Are you smarter than a 5th grader?

[DocMT]

Okay, maybe not a 5th grader, but can you solve this puzzler from Car Talk?

RAY: This is from my history of automatic manufacturing series. And the pre-obfuscated version was sent in by Tom Paisley, but he would never recognize it now.

You may recall, some years ago I used a puzzler that asked if there was a part that first appeared on cars many, many decades ago that is still used on every car today, essentially unchanged. And the answer to that was the Schrader valve. Every tire has one. You put air in and it stays in.

Now I've been thinking about other parts and the distances between parts. And I was wondering if there's a standard distance on a car that is the distance from point A to point B that's the same now as it was 75 years ago.

I know it's not the distance between the brake and the gas pedal. I wish that were the case because sometimes you can step on the brake and end up stepping on all three pedals at the same time. It's not the distance between the ground and the bumper, that would be nice because when I try to park my pickup truck and your Fiat's behind me, I end up smashing your headlights. So it isn't that.

But there is a distance measured from A to B that has been the same on cars, on every car that's sold in this country, for as long as I can remember, maybe 70 years if not even more than that.

TOM: Very good!

RAY: And the question is, what is the one distance that has been unchanged for 70 years on cars?

 

[Will733]

Spark plugs?
License plates?
Door handle gap?

 

[JasonCz]

Spark plug length?
License plates length?

I was thinking the same thing about license plates...maybe distance between mounting holes.

Found this on Wikipedia though:

Earlier plates varied in size and shape from one jurisdiction to the next, such that if one moved, new holes would need to be drilled into the bumper to support the new plate. Standardization of plates came in 1957, when automobile manufacturers came to agreement with governments and international standards organizations.

 

[DocMT]

I don't know the answer yet, but I definitely like the license plate idea. That has been a standard size in the US since like forever.

 

[FourEyedWilly]

Easy! The distance from the bottom of the tire to the ground it's sitting on. :trophy:

 

[mikey's2010SR5]

Easy! The distance from the bottom of the tire to the ground it's sitting on. :trophy:

Car and tire has been around longer then 70 years.:keyboard:

 

[ALLEGRO]

For the most part, the height of both the bumpers and the headlights from the ground.

 

[JB.]

I'll say one or both of the diameters of the gas cap hole or the hole where the gas pump nozzle fits.

 

[DaveS]

I think the size of the gas cap hole varied between leaded and unleaded vehicles during the transition in the 80s to prevent folks putting leaded in an unleaded car and wrecking the cat (it did in the UK I am certain). It's a good candidate though - this is a tough one.

 

[DaveS]

Following the theme of the schrafer valve - diameter of tire valve would be my guess.

 

[techmen17]

Following the theme of diameter..... the diameter of the steering wheel!!:shrug:

 

[JB.]

How about the diameter of the radiator cap opening.

 

[DocMT]

Radiator caps come in different sizes, steering wheels come in different sizes, but I still like the license plate idea. As far as I know, U.S. license plates have all been the same size for the last 75 years. I think that's a really good guess because they did say the question applies to cars in this country. European plates are obviously much wider than ours.

 

[JohnsD90]

Diameter of the fuel delivery lines? Battery Terminal Diameter?

 

[Dagobah]

Transmission length?

 

[Dagobah]

Ooh wait!

Flywheel diameter?

 

[JohnsD90]

Cig lighter.

 

[theizzardking]

the distance from my balls to the floor at 4.5 inches....:wow2:

 

[DocMT]

Guys, it can't possibly be anything mechanical because it includes ALL cars. That means gasoline engines, diesels, hybrids, and even pure electric vehicles.

 

[DocMT]

the distance from my balls to the floor at 4.5 inches....:wow2:

You must have incredibly short legs or the droopiest nutsack in the world.