What Are Those Two Guys Doing In That Old Car...?

If you are entered in the Hemming's Great Race, you paid your entry fee back in January, and as I often tell my Great Race customers..."you are like the pig at breakfast...you are committed..." While that usually gets a good laugh it is meant to also make them stop and realize that time has a way of slipping away and they need to allow time to repair any last minute defects.

Just because their car ran fine last year when they parked it, does not mean it will run fine this year. That advice applies to all of us by the way. Most Great Race entrants will disassemble their car and check everything, replace any worn parts and pieces then have the car back together and running by no later than the first of March. Now they have a car in good shape mechanically, it is time to put some miles on and practice and find any defects like oil leaks, or coolant leaks. Then its practice, and practice some more.

You would not think that just replacing parts and adjusting things would change the personality and how the car drives and stops. But I am here to tell you it does. While it might not change much if you are just driving your antique vehicle for fun...if you are a Great Race entrant, seconds count so knowing the character of your car, and how it will react in different situations is a must.

That is why you will see the Great Race entrants both the driver and navigator out practicing with the car. They will practice on a lonely stretch of road accelerating to 10 mph, 15 mph, 20 mph, 25 mph, and so on up to 50 mph from a dead stop. They will do those same tests over and over until they get the same consistent time for each speed. They may have to practice a speed over a dozen times before they get a consistent time.

The same will happen for stopping. They will practice coming to a dead stop from 50 mph, 45 mph, 40 mph all the way down to 10 mph and like the acceleration practice they are looking for consistent times. They need to be able to stop and accelerate the exact same way each and every time. Then they will make a chart with the times they have established. That will become their "cheat sheet," and in most cases it will be slightly different from last year due to things like tire wear or replacement, anything that changes the diameter of a tire will affect the numbers for example.

The "cheat sheet" is a must have to Great Race entrants because in the directions the entrants receive every day they will have to figure a time correction to most all of the instructions they receive, based on their car and their "cheat sheet" numbers and their driving skills.

For example, an instruction will say maintain 30 mph to the next stop sign, wait eleven seconds then accelerate to 40 mph. No time is allowed to slow from 30 mph to a complete stop because every car is different. So the navigator will look at the "cheat sheet" they made, to determine how long it takes in seconds for their car to go from 30 mph to a complete stop, then how long it should take the vehicle to accelerate from a dead stop up to 40 mph. He will then deduct that amount of time from the eleven seconds shown in the instructions, and they will leave from the stop sign much sooner.

Because every car is different all of the wait times will be different. There is the difference between manual and hydraulic brakes, a difference between the model years of cars, and the types of brakes, how well they are adjusted,  the response time of the driver, and the weather conditions. It could be raining, the wind could be blowing 30 mph and could be either a headwind, a tailwind, or a side wind, all of which will affect the time on their "cheat sheet". The navigator will have to make a metal correction to the "cheat sheet" time based on these factors in order to stay on time.

This time of year is where I get especially busy and explains why I have not updated this blog. While the Great Race are out practicing they are also driving in the real world conditions that they will experience on the race. I work on the electrical cooling and fuel so if vapor lock is an issue I fix that. If overheating is an issue, I fix that. If dead batteries and dim headlights are an issue I fix that. Problems with the overdrive transmission, I fix that.

A car entered in the Great Race MUST be reliable so the driver and navigator can focus on the job at hand. The teams are not allowed any outside help during the day while they are on the clock. As you might imagine just keeping track of the navigation and the speed will keep two people busy without much free time to spare. Great Race entrants are scored down to the hundredth of a second.

If you are thinking that what I and learning during this practice time  and thru out the rest of the year working on Great Race vehicles would make your antique vehicle more reliable and fun to drive...you would be correct! The Great Race entrants will drive 2500 plus miles in about two weeks time, along with another 500-1000 practice miles before the race. For me that is like an accelerated course in Antique Vehicle 101.

I have been preparing Great Race cars every year since 1989 and it has taught me a lot about what works in theory and what works in real life. So when you order parts from Fifth Avenue chances are you will talk to me on the phone and because I manufacture most of the parts I sell I know first hand exactly how they work. I also know what you need to make your antique vehicle just as reliable as those entered in the Great Race. I install everything I manufacture onto a Great Race car first before I sell it to my regular customers. I know it what I build survives on a Great Race car, it will easily survive in the everyday world.

My job is the same today as it was 30 years ago when I started...to make all types of antique vehicles more reliable and fun to drive., It doesn't matter if you are entering the Great Race or taking a tour with the local car club. Having a reliable car is just as important in either case. I work for the Great Race entrants, I work for the movie studios, and I even worked for the Queen of England...and I will work for you.

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First Offered In 1940...Still Available 77 Years Later..And Still Made In The USA!

You are no doubt wondering what this antique hand soap dispenser has to do with an antique auto parts store...? Read on and you will wonder no more.

I have always been a detail guy and knew that the inside of my store would someday look just like those antique auto parts stores that were in business during the 1940's and 1950's. I have been in hundreds of older auto parts stores, car dealerships and repair garages in the past 40 plus years, so I knew the "look" I wanted.

I also knew it is the little things that matter, and one of the things I always saw in an older auto repair garage and car dealerships was some sort of hand cleaner dispenser. Most were made of sturdy cast aluminum and had clearly been mounted in the same location for years. Those hand cleaner dispensers had art deco styling which gave them character... and I knew if they were still on the wall after 20 plus years, they were built tuff.

I have tried to buy a few of those older style hand soap dispensers from garages and dealerships over the years with not much success. Most were still being used. I wanted one because it made little sense to me to have a store full of antique automotive advertising and related memorbilia... and then have a modern plastic hand cleaner dispenser. It was just one of the details that was important to me. I wanted to keep everything in the same era.

Eventually... I picked up an original 1940's "Whisk" Brand hand cleaner dispenser in an antique store, put it away for safe keeping, then forgot I had it. It has been in storage for more than twenty years. Recently, while cleaning out a corner of the warehouse there it was, hidden in a cardboard box. The one good thing about the modern Internet is that it makes it easier to look up the history of things, something that was more difficult to do twenty years ago.

So I looked up my Whisk brand hand cleaner dispenser on the Internet and found out much to my surprise, that the Whisk company is still in business in 2017, and is still headquartered in Wentzville Mo. So I immediately sent them pictures of my dispenser via email. A day later I got an email back with a phone number to call customer service at my earliest convenience.

