Xmas Fun
Weird and wonderful 1950s ads.
When it comes to cleaning, we take it for granted these days that every car comes with a windscreen washer system. So pity the poor motorist whose only option to improve visibility on the move was by fitting a Spraykleen Windscreen Washer for 27/6 (£1.35 today) from Wayne Smith & Co of London. This required no washer bottle as it simply drew water from the vehicle’s cooling system via the radiator hose and was worked with a dashboard-mounted manual pump. There seemed to be several drawbacks to this concept, not least the fact that you wouldn’t be able to use screenwash, and that there was a serious risk of overheating the engine by depleting the radiator on a particularly long and dirty road trip.
During the mid 1950s, Pink Paraffin was one of the big names in household fuels. As well as selling the paraffin itself, the company also retailed assorted heaters under its Aladdin brand. One such device was an undercar gadget that you placed beneath the sump of your vehicle overnight, so that your engine was nicely warmed up for those frosty morning starts. The advert suggests this could be achieved for about 4d (1p today) per week, but considering the current price of consumer paraffin this is a luxury that few could afford in these austere times.
Not all motoring accessories involved major expense and complex fitting procedures. The Rubert Feeler Gauge from Rubert and Co Ltd of Manchester was the perfect Christmas stocking stuffer at just 1/10 (about 7p today). This consisted of a small feeler gauge set of five blades, each 1¾ inches long, attached to a car keyring. Alternately, loose 4in blades were available for 9d (about 4p today) in a choice of sizes, including a plastic case.
The 1950s wasn’t just an era of mechanical innovations, but also chemical ones. Shell obviously caught this wave as they claimed in this full page ad that more than a million people had taken up their “two-tankful test” and were convinced that the newly formulated Shell fuel with miracle additive ICA was “the most completely satisfactory petrol they had ever used”. A bold claim. So what exactly was this mysterious ICA? Well, research can now reveal that ICA stands for ‘ignition control additive’. Essentially, adding tri-cresyl phosphate to petrol converted any lead compounds deposited in the combustion chambers into lead phosphate, which had a higher melting point and greater electrical resistance, thus reducing pre-ignition, pinking and rough running.
Hard as it may be to believe, the humble aerosol valve only received its patent as late as the mid-1950s. Needless to say, it quickly became ubiquitous in everything from cosmetics to cleaning products. Redozene Products of London saw a gap in the market for “high pressure lubrication at your finger-tips” and extolled the virtue of being able to direct “within a four inch circle at a distance of seven feet”. Or straight into your eyes if you mistakenly pointed the new-fangled can in the wrong direction.
One fun innovation was the Remax ‘Klearkap’ Transparent Distributor Cap from Remax of London which, as its name implied, allowed you to see the inner workings of the rotor and contact points. Depending on which vehicle you owned, it was available from 11/- (55p today) to 21/- (£1.05). As a schoolboy some years ago, I actually saw one of these caps on a neighbour’s Rover, but not being that knowledgeable about mechanical workings at the time, I assumed all cars had these fascinating caps fitted to them!
I know we are always banging on in CM about the health and safety aspects of road tyres, but would you really try to sell tyres on medical grounds? Yet that seems to be what is being suggested in this ad for John Bull tyres, with a knowledgeable GP prescribing that his patient take four tyres and call him in the morning. Whatever next? Garage mechanics offering advice on verrucas and dispensing winter flu jabs?
With that in mind, CM’S prescription for the Yuletide season is to eat, drink and be merry. In moderation, of course. Have a happy Christmas.