Balloon Tire Big 1924 Feature

By H. T. Thomas, Chief Engineer Reo Motor Car Co.

OUTSTANDING developments and improvements in 1924 passenger cars as we see it are not the features most widely advertised or talked about. Detail improvements of all kinds are giving to the 1924 purchasers of motor cars greater comfort, safety and more for their money than ever before in the history of the automobile business. Improvements in materials, of construction, paint and finishing processes are fast beingÂ made, and to my mind, mean as much to the possible buyer or user of motor cars as some of the more radical mechanical changes.

Front wheel brakes will probably cause more comments and discussion than any other single mechanical change on the 1924 passenger car models. We do not believe, however, that the buying public will be benefited as much as some of the radical advertising would indicate. The additional unsprung weight, mechanical complications and uncertainty of operation, we believe, make it unwise to fit these brakes to any but the heaviest of passenger vehicles.

The low pressure air or so called balloon tire, we believe, can be listed as one of the most notable improvements in the automobile development of 1924. This type of tire has been developed to a point where it not only gives greater driving pleasure, but adds to the.safety of driving as well as better braking and freedom from skids. Few of us realize what the cord tire has done for the automobile industry and we predict that this new type of tire will do even more towards making the automobile safer and more enjoyable to the driving public.

The present type of balloon tire may not be the ultimate one, but the designs even as they are now exist seem perfectly satisfactory to the average driver. No doubt chassis changesÂ will be needed to adapt these tires to our cars.

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