Seems the pictures of my early Whisk hand soap dispenser caused quite a stir at the company. One employee had worked for the company for 35 years  knew a little of the history. Between that and old company records we determined that my hand soap dispenser was designed in 1940 and was patented in 1949, the delay in the patenting was caused by the war. Because mine was cast aluminum with the "pat pending" on the lid, dates it to pre 1949.

Now we are getting somewhere. So my next question was..."do you have any of the leftover refills for my dispenser or anyway I can fill it and use it...?"

More good news....They STILL make a refill for my dispenser (the originals were a metal can, today they are cardboard)...AND...they still make that same 1940's design dispenser, (like mine) with a few very minor changes, and it is still made in Missouri along with the hand cleaner! And...both the dispenser and the refill carry the same part number they did in 1940!

So I had to ask the 2017 cost of both, and then what a distributorship cost to sell their products, specifically that 1940's design hand soap dispenser and the refills...? A deal was struck... and that is how I got into the hand cleaner and dispenser business. So... if you want to hang up a real 1940's art deco design hand cleaner dispenser in you garage or shop instead of the cheap looking modern plastic dispenser give me a call.

I now have the original 1940's Whisk hand cleaner dispenser for sale (as shown in the picture) $54.00 along with the 32 oz refill for $15.00. Adjusted for inflation that makes them slightly less than they cost in 1949 dollars. A best guess estimate from company records is that my original dispenser would have sold for $6.50 in 1949 dollars which is equal to $65.21 in 2016 dollars.

Oh..and the best part is the hand cleaner is the same formula from the early days (it works well) and is waterless so all you need to dry your hands is a shop towel. No water required.

Sometimes...the surprises in life are good!

Here is a side by side comparison of the 1949 Dispenser compared to the 2017 dispenser. Not much has changed in 77 years, which is a good thing!

Here is a comparison of my 1948 Dispenser beside the 2017 edition.

If you go to the "Parts" section of the website you can buy this setup today !

Here is an early Whisk brochure advertising the early PD-2 Dispenser. 

The Whisk hand lotion was even FDA Approved

Wouldn't it be cool to find one of these...?



From a humble beginning...

Customer list has a few well known names...

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Borg Warner R-10 and R-11 Overdrives Part Two

In part one of this series I covered the top ten things you need to know if you have a B-W overdrive transmission in your antique vehicle. If you missed part one it is still available you can look for it in the Garage Tech index. Meanwhile with the basics covered this article is a little more in depth and covers some of the operation, troubleshooting and maintenance of the B-W overdrive transmission. So pay attention here and you are guaranteed to learn something.

Driving a B-W overdrive vehicle starts off with the cable pushed in and the vehicle pulling away in first gear as normal. As the vehicle accelerates the driver shifts into second gear.

At approximately 28 mph (BTW - nobody knows why 28 mph and not 25 or 30 mph) a click will be heard from under the hood (which is the activation of the relay on the firewall by the governor) the driver then backs off on the gas briefly, and the transmission automatically shifts into overdrive. The shift is smooth and feels exactly like a shift from an automatic transmission.

The driver must release the accelerator completely so the overdrive transmission does not have to engage under engine load. In an automatic transmission a shift will occur (eventually) even if the throttle is held open. For mechanical design reasons in a B-W overdrive set up, the driver MUST let off the throttle completely to allow the shift to happen.

With the vehicle in second gear overdrive, the overall ratio is not quite as high as third, but higher than second. This is a perfect ratio for in town use. Between stoplights you don’t need to shift into third. However, if you continue accelerating and shift into third (from 2nd overdrive) and you will then be in third gear overdrive, the perfect ratio for the highway.

A common question is… “Can I use overdrive first gear?” The answer is maybe, but you would have to exceed and maintain 28 mph or higher for the overdrive to engage and stay engaged. 28 mph is pretty fast for first gear so 1st gear overdrive is rarely achieved. This means that while a B-W overdrive transmission has sometimes been called a six-speed, it technically provides only five usable forward ratios.

While you are in overdrive if you back off the gas you will feel engine braking in both second and third gear. Because the transmission is still in overdrive, the engine braking is not as strong as if the transmission were in 2nd or 3rd direct drive but the transmission does not coast. If the transmission does coast, the overdrive transmission is not operating properly.

Third gear overdrive is great for gliding along at highway speeds but it can lack power for passing or hill climbing. To get the transmission out of overdrive, push the gas pedal to the floor. The engine will rev up and the pedal will engage the kick down switch, the ignition will be grounded out for about two engine revolutions, (so the overdrive transmission does not have to shift under engine load) and the overdrive will disengage and the transmission will be back into direct drive. This shift feels exactly like the kick down of an automatic transmission. Complete your pass or top the hill in direct drive...then let off the gas completely for a moment, and the transmission will shift back into overdrive.

If you begin slowing down and shift from third overdrive to second overdrive, then slow down further as if approaching a stop light, as soon as the speed falls below 28 mph the power to the overdrive will be cut and the transmission will shift back into direct drive.

This automatic loss of overdrive is a designed in safety feature because you must start out from a complete stop only in direct drive. To try to start out from a standing start in overdrive, you will crush all of the needle bearings inside of the sun gear. That would cost you dearly!

Some owners have rewired their overdrive to by-pass the governor by adding a manual switch to turn the system on & off. If you do this remember…it is very easy to forget and attempt to take off from a stop in first gear overdrive. I have had customers remember for two or three years only to forget… and hear the crunching sound followed by a loud pop! They of course know immediately what that sound is… but by then it’s too late!

Meanwhile… as you slow down below 28 mph, you are automatically put back into second gear direct drive. However, because the sun gear is no longer being held (transmission no longer in overdrive) the transmission will freewheel. This event can be very surprising to someone who is not familiar with the operation of an overdrive transmission as suddenly there is NO engine braking! Since this occurs only below 28 mph there should not be much need for engine braking and using the normal brake pedal to stop the vehicle should work just fine.

But this is also where another novel aspect driving with a B-W overdrive transmission becomes apparent. All B-W overdrive transmissions (in all years of manufacture) used a non-synchronized first gear. They never built a B-W overdrive transmission with a synchronized first gear.

By the 1960s full syncro transmissions were fully available, so why didn’t they make a fully synchronized overdrive transmission? Turns out a B-W overdrive transmission doesn’t need to be synchronized! Drive in second gear overdrive, slow down below 28 mph, and the trans falls out of overdrive and into freewheel mode. Step on the clutch and pull the shift lever into first and you will find it slips into first gear as easily as if it were synchronized, even if you are rolling.

