MODERN MOTORING

Auckland Star, Volume LIV, Issue 74, 27 March 1923, Page 10

MODERN MOTORING

(BY TORQUE.)

NEWS OF THE WEEK. On Wednesday last P. Scabrook left for Wellington with the .lewett car to prepare for an attack on the record recently established between Wellington and Auckland, and from information received this morning lie left Wellington al :( a.m. from the U.1'.0.. and to ,-stablish a new record he must arrive in Auckland this evening before 1i.2.") p.m.. which should be possible providing it, has , not rained on any of the. clay loads during the daw

THE GARAGE FIRE. It is twelve years since we have 'been visited by such a disastrous lire as that which broke out in the popular garage known as Uillclt Motors yesterday morning. The loss in numbers of cars is easily a record in New Zealand. The (ire referred to twelve years ago was in Tipper's garage in Quay Street, and on that occasion many cars were destroyed. These are the only two garage tires that Auckland has suffered.

A NEW APPOINTMENT. The many friends of Mr. 11. Crawford join with mc in wishing him every success in his new position with the Vacuum Oil Co. on the management staff in Wellington. He has been uway from the Vacuum Oil Co. for the past two years, but for the thirteen years previous to that he acted as town salesman in this city. WET MAGNETOS WON'T SPARK. ] During the heavy rain storm last Kridav night quite a large number of cars we're put out of action owing to I lie water (hiding its way through the aitvents on the bonnet on to the magneto or spark plugs, and several cars had to be towed into the nearest garage: others were left out all night. The motorist who is faced with the desire or the necessity of running through a heavy rain I storm will dm well to cover the top of the bonnet with a sack, a piece of cardboard, or any piece of material; a side curtain •is a handy and effective thing to use. A heavy storm like on I'riday night, will beat right, through the radiator on to the magneto, and once the car stops in a storm there is no starting it again while the rain is on: it Is as well to ! cover something over the front of the I radiator as well to prevent trouble.

THE FLORAL FETE. The procession of car? decorated and otherwi-c at Kllerslie o Saturday last was worth going a long way to see. and the decorators .bt,erve great credit for the wonderful displays. No doubt the. motor car lends it-elf best for Mich a purpose. Almost every part of the. car can be hidden, and they run so quietly it would be difficult to know what power was driving them along, except for a slight colour of smoke occasionally -coming from the rear. No doubt the motor car has had a great week in Auckland. THE FUSE. The function of the fuse is to prevent too much current from flowing through the wire. If the current wen- too strong it might burn the insulation, melt the «ire, and even set lire to the car. There is nothing mysterious about the fuse. It is simply a short piece of wire made from an alloy with a very low melting point. It is not an uncommon sight to see a very heavy piece of copper wire used as a futie, or even a hair pin. which means that before the wire will fuse, with a big voltage passing through il, the* light wires will get so hot thai all the insulation «ill hum off, nnd us f have said before, it would not be impossible to set tire to tin- car in this, fashion. The more current the hotter the .wire, t-o that a very light 'use wire is all that is llCCPSsary on a motor car. If they continually burn out then there is something wrung with the eireiiit, or the motor. A loose j wire will burn the fuses out as quickly

OVERSIZE TYRES. Oversize tyres are determined by milling a liulf-ineli to the section, and an inch to the diameter. Tims the oveiviy.i' for '-'rl \ 41 i> .'!:! x f>. These dimensions mean that the diameter of the tyre is actually about *» or :!:l inches. Although the rims dianiffei-s .if several ~ize tyres are the smut, the :t:l x ."> is an ovei-i/e fur "•■!. x 4A. This fact may lie plainer when it in stated that a :i,'J x ~> is the third ovei-i/.e for a :m x :U. The :::: x- •"> would be too biga tyre, and would hardly fit, under the mudguard. Few people are aware (lull il :«) N UJ I ill! will take :il x 4. :iZ X -1* and •'!." X •"> tyres. The amount of iliU'ereiitial wear produced by fating an nver-i/.e tyre on one side is questionable. If there is a .'!■') x 4 on one side, and a '■\1 x .'(I on the other there i< only a difference of about :: per cent in the revolution?. SELF-STARTERS. To tiie average motorist the electric lighting and starting system is a scaled book, and very seldom is one motorist able, to help another when anything goes wrong except to have a look at the connection. There are coi-ntle.-s systems ot starters: some, where no magneto is used for ignition purposes, some with one motor to do all three jobs of ignition, generate and .start, others have all three separate. All the average owner can do is to see that the battery not allowed to run dry. keep the battery terminals clean and tight, and all other electric wires. The ammeter on the instrument board is for the purpose of indicating the amount of current that is passing into the btorage battery or discharging from it.

BRAKE INSPECTION. How long since you took, a look at your brake? This question concerns every motorist. Many serious accidents lately have been" partly due to faulty brakes. i''or some unaccountable reason, the matter of motor brakes has not hail the attention that it deserves.

If a motor ear won't start, it is annoying but, if it won't stop, it is exceedingly dangerous. There is no one who WOlild be foolhardy enough to board a train if he had any doubt in his mind whatever as to the effectiveness of the brakes.

Hut the brakes on n railway train were never so important as those on a motor vehicle. When a railway train leaves a station it, has a definite pomt of destination. It is to go by a given route over a private rigli'. of way with practically every crossing guarded by a gatekeeper or signal. It is due to pass at a given time and at a. given speed, and its destination is never changed. A motor car, with decidedly more power and speed in proportion to locomotive, travels not over a private roadbed, but upon the highway, with its course at all times an uncertainty; with no one to guard the public at its crossings, with the exception of the traffic officers in the cities and the motor car is. in the hands, oftentimes, of a novice.

The whole question of security centres itself upon one point—that of brakes. Whether or not the pedestrian or fellow motorist, as the case may be, is safe or in constant danger depends upon that one and all-important part of the car — the braking equipment.

Kfliciency of a brake depends very largely upon two things. One the percentage of braking surface in proportion lo the weight of the car—and next, the material forming the braking; surface, which is known aH brake lining. There lire brake linings on the market, as we all know, thut have a high coefficient and are all times dependable There are others. however. which cannot be counted on at all times, due to the fact that 'heir co-efficient—or, in other words, braking—tendencies may be changed by different elements.

You have, perhaps, known your brake to work beautifully at one time, and not at all another. This may be due to absorption, as some brake linings absorb water and oil. Consequently, the lining is thicker at one time than another. Some linings are soft, and the compression given them on tho brake changes Iheir thickness. and, consequently, creates an uncertainty. For this reason it is very desirable that brakes should be regularly inspected.

It is stated on good authority that a very large percentage of all accidents are caused by inefficient brakes, and a? this is a proven filer the public, the industry, the car buyer, and the car seller should work hand in hand towards brake efliciencv.

Should the judges in our court ask a few questions occasionally, when accident eases are brought before them regarding the efficiency of brakes, the public, would sit up nnd take notice. When a railway accident occurs the brake, the throttle, then the engineer are investigated. Another thing that should he borne in mind by v motorist is that he is. to a very great extent, responsible for the safety of his passengers, whether those passengers be his family, friends, or. in the case of a taxi, customers.

Would you consider a man your friend who would take out your fnmily or yourself without giving the slightest thought to the matter of his brakes, and consequently to the matter of your safety?

This matter of inspection of brakes is one that is going to be taken up by the law if motorists do not exercise the proper amount of <nrp. Laws which are the result of agitation following numberless accidents are not ordinarily lenient: and if motorists wish to avoid legislation, which would tend to take away n great deal of the joys of motoring, they had best see to it that their brakes are regularly inspected by oxperls.