"Vehicles Without Air Brakes"

["PETE KRAUS" <PETE_KRAUS@email.eushc.ORG>]

     Psycho Bob asked about the "no air brakes" restriction on his driver's 
     license.  Sounds like Nebraska's innovative way of telling him that 
     separate licenses are required for drivers of heavy-duty commercial 
     vehicles.  Most states specify vehicle weight limits and/or passenger 
     capacities for vehicles which can be driven on an ordinary car 
     license.  Maybe they mention air brakes, too.  It would be good if 
     they did, since their proper use takes some training.
     
     Air-accentuated braking systems, as opposed to hydraulic (or rod/cable 
     if you want to get archaic), generally appear on trucks in weight 
     ranges above the average U-Haul rental, so Mr. and Ms. Suburbia can 
     move into their new 4-bedroom without getting in trouble with the Law.
     
     As far as I know, Audi never built a vehicle with an air-accentuated 
     brake system, although it seems to me I read somewhere that one of the 
     German luxury car manufacturers of the '20s/'30s experimented with the 
     concept for its heaviest range of cars. Could it have been Audi's 
     corporate big brother Horsch?  BTW, anyone else interested in Audi 
     history?
     
     Pete
     PETE KRAUS@email.eushc.ORG