This ‘synchro effect’ happens because the free- wheeling clutch prevents power from being transmitted from the driveshaft into the transmission. Push in the clutch, and there are no forces on the gears. When you pull the shift lever into first gear it slips in easily. The most clashing you get when shifting into first gear at a rolling speed, is a slight “ratcheting” of the gear teeth that you would expect if you were shifting from neutral into the low granny gear of a truck 4 speed or the reverse gear in any transmission.

The freewheeling feature also makes clutchless shifting possible. Start in first, pull away and then WITHOUT depressing the clutch pedal, back off the gas and shift into second as easily as if you had pushed the clutch!

If you shift into third gear before 28 mph (and engaging the overdrive) again there is no need to depress the clutch pedal to make the shift.

If you have allowed the transmission to engage the overdrive in second (backing off the gas) then depressing the clutch is necessary to shift from 2nd to 3rd. These operational features are what made the B-W overdrive transmission very desirable in the days before fully automatic transmissions. No clashing shifts into first; No clutch necessary to shift into second; Automatic shift into second OD around town.

Parking and Pushing

Pulling out the overdrive cable on the dash operates a lever on the side of the transmission that mechanically locks the sun gear to the planetary gears. The cable should only be pulled out while the vehicle is stopped.


When the overdrive cable is pushed in then the transmission freewheels. This happens as long as the vehicle is below 28 MPH (or the system has no electrical power) the overdrive will not engage.

This means that to push start an overdrive equipped vehicle, the cable needs to be pulled out (to lock the transmission out of overdrive) so the transmission will send power to the engine when the clutch is released.

Parking is the other situation that pulling out the OD cable is necessary. If you park pointing downhill and put the shifter into first, second or third without pulling out the cable, the vehicle will freewheel and roll away. To overcome this you can either pull the overdrive cable out or place the shifter into reverse.

Reverse

In order for the B-W overdrive transmission to back up, the freewheeling clutch MUST be locked out.

There is a shaft/rod built into the overdrive transmission that automatically accomplishes this whenever the transmission is put into reverse. So to park safely (set the brake) and then either pull out the OD cable OR place the shifter into reverse. This locks up the driveline and prevents all rolling.

How The Overdrive Transmission Affects Rear-end Ratios…

All B-W overdrive transmissions function at a 0.7 overdrive ratio. Since all standard transmissions use a 1:1 ratio in high gear, to find out your final drive ratio in overdrive, simply multiply the rear end ratio by 0.7. For example…a 4.11 gear set becomes 2.87. A 3.70 gear set becomes 2.59. A 4.56 gear set becomes a 3.19 ratio.

An overdrive transmission can also compensate for small diameter wheels & tires. Smaller wheels & tires spin an engine faster. 16” wheels turn the driveline slower than 15”, which spin the driveline slower than 14” (as the wheels/tires get bigger they carry more weight and lower the engine speed but they also reduce the available power.

All things are a compromise) All these factors need to be considered when outfitting a vehicle with a B-W overdrive transmission. If you use a rear axle ratio that is too high (numerically low) and/or couple it with wheels/tires that are too big in diameter a vehicle can actually slow down or use more fuel when it is operating in overdrive

Troubleshooting

The Borg-Warner overdrive transmission (R-10 and R-11) combines both mechanical and electrical components. The mechanical components are very well built and proven reliable and as long as the transmission and the overdrive unit are kept filled with gear oil (see maintenance below) with most of the problems being electrical, which are very easy to trouble shoot.

Take an overdrive vehicle out for a test drive with the overdrive cable pushed in, if the overdrive transmission freewheels above 28 mph (and you don’t feel the automatic shift) the trans is OK but there is an electrical problem.

The overdrive transmission electrical system is protected by just one fuse clipped to the relay on the firewall. This fuse gets power whenever the key is turned on (four post relay). Begin your diagnosis by checking for power at both sides of this fuse. 

Because the relay is under the hood, the fuse and it’s mounting clips easily become corroded due to the environment that they live in. Remove the fuse, and clean all the contacts thoroughly and check for voltage. If there is no battery voltage present, trace the wire back to the key switch to find the break in the wire.

If you have good power on both sides of the fuse at the overdrive relay, the next check is made under the vehicle. At the back of the transmission is the governor. This is a cylinder shaped device that is driven by the speedometer gear with ONE wire coming out of it. Inside the governor are weights that spin with the driveshaft. When they reach the magic speed of 28 mph, the wire going into the governor is grounded which engages the overdrive.

For some reason the governor wire coming off the governor was always made using the old cotton cloth insulated wire from the 1930s. This wire always seems to have a frayed spot along the insulated coating. It is also a good idea to remove the lid on top of the governor and check the points inside to make sure they are not stuck together or coated with oil caused by transmission oil leaking into the governor from the transmission (bad seal)

With the ignition key turned on, jump the governor wire to ground. You should then hear a click from the relay on the firewall. That means the signal from the governor is reaching the relay on the firewall.

Power comes from the fuse through the relay, which is then activated whenever it is grounded. Power from the relay to the governor does pass through the kick down switch. If there is no relay click when grounding the governor, check for battery voltage at the battery wire and trace it back to the kick down switch and then back to the relay to find the open circuit.

If you have battery voltage at the governor and you hear a relay click when you ground the governor, then the relay should be sending power down to the solenoid. As soon as the solenoid gets power, it too should click. If the solenoid does not click, check to see that it is receiving full battery voltage from the relay. A faulty relay can sometimes reduce the amount of battery current delivered to the solenoid so check to make sure the solenoid has full battery voltage at the number (4) terminal.

Which Solenoid Terminal Is Which…?

There are two wiring terminals on the overdrive solenoid. The number (4) terminal on the solenoid gets its power from the relay, and activates the solenoid plunger shaft. With the solenoid shaft pointing away from you (just like it is in the car) and the two solenoid terminals on top of the solenoid at the 11:00 and 1:00 positions…the RH terminal is always the number (4) terminal.

You can apply battery voltage directly to the number (4) terminal using a car battery or a 10 amp battery charger) and then by grounding the negative jumper wire (or lead from the charger) to the case of the solenoid, the solenoid should engage. If it does your solenoid is good.

90% of the time all the electrical problems are nothing more than loose and dirty connections. Remove the wire connections at the relay and the kick down switch and ensure that they are clean.

