Taking a Car Through the Desert
Advice to Those Who May Tour Eastward Over the Southern Route
By Harris M. Hanshue
Assuming for the sake of argument that you are about to take an automobile trip through the desert, and, never having done any desert driving are looking for pointers bearing on that subject, we shall first dwell on the equipment which it would be well to take on a desert tour.
The only implements necessary in addition to the full complement of hand tools with which the car is supplied, are the shovel and hand axe. An African water bag should contain your drinking water and a large canteen the extra water for the radiator. A few cans of tomatoes are a handy thing to have in an emergency, as one can quench thirst better and travel farther on tomato juice than on water. You should carry a gallon can of cylinder oil, sealed, at all times.
Instead of carrying a large number of extra casings, it is better to have only one or two, but plenty of tubes and blowout shoes, inner and outer. This keeps your weight down, but at the same time insures you against being hung up for want of tires. The car should be equipped with oversize plain tread tires and with a tire pump in working order. You also want a tire gauge in your pocket. You should have a set of tire chains for use in any of the outlying irrigated districts where the roads are flooded to keep them in condition.
A spring repair outfit, consisting of a bar of steel with clips to hold it in place, may stand you in good stead if your car has seen much service. These things, with the possible exception of a blanket or robe for each passenger, and some assorted nutritious canned foods, are all that are required for the most strenuous jaunt through the unfrequented wilds, for it is essential that you keep the load down to the lowest possible figure when you expect to travel in sand.
This suggests the idea that a car of light weight constructed of strong, tough material is best suited for this class of work. It should have nine inches or more clearance and the fly-wheel should have greater clearance than the axles. The carburetor and magneto should be protected, both above and below, from the dust and sand which is thrown against the hood and pan by the front wheels. All grease cups should be lined and screwed down often, so that the grease squeezes out of them, for when the bearings are full of grease no dust nor grit can get in. This is also true of the differential transmission and crank case. If the oil is running out of every joint you are sure no sand is going to destroy the gears and bearings. The oil in the crank case should be drawn off and fresh oil substituted every 500 miles of desert driving on account of the dust entering the motor through the carburetor and breather tube.
Now, having the car ready for the grind, we will consider some suggestions touching on the actual work of handling it on desert roads. When you come to the point where your road map tells you that you will encounter several miles of deep, fine sand, you should deflate your tires to fifteen to twenty-five pounds pressure, according to your load and tire size. Four and one-half inch tires should carry twenty-five pounds; five inch twenty pounds, and anything over five inch fifteen pounds, for the reason that the larger the tire the thicker and stiffer the sides, so it is necessary to let out more air to get the width of contact on the face of the tire. This allows the tire to flatten out and hold the car on top of the sand instead of sinking in over the felloes. On a traveled sandy road, always keep in the tracks, but if you get off the road, try to get back on gradually, and do not turn your front wheels sharply, as you cannot make any progress whatever in sand with the front wheels cramped. In soft drift sand or wash gravel, slow down to from four to eight miles per hour, using the low or intermediate gear and maintaining an even, steady, constant torque on the rear wheels to keep the axle from jumping, and using the power sparingly to prevent the wheels from burying themselves. On sandy grades or anywhere you stall, it is a good plan to back up and start again in the tracks you have made, and when you have advanced as far as you can, repeat the operation until you have traversed the difficult area.
If you find you can neither retreat nor advance, do not make the mistake made by all novices and most professional drivers and punish your motor and car by trying to buck through by main strength and awkwardness, but get out and shovel the sand from in front of the wheels, especially the front, and cut some brush and throw in the path of the rear wheels to give them traction, and you will be surprised how easily the car will move out. However, on approaching a questionable place, it saves time and wear and tear on car and nerves to get out and throw the brush in and make a road before attempting to drive through. In starting from a standstill in a difficult position, it is necessary to take care that the car starts gradually, so as not to put a sudden strain on any of the driving parts. This is a very difficult thing to do with a clutch which is severe and engages without, any slippage. A cone or disk clutch is likely to become very severe through dryness and dust. The Apperson contracting band clutch excels for this work, because it never starts the car with a jerk whether flooded with oil or covered with sand, but always moves it off gently and smoothly under all conditions.
Speaking of springs, do not drink from them at all, but especially if there are no animal or bird tracks around them, as this is a sign that the water contains arsenic or some other poisonous ingredient.
When driving on a road with a high center and ruts on each side, it is well to take no chances, but to straddle one of the ruts by putting one wheel on the center and the other on the high ground outside the rut and proceed very slowly in order not to slip back into the road and damage oil reservoir or differential case.
In case of an accident which would make it necessary for one of the party to go for help, do not let him walk on the desert in the heat of the day. He will make better time traveling in the cool of the morning and evening and resting in the middle of the day. Many a man has lost his life attempting a ten-mile walk in a very high temperature. But to be sure to avoid any such necessity, the idea you must carry with you when driving in the desert is that you cannot gain anything by hurrying; that conservative driving always wins over alternate speed and breakdowns, and that the surest and quickest way to arrive at your destination is to keep your car going at a safe, steady gait all the time.
