very tough to identify them too, because there are so many manufacturers." About 84 percent of stolen cars are now recovered, down from 92 percent (of the 288,- 300 cars stolen) recovered in 1959. Thus, as a larger percent- age of the thefts are by pros, the percentage of cars re- covered will probably con- tinue to drop. While the locks apparently won't stop a professional thief, the warning devices which are available as acces- sories may stall him. One auto man said, "a warning system individually tailored to a car can be suc- cessful. But if the warning system is installed on a pro- duction line, then the thieves know how to beat it. "They will go to junk yards and buy wrecked cars just to 'operate' on them — like a school for thieves." lower speeds, such as trail riding, needs a plug of a hot- ter heat range to prevent premature plug fouling. For machines running in a vari- ety of conditions, standard- design plugs are recom- mended. Both fuel and oil should be of the quality the manufac- turer recommends for the engine. Mixing ratios of oil to fuel should be followed exactly. When mixing the elements, make certain both are warm. The mixing The task of selectifig re- placements for worn or dam- aged tires, or installing win-ter tires, is made a little eas- ier by some suggestions of- fered by the Rubber Manu- facturers Association (RMA) First, never buy a smaller size than those which came with the car, says RMA. Tires should always be replaced with the same designation, or approved options, as rec- ommended by the automo- bile manufacturer. Also, if you're considering replacing conventional sized tires such as 7.75 x 14, etc, with a set of new radials, belted bias or the wider tread profiles ("70 Series," "78 Se- ries") , be sure to check the automobile manufacturer's or tire dealer's recommenda- tions. Why It's Ilecontinended Interchangeability of dif- ferent types of tires is not always possible, due to dif- ferences in load rating, tire dimensions, wheel well clear- ances and rim sizes, particu- larly with older cars. On the question of mixing different types of tires on the same car, the association suggests that for best all- With should be done in a sep- arate container and then poured into the vehicle's fuel tank, Placing unmixed fuel and oil directly into the tank is an invitation to trouble, say Champion engineers. around performance it's best to use the same type of tire on all four wheel positions. In the case of radial tires, mixing IS deilEigly ruled out. Due to differences in handling characteristics, they should be used only in sets of four RMA also notes that while the wider tread "70 Series" tires can be mixed with con- ventional tires, they should only be used in pairs on the same axle, For Extra Protectioo When buying a pair of re- placement tires in the same size and construction, the as- sociation suggests that they be put on the rear wheels for better traction, handling and extra protection against flats. When a single new tire 14 bought, It should be paired on the rear axle with the tire having the most tread depth of the other three. The tire industry also rec- ommends a "break-in" perie od for all new or previouely unused tires — the tires on a new car, the spare put on after a fiat and all replace- ments, Limiting speed to 60 mph for the first 50 miles of driving enables the many complex elements in a tire to adjust gradually to each other and function as an in- tegral unit. AVOID PROBLEMS Dirty battery terminals can cut off your car's power quicker than an unpaid elec- tric bill, Make sure your bat- tery cables and terminals are clean. But Robert L. Wilson, sec- retary of the AMA's vehicle security committee, said the device "definitely has an ef- fect on the joy riding kids. The juveniles are stealing a lower percentage of new cars. And that was our main thrust with the device." The only available statis- tics show that about 40 per- cent of the.cars stolen had the keys left in the ignition. This, of course, defeats the purpose of the triple-locking syetem. To remind people to remove their keys, cars for the last couple of years have had a buzzer which sounds if the driver's door is opened with the key still in the igni- Clinton News-Record, Thursday, November 18, 1971 11A Time for New Treads? Here Are Some Tips Keep Snowmobile Travel Smooth Basic Maintenance Program