I have had to carefully spray the terminals with electrical contact cleaner and polish the contacts using steel wool or a scuff pad to restore the connection.

On a rare occasion you might have to bend the tabs on the bottom of the relay cover so you can remove the cover and gain access inside the relay to file the contact points, but that is rare. We have new solenoids, relays and kick down switches available if yours are defective.

Maintenance

Maintenance of a Borg-Warner overdrive is pretty easy. The most important thing to remember is that there are two places to add GL-1 gear oil into the transmission. There is the normal plug/hole in the side of the transmission but another plug/hole is in the tail shaft area. Fill both to the bottom of the hole with GL-1 gear oil (which was factory fill) as you would for any standard transmission. 

It will take about a gallon to fill both the 3-speed transmission and the overdrive transmission. You will have about a pint left of your gallon when you are done, depending on how much you dribble on the floor during installation.

Lubing The Dash Cable

In a functional system you will find that you rarely need to to lock out the system. If you are restoring an overdrive equipped vehicle you will most likely find that the overdrive cable has not been used and is stuck.

The cable must be removed completely to free it up. A big nut behind the cable secures it to the bracket under the dash. A 1/2” nut & bolt secures the functional cable end to the lock out lever on the transmission.

The upper bolt on the solenoid (in some applications) secures the bracket that holds the outer cable. (Once unbolted, this sheet metal bracket is spread apart to remove it from the cable) Unbolt everything and pull the cable out through the firewall into the interior.

By twisting the outer cable you should be able to break loose the inner cable enough to remove it. Use sandpaper to clean all the corrosion from the inner cable. Then use a wire wheel/brush to remove all the crud from the outer cable. Next insert the inner cable back into the outer sheave and spray the entire assembly with WD-40 or similar lubricant. The outer cable is composed of wire tightly twisted around the inner cable.

This design allows the lubricant to easily seep inside. Reinstall and work the cable back and forth and it should begin to move easily. If it is too far-gone we have new cables available in the parts section of our website.

Checking the Governor

When the transmission gets “stuck in overdrive” you already know what to do first, if you read the tech tips and related information discussed earlier. Besides the careful rocking motion and solenoid service discussed earlier, you need to check one more thing if you are still having trouble… the governor.

First remove the cover of the governor and then hold the governor contact points apart. Next ground the cover of the governor by touching it against the transmission case. If that causes a  “click” to be heard, the “click” indicates a short circuit in the governor cover assembly and the cover assembly wiring connections or the wiring itself  is “shorted out” and needs to be repaired. If there is NO click, the governor is ok and you need to look to the solenoid for your defect.

Removing and Replacing The Governor

To remove the governor from the transmission, first disconnect the wire at the cover (or wire end connector) and loosen the governor housing using an (1-3/8”) open, end wrench to turn the nut at the base of the governor. To replace the governor insert the governor into the transmission housing and engage the teeth of the governor drive gear into the teeth of the speedometer drive gear. Next, tighten the nut located at the base of the governor housing using an (1-3/8”) open, end wrench. Reconnect governor wire and check for proper transmission operation.

Reverse Lockout Switches

If your reverse lockout switch fails there are not any new ones available so your best bet is to remove the defective switch and connect the two wires together that were connected to either end of the switch. Reverse lockout switches were discontinued on B-W overdrive transmissions beginning in the early 1950s. Your B-W overdrive transmission will work fine without one.

Don’t forget to read the other Garage Tech entry on overdrives…that covers the top ten things you need to know if you have a B-W overdrive transmission in your antique vehicle. Between this entry and the other one you should have a pretty good idea how an overdrive transmission works and how to troubleshoot it. 

And last but not least don’t forget to order a copy of Randy’s book “The Official Guide to the Borg-Warner R-10 and R-11 Overdrive. The book includes history interchange information, tech tips and a complete illustrated service guide. The book is available in the overdrive section of the parts pages.

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Now You Can Follow Along...

Now you can follow along with both of the Fifth Avenue blogs...The "Garage Tech" blog and the "Mr. Haney Specials" blog without having to keep checking the Fifth Avenue website to see if there is a new posting.

You simply sign up using your email address, and you will get an email notice anytime there is a new entry on the blog you are following. You need to sign up separately for each blog, the sign-up is free, and you can subscribe to one or both, and you can unsubscribe anytime. 

You are signing up only to be notified of the blog updates. We will NOT sell your email to one of those junk mail bandits who fill up your inbox with junk mail. If there is no update...you will get NO email. You will also notice there is no advertising in Randy's blogs, it is that way on purpose. Randy started his blogs to help you understand how things work and to make you a better informed antique vehicle owner, not to fill up your in box with junk mail or to test your spam filter. As the legal types used to say..."this blog is for educational purposes only..."  Enjoy!

You will find a sign up link on the Fifth Avenue Garage home page (in the upper right hand corner) of the blog that looks like this.

Enter your email, and follow the directions from there. When you are done you will receive an email to confirm that you have signed up as a follower to the Blog. Simple as that!

As for the Mr. Haney Specials...
Randy has been collecting antique auto related collectibles for more than 40 years. "I knew I would have an antique auto parts store someday, and I wanted it to look on the inside, just like those I remembered as a kid, those auto parts store established in the 1940's that seemed to have a personality all of their own, with the squeaky hard wood floors, and the automotive related advertising memorabilia on the walls that us cars guys collect. I wanted that kind of store..."

"In 1993 I bought a building (half a block long) in downtown Clay Center Kansas that was built in the 1930's, originally as a commercial laundry. By the time I bought it in 1993 it was an empty shell used for storage. I moved my business downtown and started in adding things little by little from my collection, and buying more in my travels. Now some 30 years later the store is fully decorated, and so is the finished basement in my house..."

So...what to do with all of the leftovers...? With the store done and his house done, Randy still has almost enough to do another store. Remember he has been collecting for more than 40 years.

Instead of storing all of this memorabilia in a warehouse Randy has decided to sell it and give someone else a chance to decorate their garage or shop. So that is how Mr. Haney Specials came about. Randy will list items he has for sale along with pictures and descriptions. If you see something you like send him an email and make him an offer. He will keep adding more items as time allows so signing up as a follower will let you know when another item or items have been added. Like" Garage Tech" the sign up is free and you can unsubscribe at any time.

You will find a sign up link on the home page of the Mr. Haney blog (in the upper right hand corner) that looks like this. Enter your email, and follow the directions from there. When you are done you will receive an email to confirm that you have signed up as a follower to the Mr. Haney blog. Simple as that!

