A 



Popular Science Monthly 

 A Disappearing Automobile Top 



N automobile top that drops out of 



587 



sight behind the driver and pas- 

 sengers when not in use is the ingenious 

 idea that a Colorado man proposes for 

 the automobile manufac- 

 turer who desires in his 

 product the utmost in sim- 

 plicity of appearance. An- 

 other advantage of this top 

 is the decrease in wind re- 

 sistance of the car. 



i\o part of the top pro- 

 trudes from the car when it 

 is down. The top is circu- 

 lar, being pivoted at either 

 side. The pressure of small 

 levers is sufficient for rais- 

 ing and lowering it with 

 little difficulty. I'or touring 

 car bodies two tops are nec- 

 essary, one of which drops 

 into a depression behind the 

 driver's seat, the other dis- 

 appearing into a similar 

 pocket behind the rear seat. 



An Emergency Tire Made 

 Simply of Rope 



WHEN a blowout occurs on the 

 road and no spare tube or shoe is 

 on the car and the blown tube or cas- 

 ing is beyond further repair, the usual 

 method of procedure is to rmi to the 

 nearest garage on the rim. In every 

 case this means positive destruction of 

 the rim, if the casing is removed, and 

 the serious damage of the rim or the 

 destruction of the shoe, if it is left on 



the rim in an entirely deflated condition. 

 The inconvenience caused by the acci- 

 dent may be eliminated to a great ex- 

 tent by following the tactics of a driver 

 who, instead of running in on the bare 

 rim, purchased some rope from a nearby 



A rope will get you home safely when you have a 

 blowout, if you follow directions given above 



An attractive runabout 

 top which drops entirely 

 out of sight, and also 

 reduces the wind resist- 

 ance to a very appreciable 

 degree 



farmer and wound it tightly around the 

 rim, felloe and spokes, as shown in the 

 accompanying illustration. The first 

 few turns of rope were wound circum- 

 ferentially; the remainder was w-ound 

 crosswise, so that holding places were 

 obtained at four or five spokes. Suf- 

 ficient rope was used to make the thick- 

 ness of the novel tire equal to that of 

 the rubber casing. 



If properly wound, the 

 rope-tire will not make rid- 

 ing very uncomfortable ; in 

 any event it is better than 

 destroying a rim. 



Many drivers, instead of 

 using a covering of rope 

 or other material, have 

 been successful in saving 

 the rim by stuffing the 

 blown-out outer casing. In 

 a few instances, grass ^or 

 straw has served the pur- 

 pose well, and in others 

 old rags or other soft ma- 

 terial, such as paper. 



