Quote:
Originally Posted by Mr.Kenny
My Dad had a 1927 Dodge Bros. that would sometimes start just by turning on the ignition, without hitting the starter. Very disconcerting when it happened, especially when still in gear. 
I think it had the low compression continental 4 that most cars used at the time... This was just a hobby car, i can't imagine it being used as a daily driver in modern traffic. Everyone sure got a kick out of it just seeing it on the road. He graduated up to a 1934 Buick...much more drivable.
He told me in the winter when he was a kid, those old 20's cars would turn over so slow, but would start. If not, you built a small fire, push it over the hot coals and heat up that engine!  |
No, it had the basic 4 cyl, Dodge motor designed in 1914.
Low compression, easy-breathing 4 cylinder mill which was designed for low octane gas and would start with anything just above kerosene.
What you describe was called "spark starting" you would place the spark lever fully retarded, turn on the ignition and flip the spark lever upward, thus starting on "compression" or rather when the cylinders had a rich mixture to ignite.
The way to insure this was to accelerate just before you shut off the spark, then flip the spark lever upward upon restarting. Really effective with Model T Fords but could work with any car with a manual spark advance.