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History of Bumper Cars And How They Work...

"Two brothers Max, and Harold Stoehrer, of Methuem Massachusetts spent two years developing a car they proudly named the Dodgem. Soon after the Dodgem was introduced to the public, the Scientific American Magazine did a test on one of the cars. The review was less than flattering…stating that the cars were "highly unmanageable, with the steering only relative". The two brothers later admitted that with their cars…." until you have learned how, you often try to go someplace, but often may not end up where you intended on going". . . Never the less, the cars became extremely popular, despite their bad reviews.

The success of the Dodgem cars caught the attention of Joseph Lusse and his brother Ray who together owned the Lusse Brothers Machine Shop Company. The Lusse Bros decided to design and build, their own car and fix, the defects in the design of the Dodgem Cars. The bothers would spend the next nine years working on their car during which time they were awarded eleven patents.

The Lusse Bros. introduced their "Auto-Skooter" car to the public in the Spring of 1930 and the cars were an immediate hit, in part because they had truly solved most all of the problems associated with the Dodgem cars. The Lusse Bros Auto-Skooters quickly established themselves within the market and easily outsold the Dodgem cars.

A 1940's Company advertisement for the Lusse Bros Auto-Skooter proclaimed that "Our cars are built to exacting Lusse standards, which means built-in quality and stamina to spare…"

Among the improvements the Lusse Bros. perfected in 1928, was to mount their engine vertically in the front of the car.

Power could then be transmitted through two couplings to a ring-and-pinion final drive that had a small wheel attached with the rim keyed to each end of the output shaft. This design was much like that used by BWM for the Isetta.

The advantage to this design was that the whole assembly could be mounted on bearings and could be aimed in any direction by turning the steering wheel. There were stop locks installed that prevented the steering from going to far in either direction. Soon enough, young drivers would discoverer that the Auto-Shooter could travel just as fast in reverse as it could forward!

From 1935 on the Lusse Bros., Auto-Skooter Company experienced strong growth and prosperity. A minor interruption during World War 11 only made the company more secure. Improvements continued including updated headlights, fiberglass bodies, and air-filled bumpers instead of solid rubber bumpers.

The cars were driven by an electric motor powered by a curve shaped piece of metal with a copper or brass metal lining called a "spoon". The spoon is firmly attached the end of a wooden pole. These spoons provided electricity to the motor in the bumper car when they rubbed on the underneath side of a series of metal grids located in the ceiling.

 These same spoons could be made to arc and spark (which was cool to watch) when the cars were involved in a multiple car pile-up. Learning how to innocently create a multiple car pileup was an art into itself.

Watching the cars in action while waiting your turn to ride, you could easily spot the faster cars, the ones with the best connection between the spoon and the wire grid in the ceiling. The fastest car would give you a slight advantage, which you could then put to good use.

Turning the steering wheel to full right or left would cause the car to go into reverse. With a little practice, you could become very good at creating havoc on the bumper car highway

Now...For The How They Work Part
First up, the bumper cars need electricity to work. That makes it complicated because bumper cars are one of the few rides that is able to travel forward and backward, side to side, and in circles all at the same time, and are not attached to any controls directly ran by the ride operator.

The better the connection between the spoon and the grid the faster the car will go. A clean shiny contact between the spoon and the grid is what made the fastest cars. Sometimes you would get a really, slow car and the operator would have to take some steel wool and polish the topside of the spoon that had accumulated a corrosion film on top of the spoon That could turn a slow car into a fast car.

The remaining electricity is discharged through the metal floor to ground. So, if there is electricity on the floor… why don't you get shocked if you touch the metal floor while the ride is turned on? Because…the voltage present in the floor has "potential" but not enough amperage to do any work or any harm to you.

Electricity can do work, (turn a motor to power the bumper car for example) when the voltage goes from a higher voltage to a lower one. Most of the amperage, which is what does the work is used up by the bumper car motor, so what electricity that is left, has no amperage. You might get a slight tickle but that is all. The odds of getting shocked were reduced even more if you are wearing tennis shoes, which most kids wore in the summer.

Using the garden hose analogy the voltage is like the pressure in a garden hose and is what forces the current thru the wire. The amperage is like the volume of water present and what actually does the work. You can still have voltage present even though the amperage present is minimal having been used up to do the electrical work, as in this example powering the electric motor in the bumper car. There...do you get it now...?

To make the bumper cars slide around more and to prevent the cars from getting to much traction and hitting to hard, powdered graphite was sprinkled on the floor.

So…What Became Of The Two Original Companies…?

The Dodgem Company lasted up into the early 1970's and continued to make both portable and permanent design rides, all the while holding onto their original 110 volt design when the industry had switched to a 90 volt DC standard. Competition from three different Italian companies eventually proved too much for the company and it was closed in the early 1970's.

As for the Lusse Company, Ray Lusse Jr. ran the company after his father's death in the 1960's. In 1989 Ray Jr. got into financial trouble with the IRS but managed to shuffle money and assets around until 1994 when the bank accounts were finally empty. He died that same year. The rights to the Auto--Skooter were then sold to Designs International located in Dallas Texas. The remaining inventory of original parts and pieces, were sold off, by the Lussse''s last landlord to recover back rent.

And there you have it...the history and the "how it works"...of Bumper Cars. If you have ever thought about buying and restoring an old Bumper Car and put it on display in your office or basement here is a little incentive. Start looking!

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Playing The "Diggers..."

Most of us growing up had the opportunity to visit the traveling carnival when it came to town during the summer months. I went because it was fun to check out all things mechanical. I studied how the rides worked and how they operated. In our small community we got the older carnival rides and equipment that had often seen better days. One of my favorite stops on the midway was the mechanical digger game. For a quarter I had a chance to use the crane to try and pickup a prize buried in the gravel. To me the prize was almost secondary, I just enjoyed the challenge, and eventually got pretty good at picking up "the good stuff." As I look back now seldom was the "good stuff" worth even the quarter. For me...the satisfaction was "making the machine pay out" when others tried and failed.

By the time, I began playing in the late 1960's…I had to pay the attendant every time… to get him to start the crane. To me…in my young mind… it would seem more logical to just install a coin mechanism so kids like me could take care of ourself, and not have to bug the attendant every five minutes for a game.

Now… all of these years later, I now know why it did not work that way. Let me share a little digger crane history with you. Then like me, you will understand that things were not as simple as they first appeared, even in those days.

