Life, 1911-03-02 · page 7 of 52
Life — March 2, 1911 — page 7: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is primarily a **product advertisement**, not satirical content. It promotes the Hupp-Yeats Electric car, priced at $1,750, marketed as a French-designed luxury vehicle available in major American cities. The ad emphasizes technical features—Westinghouse motor, Exide battery, 17-20 mile range per charge, lightweight construction—positioning it as superior to competing electric vehicles of the era. The accompanying photograph shows a elegant, enclosed carriage parked before a mansion, targeting wealthy buyers. The "joke" is implicit: despite claiming French sophistication and superiority, the car still suffers the severe practical limitations of early electric vehicles (limited range, slow speed). The text's breathless enthusiasm about features we'd now consider obvious deficiencies reflects early 1900s automotive culture.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Watch these cars multiplying in the streets of every leading city Fortunate is that manufacturer whose product wins the immediate good-will of the American people. Wherever the Hupp-Yeats Electric is seen for the first time, peo- ple stare, stop and express their admiration, Standing in front of stores, homes and business blocks, you will see them in every large city surrounded by interested spec- tators. The beauty of the Hupp-Yeats was the first of its qualifications to capture public appreciation. But this first delight is as nothing compared to the solid satisfac- tion of the inquirer wher the simplicity of the operative prin- ciples of the car are made clear. * You find straightway, for instance, that the driving qualities are unique—a system which sends the power straight from the motor to the rear axle, through a single set of gears, by direct drive. Obviously this means economy in current—as does the saving of 400 pounds in the weight over the average electric. ‘The Hupp-Yeats weighs that much less than is usual, and yet its chassis is of pressed stcel, so strong that no shock can dis- turb it. Looking to the motor, you find a Westinghouse. Coming to the battery, you find the celebrated Exide. Examiniug the bear- ings, you find them of the finest imported annular type throughout. Studying the wheelbase, you find that it is gen- erously long, 86 inches, Following this up with an inquiry into the speed, you find that the Hupp-Yeats is capable of 17 to 20 miles per hour, and a mileage range, per charge of the battery, of 75 to 90 miles in the ordinary, every-day driving by the average user. Up to this period of your investigation you have found that no electric carriage you have ever seen has excelled the Hupp- Yeats. You are charmed with the French design of the low-hung, grace- ful body, which permits the occupants to step practically on a level to the sidewalk. You cannot conceive anything softer or finer or more luxurious than its hand-buffed leather upholstery, or anything richer than the coach work. With all these superiorities revealed, you are naturally astonished to find that the price is only $1750, and this turns your de- sire for possession into eagerness to have one of the cars as quickly as it can be delivered to you. A car of French design of the very latest fashion. HUPP“Y EATS 75] ELECTRIC Stardard Equipment Storage Battery—27 cells MV— 11 Hycap—Exide in three trays. Capacity, 27 Amperesfor § hours. Motor—Westinghonse, type V— .U vehicle Motor, 48 volts, 26 mperes, 1600 to 1700 R. P. M. Series Wound. Every car we can build is spoken for in <dvance. Controller — Westinghouse, type §01-F2 vehicle motor controller, continuous torque type; five speeds forward and two reverse. Tires—Goodyear Long Distance No-Rim-Cut Electric Tires, se- lected because of their efficiency and durability. Many cities have not, as a result, been equippec with branch or agency representation. If this condition prevails in your tome town, it would be well for you to get in touch with the factory at once. That is what we meant when we said above that the Hupp-Yeats had won the immediate good-will of the American people, Hupp Sales Co., Dept. J, Detroit, Mich. Branches in the following cities: Detroit, Woodward and Warren Aves. Chicago, 1509 Michigan Avenue Cleveland, 2039 Euclid Avenue Kanses City, 34th St. and Broadway Minneapolis, 1334 Nicollet Avenue comicbooks.com