Life, 1927-06-02 · page 3 of 46
Life — June 2, 1927 — page 3: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is **not satire or political commentary** — it's a straightforward 1920s advertisement for Ethyl Gasoline, a motor fuel additive developed by General Motors. The page uses four illustrated sections showing different vehicle users: airplanes, racing cars, commercial trucks/buses, and passenger cars. Each testimonial claims Ethyl Gasoline improves performance by eliminating engine "knock" (pre-ignition), increasing power, and reducing maintenance costs. The Ethyl Corporation (25 Broadway, New York) positioned this as a premium fuel sold through participating oil companies. The messaging targets both professional operators and individual consumers by emphasizing efficiency gains and reliability. This represents early automotive marketing strategy, not editorial commentary.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Who uses YL GASOLINE -and why ? THYL GASOLINE is motor gasoline treated with Ethyl brand of anti- knock compound, the chemical in- gredient developed by General Motors to make gasoline a more efficient fuel for internal combustion engines. Its chief advantages are: Elimination of “knock” under all driving conditions—transformation of carbon from a liability into an asset-— more power on hillsand heavy roads— quicker acceleration—less gear shift- dis Uckina SSS Nay wie ing —reduced vibration—freedom Ethyl Gasoline as the fuel for air- - —— cic Lotta wr derelona ahah from the trouble and expense of car power and efficiency of their engines. bon removal. Try Ethyl Gasoline yourself. It CABS, BUSES and TRUCKS will make your car perform as never USINESS concerns which oper- ° ate large fleets of cars and trucks before. On sale through responsible are using Ethyl Gasoline because its superior performance reduces run oil companies at pumps displaying the ning and maintenance costs. “ETHYL” emblem shown below. ETHYL GASOLINE CORPORATION 25 Broadway, New York RACING CARS ACING drivers who are setting new speed records are using Ethyl Gasoline because itdevelops the max- imum power their engines are de- signed to deliver...and when Segrare drove 203 miles an bour at Daytona Beachlast March, beused Ethy!Gasoline, YOUR OWN CAR ‘ORE than a million passenger car owners like yourself have adopted Ethyl Gasoline because it givesan engine performance and motor- ing satisfaction beyond that obtainable with regu- lar gasoline. Just try a tankful! UE: Published We OSce, under act of 2, Life Pub. Co., $98 Madison Ave., N.Y. N. Y. Subseri 1879, Printed in U.S. A. Bat dia Sod Chaos Metter eet comicbooks.com