The first "digger" crane was built in 1896 from a child’s toy and was intended to be a penny candy vendor. The miniature steam shovel was encased in a solid oak cabinet with glass windows on three sides. It was all mechanical, and did not use any electricity, not even an electric light.

During the 1920s and 1930s, many other manufacturers began producing their own version of a digger game. By 1939, there were over 35 companies building and selling digger games. Many of those companies offered the so-called "modern" digger games, which were electrically operated, and had virtually no element of skill. Two of the most popular manufactures of electronic diggers were the Exhibit Supply Co. of Chicago and International Mutoscope Reel Co. of New York.

With the emerging popularity of coin-operated slot machines, tavern owners soon figured out that the digger machines could easily be converted into gambling devices. Clever operators offered silver dollars, paper currency, and little bundles of coins wrapped in cellophane tape as the reward for lucky play.

During this golden era, some models were designed to fit into the décor of the fine upscale hotels and railroad stations. These deluxe models quickly became known as "hotel" models and are highly sought after by today's collectors.

After World War II, the federal government began taking notice of the digger games being used as possible gambling devices. Digger game operators began placing large quantities of Japanese novelty items in the prize field to cover-up the coins and currency that was still being used as the real lure to attract players.

By the end of the 1940s most diggers were working for 10 ¢ per play and were still very profitable. The new trend was for large independent operators to own dozens of machines, and have them operating at multiple locations in units of 10 or 12 games, each. Lee Moss, and Tommy Wells, of Hot Springs Arkansas were two well known large operators of the carnival style diggers.

The commercial operation of diggers changed abruptly, and forever, in 1951 with the implementation of the Johnson Interstate Transportation Act. This new law made it a Federal crime to transport gambling devices across state lines, and all diggers were automatically placed in the gambling device category. Thus, the business of operating traveling commercial diggers ended in 1951

Lee Moss, of Hot Springs, Arkansas, had purchased the Erie Manufacturing Corp. back in 1946 along with his brother-in-law Tommy Wells. During the 1940's they had been operating over 35 traveling units of 12 diggers each, but now, were suddenly out of business.

Moss and Wells immediately brought their equipment home. The FBI quickly began raiding other operators who did not cease their operations. Those operators now in violation of the new federal law, immediately had their machines seized and destroyed.

Lee Moss then organized a small group of former digger operators in an effort to establish a lobbying campaign to have the gambling classification removed.

After two years,  the group was finally successful in changing the "classification" of certain types of digger games from "Gambling Devices" to "Amusement Devices". Diggers could again operate, but only under new and very strict rules. No electrically operated games were allowed after 1951.

Starting in 1953 the diggers began their new life as carnival games exclusively, and only the mechanical (Erie type) were allowed under Federal laws. Gone were the coin slots. Instead, the player was required to pay for each game "over the counter", and the attendant had to manually activate the machine by pulling a string on the back of the cabinet.

In addition, no cash money could be offered as prizes, and no prize could have a value of over $1. The charge to play could not exceed 10c, and the diggers were only legal to operate at agricultural fairs and celebrations.

With the relaxation of Federal laws in the 1970's, mechanical coin slots began to reappear on digger games. Starting in the late 1960's, the cost to play was raised to 25c. Finally, the twenty-year moratorium on coin-activated diggers was over.

By the late 1980s however…the digger business was gone for good. The original mechanical digger games were replaced with more modern computer controlled games.

So...where did all of the original Erie Digger cranes go...?

There were such large numbers of digger cranes produced from 1924 to 1946 that it is puzzling to many collectors as too why so few of them have survived.  The answer lies in coin-op history. Erie Diggers were a favorite of the early traveling operators and remained so up to, and even well past, the Johnson Interstate Transportation Act of 1951.

Most of the original cabinets were used and abused during years of carnival service, and when the machine parts wore out they were often crudely repaired by the carnival operators who owned them.

When Lee Moss and Tommy Wells purchased the remains of the Erie Manufacturing Corp. in 1946, that cut off the source for replacement parts.

The final destruction of most originals came with a mass re-modification by digger owner/operators following the Johnson Act.

The operators who owned Erie diggers were frantic to get back into operation so to be in compliance, they immediately began scraping the coin entries, the intricate mechanical coin mechanisms, and removing the cabinet backs.

They cut-out parts of the cabinet backs in order to reach into what was once the coin mechanism area to manually start the machine using a piece of heavy string. Those are the ones I grew up with.

Some operators even blocked-off the prize chutes to make the game appear more 'legit'. With some cabinets already in sad condition the owners just threw them on the burn pile and built new cabinets of their own design, often in multiples to mount on trailers.

As a result... few originals from the traveling carnival era survive. The survival rate of the deluxe machines was much better because of the surroundings they operated in, and many have been restored. Here are a few sample pictures of some of the deluxe models. Until I decided to do a little homework after seeing an Erie Digger in a museum, I had no idea these fancy models even existed.

The Johnson Act said in part...

(1) any so-called "slot machine" or any other machine or mechanical device an essential part of which is a drum or reel with insignia thereon, and (A) which when operated may deliver, as the result of the application of an element of chance, any money or property, or (B) by the operation of which a person may become entitled to receive, as the result of the application of an element of chance, any money or property; or (2) any other machine or mechanical device (including, but not limited to, roulette wheels and similar devices) designed and manufactured primarily for use in connection with gambling, and (A) which when operated may deliver, as the result of the application of an element of chance, any money or property, or (B) by the operation of which a person may become entitled to receive, as the result of the application of an element of chance, any money or property; or (3) any subassembly or essential part intended to be used in connection with any such machine or mechanical device, but which is not attached to any such machine or mechanical device as a constituent part.

Not much wiggle room there... and there is more....this part covers the transportation of so called gambling devices..

(a) It shall be unlawful knowingly to transport any gambling device to any place in a State or a possession of the United States from any place outside of such State or possession: Provided, That this section shall not apply to transportation of any gambling device to a place in any State which has enacted a law providing for the exemption of such State from the provisions of this section, or to a place in any subdivision of a State if the State in which such subdivision is located has enacted a law providing for the exemption of such subdivision from the provisions of this section, nor shall this section apply to any gambling device used or designed for use at and transported to licensed gambling establishments where betting is legal under applicable State laws:

Provided, further, That it shall not be unlawful to transport in interstate or foreign commerce any gambling device into any State in which the transported gambling device is specifically enumerated as lawful in a statute of that State.

