A Hutchinson fracture of the radial
styloid, also referred to as a “chauffer’s fracture” or “backfire fracture,”
happened to individuals struck by the
hand crank when the engine suddenly backfired during starting.
In 1908, Byron Carter, founder of the
Cartercar, came across a stalled motorist on Belle Isle in the middle of the Detroit
River. He gallantly offered to crank the car for the stranded driver. When she
forgot to retard the spark, the crank kicked back. Carter’s jaw wended up being
broken. Complications developed and Carter later died of pneumonia. When
Cadillac chief Henry Leland heard the news, he was distraught. Byron Carter was
a friend; the car that kicked back was a Cadillac. “The Cadillac car will kill no
more men if we can help it,” he told his staff. Leland’s engineers were able to
build an electric self-starter but not one small enough to be practical.
Antique Automobile, volume 78,January/February 2014, p.96.
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