Radio today (Sept 1935-Dec 1936)

RADIO AT N. Y. AUTO SHOW — auto radio sales 20-65% above last year — purchases of cars exceed 1935 show by 100% * More auto radios than ever, is the opinion of exhibitors at New York's famed automotive show. Fact is that demand for radio-equipped cars is way above last year's. Manufacturers are expecting to hike their radio sales from 20 to 65 per cent this season. But even so. only a relatively small portion of the cars will be radioequipped. Entirely new ideas are being offered by some of the manufacturers, "Oldsmobile, for instance, has a deluxe set with dual speakers — one of which is mounted behind a grille in the instrument panel, the other is of the cowl type. The panel speaker is for the higher frequencies, the other for the lows. Rear-seat speakers Chrysler Motors have overcome the obstacle of difficult rear-seat reception by having a second speaker that mounts in the back of the front seat. Now the back-seaters can hear easily without those in the front listening to excessive volume. Roof antennas have all but disap peared. Most of the cars, because of the metal roofs, are using antennas under both left and right running boards. "Rigid and flexible types are being used. On factory-equipped cars only, Buick is insulating the running board itself, and using it for an antenna. Oldsmobile are also using a similar scheme in their cars. Auburn and Cord mount their antenna under the car (not running board). Ford has an aerial that extends up from the center post of the windshield. For local reception it is down out of the way, while for country use, the slender tubing is extended above the roof. Roof aerials are used in the Packard, Pierce Arrow and Graham closed cars. With Graham, the steel panel in the roof is insulated from the rest of the body. Installation of sets in these new cars is usually a matter of an hour or less. Holes are drilled in the body and chassis. Where header speakers are used, it is general practice to provide a dummy cable with which to pull the speaker leads into place. Fac RADIO FACILITIES OF THE 1937 AUTOS Make of car Make of radio Price installed Type Antenna Speaker mounting Installed by Auburn Crosley $49.50 Roof Inset Fact'y Buick Buick Buick 61.25 68.85 Insul. RB Insul. RB Dash Dash F-D F-D Cadillac Cadillac Cadillac 79.50 59.50 2RB 2RB Header Header DTr D'l'r Chevrolet Chevrolet Chevrolet 59.75 49.75 2RB 2 RB Cowl Cowl DTr DTr Chrysler Philco 59.50 2 RB Cowl Rear seat (extra1 F-D Cord Crosley Std. eq. Under car Header Fact'y DeSoto Philco 53.95 2 RB Cowl Rear seat (extra) F-D Dodge Philco 53.95 2RB Cowl F-D Ford Philco 48.00 Pole Header F-D Graham Philco 56.45 Roof* Header F-D Hudson RCA-Victor 59.95 2 RB Cowl F-D LaFayette Philco Philco 57.95 43.95 2 RB 2RB Header In set F-D F-D LaSalle Cadillac Cadillac 79.50 59.50 2 RB 2 RB Header Header DTr DTr Lincoln Philco 70.00 Roof* Rear seat F-D Lincoln -Zephyr Philco 50.00 Roof* In set F-D Nash Philco Philco 57.95 43.95 2 RB 2 RB Header In set F-D F-D Packard 6, 120 Philco 59.50 Roof* Cowl F-D Packard 8. 12 Philco Std. eq.f Roof* Cowl Fact'y Oldsmobile Oldsmobile Oldsmobile 66.50 53.00 Insul. RB Insul. RB IP-cowl Cowl F-D F-D Pierce Arrow Philco 67.50 Roof* Header F-D Plymouth Philco 54.00 2 RB In set F-D Pontiac Gen. Motors Gen. Motors 65.95 53.95 RB RB Cowl In set F-D F-D Studebaker Philco Philco 58.50 45.00 2 RB 2RB Header In set F-D F-D Terraplane RCA-Victor 59.95 2RB Cowl F-D ♦Built-in antenna — all closed models RB — running board antenna tStandard equipment in most models Insul RB — insulated running board tcry installation can be had with many of the cars — but because of inventory difficulties, many auto dealers order the radios separate and have them installed locally. At least one company (Graham) put a heavy duty battery in their radio equipped models. Car also has an oversize generator with an automatic voltage regulator which provides a high charging rate when the battery is low. Cadillac and some of the other manufacturers have similar regulators. Refinements such as these will go a long way in making radio reception more effective — for in the past excessive load on the battery meant frequent recharging. Cadillac and LaSalle have a large sounding board built into the roof of the car to provide lifelike reception from a header type speaker. Panel design Very few of the cars have radio as regular equipment — none in the popular and medium-priced field. Some cars having radio as standard are Hudson Custom, Cadillac V-16, Packard 8 and 12, Cord. Realizing that radio is an important accessory, the manufacturers are designing their instrument panels for radio. On the Ford, for instance, it is no longer necessary to lose the use of the ash tray when installing the set — the controls are mounted above the ash tray. The radio dials are designed to harmonize with the rest of the instruments on the panel — and in practically every car the radio is mounted in the middle of the panel. A choice of two custom-built models is available for most of the cars. Usually the deluxe model is a dual unit job — the lower-priced job may be a single unit affair with one tube less. Prices, around $55 Prices range from $48 and up — average being around $55. These are for sets installed with antenna (if required). Independent radio dealer has an advantage in that he can offer the car owner the choice of several models over a large price range. In addition to the large price range — the radio dealer is in a position to offer more than one brand. In view of the fact that most of the auto dealers prefer to order their radios separate and have them installed locally, it will pay servicemen to contact the auto dealers in their locality so that they can cash in on the installations. At the same time they are making contacts with future service business. 14 Radio Today