The new laws were very specific and to the point. They were written

to be easily enforceable with no wiggle room. It worked. The digger

business would never be the same. I clearly got in the the end of an

era. Hope many of you also have fond memories of the digger cranes

and as Paul Harvey used to say..."and now you know the rest of the

story..."

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How Come The Switch From Generator to Alternator...?

I get asked quite often why the car companies switched from generators to alternators, and who did it first. To answer the first part of the question you need to understand how a generator, and an alternator each make electricity. I will try to explain those differences without making your head hurt...to much. As to who introduced alternators first it was Chrysler in 1964, with everybody else following suite the next model year. When you are finished reading this entry you should have a good basic understanding of why the switch was made from generator to alternator.

The Generator...
The generator has a single set of windings used to generate electricity. All of the electrical current made by the generator passes thru the two carbon brushes that ride on the commutator end of the armature.

Because there is only a single set of windings in a generator the output is limited at idle and low rpms, and the overall output is limited by the size of the field coils and the rest of the internal parts. Spinning the generator faster at higher rpms (above factory recommended rpms) will not increase output (will actually reduce output) because the brushes will begin to lift off of the commutator.

The other thing that happens is the generator overheats from excessive voltage, which causes the solder to melt that holds the segments onto the armature. When that happens the segments will come loose... bind up with the field coils and your generator is toast.

In the old days they called this..."throwing the solder out of the generator..." The same can happen when you adjust the regulator to increase output above the factory settings. The generator will overheat the solder will melt and you know the rest. You have caused more harm than good!

It also makes sense that the two biggest wear items on a generator are the brushes and the bearings on either end of the armature. When both are ignored either the brushes will wear down and become short enough that they no longer make good connection with the commutator or the bearing (in some applications bushings) wear out and the armature no longer runs true between the field coils. The armature can then rub on the field coils, damaging both the field coils and the armature. That means you would have to replace both the armature and the field coils...if you can find them!

Finally...new or rebuilt generators often suffer from improper installation. Mechanically, the installation is straightforward but electrically, things are a little more complicated. When the generator is removed from the vehicle for service there is residual magnetism stored in the pole field coils. The polarity of the generator is determined by the direction the current was traveling in the field coils when it was removed from the vehicle.  If... during rebuilding and testing process the current is caused to flow in the opposite direction, (improper testing procedure) the pole shoes will change polarity.

If the generator is then installed on the vehicle, (and the generator not polarized) the reversed polarity will cause the electrical current from the generator to flow in the wrong direction, damaging the regulator (you would be sending positive ground current to your negative ground regulator) and discharging the battery when the car is left overnight. Therefore, all generators must be polarized after installation, and before running the car.

The Alternator...
As we discussed earlier...generators produce direct current which is what all automotive electrical systems run on, even today. By contrast alternators produce alternating current and that current is converted to direct current. It has to do with efficiency... read on!

Alternators have the big advantage of producing a greater amount of current at low speeds as compared to a generator. In an alternator, the "field" windings are placed around the spinning central shaft rather than on "shoes" as in the generator. Two iron pole pieces, cast with "fingers" cover the field windings, and the fingers are interfaced.  The fingers on one pole piece form the North poles and the fingers on the other form the South poles. This assembly is called the ROTOR.

Surrounding the rotor are a series of windings around laminated iron rings, attached to the alternator's case. This assembly is called the STATOR. The engine's crankshaft spins the rotor inside of the stator.

Direct current from the battery is fed through into the rotor's field coil by using brushes rubbing what are called slip-rings. One end of the field coil is fastened to the insulated brush, while the other end is attached to the grounded brush. As the pole fields pass through the stator, current is electromagnetically produced (just like in a generator) but since the rotor is composed of alternating North and South poles the current produced flows in opposite direction every 180-degrees of rotation. In other words, the current is "alternating."


Why is this more efficient? Because the stator windings are made up of three separate windings. This produces what is known as three-phase alternating current. When only one winding is used, single-phase current results (like in a generator). In effect, the alternator produces three times the current of a generator for the same effort on the engine's part. Also, alternators are considerably lighter and smaller than generators and can produce a greater amount of electrical current to cover increased electrical loads.

Converting Alternating Current To Direct Current

Your antique vehicle's electrical system including the battery run on Direct Current also known as "DC" current. The alternator produces alternating current known as "AC" current. Using what are called "diodes", the alternator's electrical output is "rectified" or changed into direct current.

This is done by passing the alternating current thru silicon diodes. Diodes have the ability to allow current to flow readily in one direction only, stopping the flow if the direction reverses. Multiple diodes are arranged in alternators so that current will flow from the alternator to the battery (in one direction only, creating direct current) Diodes are a solid-state device which means they have no moving parts.

The Voltage Regulator...

Like the generators that came before them... most early alternators relied on a voltage regulator that was mounted on the firewall. In the 1970's those regulators became solid state which meant that they no longer had any moving parts to wear out.

The problem with "external" regulators, those regulators mounted away from the alternator, is one of communication. There is often a slight delay in getting the message delivered between the two parties. Dirty or corroded connections along with pinched or broken wires are two common problems that come about with age.

In 1973,  Delco introduced an alternator with a solid- state regulator build inside of the alternator. This increased reliability of the charging system greatly. There was instant response from the charging system and no more broken, pinched, or corroded wires.

When I started building alternators back in 1985 I designed my alternator using the internal regulator Delco design. It makes for bullet proof reliability. I designed my own stator and rotor so my alternator would begin charging at 300 engine rpms instead of the 1200 rpms (which was the idle speed of most engines when alternators were introduced in the mid 1960's).Most antique vehicles built before 1955 have idle speeds of 400 to 600 rpms.

Now we have the best of both worlds. You can install either a Fifth Avenue 6-volt or 12-volt alternator (remember there was no such thing as a 6-volt alternator until I came along)  and have a reliable charging system with minimal "bolt -on" changes to your antique vehicle. You will gain brighter headlights, easier starting, and no more dead batteries. It doesn't get any better than that!

A Brief History Of Automotive Electrical Systems...
We have Allesandro Volta to thank for inventing the automotive storage battery in 1796. He had no idea at the time, that he was inventing what would become a significant part of the modern automotive electrical system. Volta made his discovery 89 years before the first car was offered for public sale. It would be another 25 years before the storage battery would even get a passing acknowledgement from the automakers.

Between 1885 and 1910, most cars and trucks that had gasoline engines did not need storage batteries because they had no accessories that required electricity. Ignition was powered by a magneto, which made its own current. In the rare event that additional electricity was needed, it was provided by a dry cell battery.

