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About Sandy post. (Sandy, Oregon) 1938-current | View Entire Issue (May 28, 1981)
Pag« 5 E xp e rt tip s fo r b u y in g car a s te re o Choosing a car stereo sys tem used to be a relatively easy process Ten years ago, virtu a lly all systems were e ig h t-tra c k tape p la ye rs with basically the same de gree of quality and options By to d a y ’s sta n d a rd s , these systems were consist ently less than mediocre in sound reproduction and du rability. The m ajor determ ining factor in selecting a car stereo at the tim e was which brand would look better. Remember the amazing technological features those early units offered’’ Some players would auto m atically change tracks at every other pothole. Some could devour a tape — espe cially your favorite - and of course there was that ever- popular option of playing two or even three tracks si multaneously. A great deal has changed in the car stereo industry during the last 10 years. Manufacturers now treat car stereo systems with the same amount of concern and engineering know-how that they use with their topflight systems fo r the home. As a result, car stereo components have been ele vated in quality to state of the art standards. Systems including advanced electron ic AM-FM stereo cassette tuners, power a m p lifie rs, graphic equalizers and top quality speakers are now available and can cost well over $1,000 Times have changed and with these changes has come a need for the consumer to accurately determine which products in which price range w ill best suit his needs. Dave Robin, technical ser vices manager for Jensen Sound Laboratories, a manu facturer of car stereo speak er systems, says. "Many peo ple are intim idated by the whole process, particularly those who are unfam iliar with stereo products in gen eral. They are afraid they w ill end up buying a system 80 p e rc e n t o f U.S. d riv e rs a re se ve re More than 80 percent of the country's motorists are tough on their cars because the bulk of their driving con sists of short trips around town. Additionally, about half of the drivers in the United States m istakenly believe that driving less to conserve fuel also means less mainte nance is required. These are among the find ings of national surveys con ducted by Fram Corp on the d riv in g and maintenance habits of American m otor ists. In one survey, the driving styles of 2,100 motorists in cities across the country were analyzed. The second survey studied the car main tenance habits of 1,000 d riv ers in 10 cities The results show that ap proxim ately 80 percent of the surveyed motorists gen erally drive distances of 10 miles or less each tim e they start their cars — a condi tion that owners’ manuals call "severe" driving. Severe driving is defined as short, stop-and-go trips, extensive idling as in heavy tra ffic, towing heavy loads or driving in areas that are cold, very humid, have steep hills or heavy concentrations of dust or pollutants in the air. "Contrary to popular be lief. stop-and-go driving, not highway driving, is severe operation that puts hard miles’ on a car,” says W il liam Rolland, vice president of engineering at Fram. "During short trips, car engines never have a chance to warm up to temperatures that n o rm a lly boil away harm ful water vapor and unburned fuel. As a result, condensation and sludge can form in the oil, causing en gine wear that can lead to a costly overhaul." he adds. The most efficient operat in g speeds a re th o s e achieved on the highway. However, the surveys show that only about 18 percent of the motorists questioned do most of their driving on the highway. Adding to the wear and te a r A m erican m o to rists place on their engines is the b e lie f th a t less d riv in g means less maintenance. Appoximately 50 percent of the drivers surveyed thought that less frequent service is required when driving is re duced. "Many people have been conserving fuel by driving less or traveling short dis tances — more stop-and-go driving which means more hard miles. Therefore, d riv ers should pay more atten tion to their cars’ condition, not less," explains Rolland. To counter the effects of such driving, he advises fre quent preventive m ainte nance checks to keep cars healthy and fuel-efficient. "This is p articularly im portant fo r d riv e rs w ith small, four-cylinder cars," he adds "The strain of se vere driving is greater in these cars, because small en gines must work harder and therefore run hotter, causing the engine oil to break down and lose its protective prop erties." Rolland recommends that severe drivers change the oil, and oil filte r approxi mately every 3.000 miles or tw o m o n th s, w h ic h e v e r comes first. Approximately 75 percent of the surveyed motorists change their oil at the rec ommended intervals. How ever. about one-third said they do not always change the oil filte r each tim e they replace the oil. The oil filte r should be re p la c e d w ith each o il change," explains Rolland. " I f not, up to one quart of d irty oil can remain in the filte r and contaminate the fresh, clean oil." He a ls o re c o m m e n d s yearly tune-ups to prevent damage from severe riding conditions • « that costs too much or pro vides disappointing sound." Robin suggests th a t a thoughtful blend of common sense and very basic knowl edge w ill go a long way in shopping for a car stereo Most im portantly, let your ears — not price tags — help you decide on a system Choose components th a t sound good to you. For most people a system in c lu d in g A M -F M stereo cassette receiver and speak ers is quite adequate. Those with sophisticated tastes and larger budgets may select from a wider as s o rtm e n t o f e le c tr o n ic equipment such as graphic equalizers — control con soles that allow the operator to “ shape" music to his tastes by accenting or down playing various frequencies — or power am plifiers to allow a closer reproduction of concert hall sounds A receiver should provide "clean ” sound with good FM reception and a high quality tape playing mechanism. Features to look for include Dolby-R noise reduction, loudness contouring that ac cents lower frequencies at low listening levels, local- distance switching that im proves FM reception with varying signal conditions and separate bass, treble, left-right and front-to-rear speaker balance controls. In selecting speakers, be sure that they are matched to the power output and im pedance of the receiver and w ill fit the cutouts provided for speakers in your car’s in te rio r For sm aller cars, two speakers in the front doors are usually sufficient for sound. In larger cars, install four speakers two 6.5-inch or five and one-fourth inch models in from doors and two 6x9- inch oval speakers in the rear. The rear speakers w ill en able you to create a top quality sound environment particularly if you choose a three-way speaker system
