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About Sandy post. (Sandy, Oregon) 1938-current | View Entire Issue (May 28, 1981)
Pog» 9 Liters becom e th e m e a s u re m e n t a t th e pum p The day when motorists moan or boast about how many kilometers they get to the liter may not be too far away. Kilometers have not re placed miles on the nation s highway markers, but they share a place with miles (1.6 kilometers equals a mile) on the speedometers of new cars. Gasoline is being sold by the liter (3.78 liters to the gallon) at service stations throughout the country. Metrics are inching — or. more appropriately, centim- etering — their way into the American lifestyle The metric movement is spurred more by economics than by government pres sures. The U.S. M etric Board, created to prom ote and coordinate the nation's con version to metrics, is one of the few federal agencies without regulatory powers. Congress decided in 1975 that the m etric conversion should be voluntary about $200 per pump for the But m a rketp lace pres nation's 1.5 million pumps. sures are having an effect, O’Hagan said and gasoline is a prime ex Switching the measure in ample. dicator from gallons to liters hen the price of gasoline means only installing a gear went over $1 a gallon, ser at a cost of about $50 a vice station owners had to pump, he said, alter their pumps, explained O Hagan said the gasoline M a lc o lm O H a g a n . th e industry generally supports metric board's executive di the switch to liters — where rector state regulations make it Adding a fourth digit (re possible But they do not flecting dollars, cents and have enough mechanisms or tenths of a cent) to the pnce- installers to do it on an over per-gallon indicator costs night basis, he said. Many stations have used a half-gallon price as an inter im step in the conversion to metric. O'Hagan believes gasoline w ill be sold by the liter na tionally by January, 1983. the goal set by the national association which represents state weights and measures officials The board's focus is on trying to generate public awareness and acceptance of metrics Public attitude is still the biggest obstacle to the conversion. Some people go as far as to claim it is a Communist plot," O'Hagan said. «BFir». MORN. Aa »’«■wrrwc 9 F irs t-tim e buyers n e e d to use tips Choosing a first car can be Golf clubs or grocery bags^ an intoxicating experience. An automobile with a hatch That heady, new-car smell back can fill the bill. In the as you slide behind the wheel Renault Le Car, for exam can overwhelm you ... or ple, with the rear seats fold even the veteran car buyer. ed back, you can triple your So. before your head starts storage space. to spin with possibilities, ex There’s a lot of talk today perts advise that you brace about fro n t-w h ee l, re a r- yourself with a few basic wheel, or four-wheel drive. guidelines. In the past, most American Pierre Gazarian, execu cars used conventional rear- tive vice president of Re wheel drive, meaning the nault USA, Inc., the A m eri back wheels pushed the car. can arm of the seventh larg Now the trend is toward est auto company in the front-w heel drive (F W D ), world, has these words of and with good reason. advice. "In FW D cars, the weight According to G azarian, is in the front of the vehicle the best car on the m arket is which means better traction the one that fits your driving and handling," says G azari needs. So the first step is to an. "Also, FW D eliminates determine how you w ill use the hump down the center of your car. the car's floor that houses Will most of your driving the drive shaft of re ar- be cross-country or cross wheel-drive cars. This cre town? A big car may be sen ates m ore in te rio r room sible for long-distance d riv which is yet another reason ing, but many Americans why FW D is ideal for the are finding that a small car small cars of the '80s ” fulfills their driving needs Safety on the road is, of admirably. Also, the need course, a paramount factor. now is for efficiency and First, take into considera ec o n o m y , and m ost o f tion a car’s active and pas today’s cars have six-cylin sive safety factors. The most der or gas-saving four-cylin important element of safety der engines. is a vehicle’s ability to stay Soaring gas prices have out of trouble — how well a created a growing demand car handles, its ability to ac for small, gas-stingy cars,” celerate away from trouble, says Gazarian. “Europeans its brakes, and most im port have been driving fuel-effi ant. how well you, the d riv c ie n t c a rs fo r e v e r and er, fit the interior to enjoy a Americans are now doing comfortable attentive d riv the same." ing position. If most of your driving is By now you should be in stop-and-go city traffic, focusing on the type of car an automatic transmission that fits your driving needs frees you from constantly The next step is to list all the shifting gears But rem em cars that fu lfill your re ber that an automatic trans quirements. Then weed out mission uses more gas than the cars that don't fall into a manual, and you lose that your price range By e lim i jaunty, sports car feeling. nating those cars now. you’ll Next, think about your save time and remove the passenger seats. W ill you be temptation to buy a car you carrying riders often? If so. can't afford do them a favor by actually Finally, it is time to test sitting in the rear seats of the cars on your list. At most the cars you test drive. Are dealerships, the salesperson they comfortable with suffi w ill fam iliarize you with cient leg room? Is it a prob how the car operates, and lem getting in and out? A then ride with you on the car with front seats that test drive. move forward for easy rear Don't let his or her pres seat access would be right ence intimidate you. Drive for you On the other hand, if the car on the type of road you're a solitary soul, that's and in traffic that you'll ex less of a concern. perience every day Stop the Cargo space is another car. start it. back it up, park im p o rta n t co n sid e ra tio n . it. ’ k IN QUALITY SERVICE 1 1980 W INNER OF THE TOYOTA QUALITY SERVICE EXCELLENCE AWARD G re s h a m T o y o ta w a s th e o n ly r e c ip ie n t a n d o n e o f 3 d e a le r s h ip s in th e W e s te rn R e g io n o f th e U n ite d S ta te s to re c e iv e T o y o ta s m o s t p r e s tig io u s a w a r d fo r c u s to m e r s a tis fa c tio n a n d q u a lity s e rv ic e . N o w th e y a re o ffe r in g y o u a c h e a p to k e e p s p e c ia l to try th e m o u t. GRESHAM V ffc W ffc R P fl IUTUTA 2 4 2 n d (H o g a n ) N e a r 667-1135 W e a ls o s e rv ic e C h y s le r P ro d u c ts