By 1911, storage batteries had attained a degree of reliability by being able to hold a charge for 30 days or longer. Once discharged, a storage battery could be recharged and put back into service, unlike dry cells, which were discarded. This degree of reliability was due in large measure to research and development done by the electric car industry, which needed reliable batteries so that their electric vehicles could compete with gasoline models.

The few gasoline car manufacturers who adapted the storage battery, began looking around to see what else they could do with the excess current the storage battery provided, and found electric lights.

1898 Columbia Electric Car 

The first electric lights were introduced on the 1898 Columbia. This was an electric car powered with storage batteries. Manufacturers of vehicles with gasoline engines typically used another way to produce light. It was the Prest-O-Lite lighting system, introduced in 1904. It was a steel cylinder containing pressurized acetylene gas that was fed to headlamps and ignited by flame.

With the adoption of storage batteries the automotive manufacturers then revived the dynamo, which had been around for some time. (Today we call the dynamo the generator, but in those early days most called magnetos were called "generators.") The battery then didn't have to be taken out of the car every month for recharging.

A problem encountered with the early dynamo-equipped electrical systems was battery overcharging. That problem was soon resolved with the development of a variable speed voltage regulator developed by Delco Company. This new voltage output regulator was first used on the 1912 Cadillac, which displayed another feature that took the auto industry by storm..." the self-starter."

1912 Cadillac Electric Starter

Once they adopted the self-starter, auto manufacturers had to adopt the battery/generator system to work the starter. However, the system put out a much more current than the starter, lights and horn needed. The car manufacturers soon realized they could harness this excess current and use it for the ignition, thus making the magneto obsolete.

Self-Starter Beginnings...
The self-starter came about by accident -- literally. In the winter of 1910 on a wooden bridge on Belle Island Mich., a Cadillac driven by a woman stalled. Not having the strength to hand crank the engine herself, she was forced to wait on the bridge in the cold until help arrived.

In time, another motorist, also driving a Cadillac, happened along. His name was Byron T. Carter, and he was a close friend of the head of Cadillac, Henry M. Leland. Carter offered to start the woman's car, but she forgot to retard the spark and the engine backfired, and the crank flew off and struck Carter in the face, breaking his jaw.

Ironically, moments later another car carrying two Cadillac engineers, Ernest Sweet and William Foltz, came along. They started the woman's car and rushed Carter to a physician, but complications set in and a few weeks later Carter died.

Leland was devastated. He called a special conference of his engineers and told them that finding a way to get rid of the hand crank was top priority. “The Cadillac car will kill no more men if we can help it," he announced.

When the Cadillac engineers could not come up with a workable solution, Leland invited Charles F. Kettering and his engineers at Delco (still independent of GM) to work on a solution. Delco presented a working device in time for its introduction in the 1912 Cadillac models.

The Kettering Solution...
Kettering's device was a combination starting motor and generator, equipped with an overrunning clutch and reduction gear. Gear teeth engaged the flywheel to provide a reduction of about 25 to 1 between the starting motor and crankshaft, allowing sufficient torque to crank the engine successfully. General Motors brass didn't trust the new system at first, and demanded a backup magneto and hand crank.

As public confidence in the reliable battery/generator/self-starter system soared, it soon replaced the magneto in all General Motors cars. General Motors enjoyed a sales boom, and the remainder of the auto industry soon adopted the system. Of the 462 models shown at the 1911 New York Auto Show, only 19 had battery/generator systems, and they all had backup magnetos. Of 119 makes displayed at the 1924 New York Show, 110 had storage battery/generator systems and self-starters.

Other Electric Milestones...
In 1939, the first sealed-beam headlamps were introduced which made for much safer driving at night. That was followed in 1949, by the combination key operated ignition and starter switch which was introduced by Chrysler and eventually be adopted by all of the manufacturers.

Prior to 1949 on most vehicles, the starter was operated by a separate button on the dash or by a button on the floor above the accelerator pedal. Starting a car with the floor-mounted starter button was sometimes a challenge: your left foot was on the brake pedal, heel of your right foot on the accelerator, and the toe of your right foot pushing on the starter.

That was a lot going on at one time... especially if you were starting out on an incline. We truly have come a long way from those early days.

The Delco Company...
 The Dayton Engineering Laboratories Co. (Delco) Company was founded in Dayton, Ohio, by Charles Kettering and Edward A. Deeds in 1909.

In 1918, General Motors (GM) acquired the United Motors Company which had been formed several years earlier by William C Durant to house several prominent parts manufacturers, including Delco, Dayton-Wright, and the Dayton Metal Products Company.

All of these latter companies were associated with Charles Kettering, Edward A. Deeds, and Harold E. Talbott. Kettering became vice president of General Motors Research Corporation in 1920. He held the position as head of research for GM for 27 years.

Delco Radios...
In 1936, Delco began producing the first dashboard-installed car radios.  Based in Kokomo, Indiana, Delco Electronics employed more than 30,000 at its peak.

In early 1956, Delco developed a transistorized hybrid signal-seeking car radio, which used both vacuum tubes and transistors in its radio's circuitry. Transistors were used to replace the radio's audio output vacuum tubes and also the vibrator. This transistorized hybrid radio was available as an option on the 1956 Chevrolet Corvette car models.

In 1957, Delco produced an all-transistor signal-seeking car radio and was available for the 1957 Cadillac Eldorado Brougham car models. Delco became part of the General Motors Delphi Group in 1997.

Delphi Automotive traces as it's history back to the New Departure Bell Company, founded in Bristol, Connecticut, in 1888 to manufacture the earliest known doorbell-ringing device. The company's talent for innovation soon extended to transportation, with the 1897 introduction of the first bicycle coaster brake.

Other Delphi predecessors have been involved in automobile lighting since 1906 and manufacturing wooden auto bodies beginning in 1908.

In 1908, Albert Champion, who had been making spark plugs in America since 1899, joined Buick Motor Co. to make spark plugs in the AC Spark Plug Division, which was acquired by General Motors founder Billy Durant in 1909. Durant acquired Dayton Engineering Laboratories, which would become Delco, in 1914.

Other pre-Delphi innovations included the Ring Terminal, developed in 1930; the first car radio (1936); the first radio with mechanical push-button presets (1939); and mechanical power steering (1951).

As Paul Harvey used to say at noon everyday..."and now you know the rest of the story..."

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