MODERN MOTORING.

Auckland Star, Volume LVIII, Issue 68, 22 March 1927, Page 19

MODERN MOTORING.

THE TAKAPUNA SPORTS MEETING. The Auckland Motor Racing Club has * good programme of ten events for decision at the meeting, to be held on Takapuna racecourse next Saturday. Forty-five entries 1 have been received, including Coleman, Moller, Mangham, Bray, O'Brien, Managh and other wellknown racing men, also several crack southern riders, who will make their nrst appearance in Auckland on Satur-1 day. " i improvements in small cars. ! Except for the definite offer of £100 cars the recent British Olympia did not disclose anything radically novel for small car users. But if design, in the main appears to the eye to have become stabilised, road trial of many of the new models will soon prove that their makers . ve not been marking time. Hidden improvements, right through the complete vehicle, characterise very many of the 1927 cars. Cher and above these major tendencie towards infinitely better coachwork ano a slightly better chassis at a reduced puce, we shall rapidly identify a host of those detail alterations which may see;.* petty but contribute so intimately to ear pleasure when the new vehicle "gets' on to the road, and builds up its sense o appreciation in us. These cover perfect encyclopaedia of conveniences oUcn as, for instance:— Tools accessibly stored. Batteries so placed that one can attend to them. greasing performable with clean hand? and in a few moments. Simplified brake adjustments. Brake linings which run for thousands °, mi ' es > instead of weakening appreci ably between breakfast and lunch. Side curtains stored in the right place; Slipping easily into or out of their sockets, without jamming on the orj and or rattling on the other; panelled ith materials which do not scratch or turn yellow. Signalling facilities which add no terror to heavy tratiic. A driving position which can be a justed to fit our bodies, as a substitute ior the old plant of forcing our limbs to a *e the best of an absurd cramped or elongated posture. Oiling systems which do not demand oo frequent replenishment, or soot our I-?. 3 ' or take half a dav to cleanse and refill. Radiators which do not imply an anxious weep every morning, and perhaps at mid-dav as well. T} re \al\es which hold their pressuie and space out that back-aching business with gauge and pump to rational intervals. Hoods which almost go up of their own coord, and do not chafe holes in themselves unless we furl them as carefully as a Jermyn Street valet puts away his masters dress clothes. .3 1 Ti ridows which open and close readily, *nd never, never rattle. " "J

Doors which do not suggest one should get a lump of chalk and a file after the tirst month on the road. Starters which do not emit uncouth and threatening noises. Engines which come to life on cold mornings without discharging the accumulators. Petrol tanks which do not drum. Floor coverings which do not wear through in front of the pedals. Floor boards which come up at a touch, and fall back into place of their own accord. And all the other thousand and one details, which seem rather trivial in cold print, but actually detract so much from a year's pleasure if they are wrong, and make a happy owner purr like a warm, well-fed cat if they are all perfect. WHERE STEAM PAYS. It is rather surprising that the unique merits of the British steam wagon ar« not better known throughout the world (says a British writer). There arc many countries, the conditions of whiei are such that for heavy work the steamer, has enormous advantages. Thus, I am] informed that, in Kenya, the price of petrol at the rail head is anything from] four to six shillings a gallon, wherea" coal is obtainable at sixty-five shillings a ton, giving the steamer enormous, advantages in respect of fuel costs. NOTES BY THE WAY. Automotive engineers point out that there is no need ior alarm if the motometer seems to register a higher radiator temperature after you have filled up the cooling system with water. It makes a difference in the reading whether the water or just the water vapour comes in contact with the steam of the thermometer. If actual contact of the water makes enough change in the reading of the motometer to lead you to assume that the motor is running hotter than usual it is best to drain off a little water. Perhaps when the. excess of water is drained off the motometer still will register higher than usual, an indication that other causes apply. Mr. John N. Willys, the famous American motor car constructor, made some interesting observations as to the trend of designs in the U.S.A. From his observations it was gathered that the comparatively small car is likely before long largely to supersede the big vehicle of the type hitherto generally associated in British minds with American output. The cult of the small ear in the U.S.A. seems to be due to a considerable extent to the great traffic congestion in and around the principal towns, it being realised that the comparatively small vehicle is infinitely handier than its larger relative, while it need not show inferiority in the important matters of acceleration and top gear performance. Upon the latter the American owner lays great stress. .